Which companies are good for networking?

[gujuguy007]

My friends and I were having a discussion on which companies were good for networking (specifically retail products). One of my friends kept going on and on about how Microsoft was doing extremely well and excelling well beyond the larger compaines. I agreed that Microsoft was doing well, but not ahead of the huge compaines (ie Linksys, D-Link, SMC, etc.) Who is right and what are your thoughts about the big named companies?

This is my top 3:

Linksys
D-Link
Intel

 

[spidey07]

They're all the same.

 

[azev]

Yup yup... couldnt agree more

 

[Macro2]

Linksys is owned by Cisco, a rather well known networking company. <cough>

OTOH, it seems like it whatever you can get a deal on at the time for home routers.

Mac

 

[Nothinman]

Microsoft networking equipment is just going to be relabeled hardware from someone else, like their keyboards, mice, joysticks, etc.

Linksys is owned by Cisco, a rather well known networking company. <cough>

And Linksys uses (or used, depending on what Cisco does with them) Linux in a lot of their products, so you could get a Linksys router with Linux on it and you can do practically anything with it.

 

[IceNineJon]

Stay away from Linksys. I've had so many problems with them...Their wireless USB NIC has problems on my Win XP machine where it just starts transfering data and freezes unless you physically block the antenna and then it will come back (very odd). The same model NIC on my Win ME machine (I have two of them) one day stopped connecting to my router. You have to run a special driver program for it and the program said it could find the router but no internet connection (it had been working fine for weeks previously and no one changed anything). So I called Linksys and they kept blaming the router (despite the fact that I could ping the router etc). They absolutely refused to acknowledge that it was their crappy drivers. So, I installed Win XP on that machine and haven't had a problem (except for the same freezing problem I have on my other machine). So, it was probably their crappy driver.

My neighbor has a Linksys bridge so that he can share my internet connection. When we enabled WEP, the bridge kept locking up...he'd have to power cycle it. So he called up Linksys who told him that if WEP is causing it to freeze to just disable it (yeah, great idea). I was shocked that the solution to fixing a feature problem is to simply not use that feature (hey, if your air conditioning doesn't work, just don't use it, right?).

I'm never going to buy a Linksys product again! Aside from that, the only other company I've really delt with is Netgear (who makes my wireless router). No problems with them...yet.

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Nothinman
Microsoft networking equipment is just going to be relabeled hardware from someone else, like their keyboards, mice, joysticks, etc.

Linksys is owned by Cisco, a rather well known networking company. <cough>

And Linksys uses (or used, depending on what Cisco does with them) Linux in a lot of their products, so you could get a Linksys router with Linux on it and you can do practically anything with it.

Little bit of trivia - most all networking OS are derived in some shape or form from unix. Cisco IOS was (and still is) a modified BSD kernal.

 

[Nothinman]

Little bit of trivia - most all networking OS are derived in some shape or form from unix. Cisco IOS was (and still is) a modified BSD kernal.

But it's so modified you can't use anything else on it, a lot of their home setups are just a normal Linux setup with a special driver for the hardware and a web page to configure it. In theory if you can get ssh access and root you can install packages and do whatever you want, you could have a IPv6 capable WIFI router if you wanted =)

 

[JackMDS]

Microsoft Mouse Keyboards etc. are leading in the market, and they are usually of good quality.

Most of the Entry Level Network ?peddlers? (including Microsoft) do not design and manufacture their Network Hardware. They use OEM ?shops? and their main contribution is to the color and look of the plastic casing. Their main effort is directed to the ?Car Sales Tactics? applied to the advertisement.

Microsoft Network hardware is bellow mediocre. It sells rather well among home consumer because the average home consumer is ignorant about Networking, ignorance usually leads to fear. All of the users heard (and probably using some thing by Microsoft), thus buying Microsoft seems to reduces the fear.

Microsoft requirements to install Entry Level Wireless Cable/DSL Router.

28MB of available hard-disk space needed.

You do not need 1 byte on the hard drive to operate a Wireless Cable/DSL Router.

These 28MB goes for the semi-functional Wizard, it is pure ?Fear Reduction?.

Fear Reduction is important, but it does not mean Good Hardware.

 

[spidey07]

You crack me up sometimes Jack.

Thanks for the laugh.:beer:

Fear Reduction is important, but it does not mean Good Hardware.

 

[paruhd0x]

I concur on Linksys being as good as a pile of poop. I've used over 5 products of Linksys and have had nothing but troubles. I like to recommend D-Link to my customers, as I have had great experiences with their products.

 

[ScottMac]

I've used a Linksys BEFSR41 for years with no problems. Aside from some features from one to another, they're all the same inside. If one has a feature you need and another does not, then get it. Otherwise, don't sweat it.

The way most folks do "home networking" it really doesn't matter.

Jack pretty much nailed it: Pick a color you like and plug it in.

FWIW

Scott