Networking basics - questions from a newbie

[Davbaron]

I am completely new to networking . The reasons I am thinking about doing it are as follows.
1. My main computer interest is flight sims
2. My present computer is a Pll 450 using a TNT 1 graphics card and is due for an upgrade
3. It has a fault whereby I cannot get into the display properties of the graphics card. Many efforts have been tried but I have given up on that
4. and decided on a lGhz,, Nvidia Ge Force GTS 2, 256 Ram system . ( Blow the savings you only live once)
5. The Pll isn?t worth selling, hence I hope to network it with the new system so that I can load the downloaded files from it to my new system ( cheaper than an external zip system ) and I can play head to head sims with my grandson or friends.
My questions are
 Can I ( should I) use the present system as the ?master ? and the new system as the ?slave?, bearing in mind the files are on the present system as are the modem and internet settings ( external USB modem) . Won?t that be easier to have it that way round?
 Can I use the ?slave? to play internet sims thru the ?master ? , and if I do will the specs of the ?master? override the higher specs of the ?slave ?-
 Likewise , will the display fault of the? master ?affect the display facilities in the ?slave?
 If I make the new lGhz system the master , can I still copy the files from my present system to the new one

What do you experts recommend?

Thank uou for your patience and I can see the smiles at the naivete of the questions , but I am relatively old ( still beat most of you at golf though-lol ) and I am no techie. It will take all my efforts to set up a networking kit, even though they spell everything out .
Cheers

 

[warlord]

"Can I ( should I) use the present system as the ?master ? and the new system as the ?slave?, bearing in mind the files are on the present system as are the modem and internet settings ( external USB modem) . Won?t that be easier to have it that way round?"

That is the way I would do it, the resources needed to run the internet connection will be supplied by the PII, thus leaving you will a more optimized 1GHz (not that 1GHz needs it ). you are correct in assuming that this would probably be easier since all you will have to do is drop in two NIC (network interface cards), and connect them, instead of moving hardware from one comp to another.


"Can I use the ?slave? to play internet sims thru the ?master ? ,.."

yes, depending on the setup you use there will be a few issues with this, but nothing you shouldn't be able to solve.


"...and if I do will the specs of the ?master? override the higher specs of the ?slave ?- " "will the display fault of the? master ?affect the display facilities in the ?slave?"

I'm not real sure what you mean in the first part, but I can tell you that both machines will be independent. the client (1GHz machine) will be dependent for the internet connection, but one will not be affected by the others hardware. an example would be, some peole use a old striped down P200, with the bare minimum of hardware to act as the host because they are cheap.


"If I make the new lGhz system the master , can I still copy the files from my present system to the new one"

yes, you can enable file/printer sharing which will allow you to move all the files you want.



My first suggestion would be to familarize yourself with the search functions of this board (if you already haven't), you may find your answer faster than waiting for someone to reply. if you don't find your answer, everyone here is willing to help.

my other suggestion would be figure out exactly what kind of connection you are going to set up. then you can search the board for some key words, ie if you are going with a cable connetion, you can search for "broadband". you can also find some threads that will help explain the basics of networks.

good luck.

 

[TerreApart]

Interesting Questions, here is my opinion:

What you have planned will work fine, whether you choose to share the net through your primary computer or your secondary.

One observation: If you have a USB-dialup modem, why not setup both computers to use it independently. USB modems are a snap to move back and forth, if you lay the ground work correctly. Unless you feel both computers will use the net at the same time on a regular basis, this may be the easiest setup. Both computers i seriously doubt will be able to share the dial-up connection to play on the net with any degree of quality at the same time.
However, if you wish to share the internet connection using (1) to share with the other, i have a few questions...

1) do you play these net games on a regular basis or off and on?
2) when playing single player mode, do you want all the performance you can sqeeze from your system?
3) do you mind having to keep both computers on, just so you can play on the net?

These questions will help, decide which PC should do the sharing(if it's even needed).

There are MANY programs written to help you share that connection off either PC, which one would be your choice(if you want suggestions post here you will get ALOT of reply's). The systems WILL still be independent, the sharing PC "will" take a performance hit from sharing the connection(normally NOT a huge hit, and with your current CPU setup-should be no big deal). Connecting these PC's together will not make them faster at all(tho possibly slower), the 1G will still be a 1G, and the 450 will still be a 450. Video will have NO effect on the networking(or sharing) at ALL, so don't worry about your old TNT, it won't cripple your new system.

Setting up a home network is an excellent idea regardless how you route the net connection. It can be the funnest part of owning a computer, when you can taunt your grandson as you FLY around him in circles. Once the home network has been properly setup, both systems will have the same abilities to share and copy files, printers, etc, as long as you set it up correctly. What you plan on using is a peer-to-peer network, meaning no ONE PC will be more important than the other. My choice would be to use the 450 as your sharing PC, and for file storage.

Good Luck, networking can be a blast, and a pain.

 

[Davbaron]

To Warlord and Terre part
thanks a lot guys for your advice and encouragement.I have obviously found a very good forum with some nice helpful fellas in it
thanks again

 

[Davbaron]

Terre
I play online regularly. I would anticipate that I would use the best spec.computer to play the sims every time, but i wouldn' t mind having to have both computers switched on while I played online.Although I am online regularly, I still play singleplay more than online.
What would you suggest in view of this

 

[TerreApart]

Davbaron,

Using the 450 to share the connection would be great if you don't mind keeping it on. Alot of the people on this board use the same setup(old PC turned into a connection sharing/file storage PC). Dig through the posts on these boards, there have been over 50 dealing with exactly what your about to do. Skimming through them i noticed ALOT of people like Sygate, not sure if they ment for a dialup or a dsl/cable connection tho.

Good Luck...