Using my laptop to the max? need tips on networking

[zveruga]

Hi all,

I bought a compaq armada laptop a year ago, it is my first laptop. However, it came without a manual, and being a newbie when it comes to networking I have a few dumb questions:

1) Infrared port -- what is it for? What kind of stuff can i use it for?
2) Can I access the internet from the street, say from Central Park, NYC? What would that take/cost? I dont have a wireless card. Is there such a thing as wireless WAN so that i can access the internet from the street? Or perhaps like a cellular internet provider that would make browsing the internet from the road as easy as dialing a cell phone?

thanks so much!

Sam

 

[minendo]

SprintPCS Wireless Web Modem

 

[zveruga]

Standard internet connection from sprintPCS = 14.4 kbps... Rediculous!

 

[corkyg]

Originally posted by: zveruga
Standard internet connection from sprintPCS = 14.4 kbps... Rediculous!

Yes it is - wireless internet connections are in their infancy at the present time. Coverage is very spotty and usually only found in big cities. The IR port on laptops is for links to such things as keyboards that have that capability. They have to be line of sight and unobstructed, and most people simply turn that port off in BIOS to save the IRQ it uses.

Many telcoms are now beginning to offer wireless connections, but they are very expensive and slow. You'd be lucky to get 14.4!

 

[zveruga]

I heard that if I have a certain kind of wireless card, Ill be able to access the internet from some NYC parks. Is this true, and if so, how do I do this?

THanks for the IR info.

 

[corkyg]

Accessing Wi-Fi from a park is a tall order. Most of those access points are in highly populated places like airport terminals, etc. Here is one such service:

Wi-Fi

Here is another place you might get some leads from:

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