Wireless networking question

[VegasD]

I'm thinking of picking up a low end laptop purely for surfing the web around the house, and if I do I would like this to be setup on a wireless network. This would be the only system that uses wireless and I do not wish to change my current cat5 setup for my other two PC's.

So my question is - is this possible? What do I need? Can I simply daisy chain a wireless router off of my Linksys DSL/Cable router (BEFSR41) and then buy a PCMCIA wireless card for the laptop?

 

[MDE]

You could just get a router with a built-in 4 port switch and swap out your current router, or just get a wireless access point with a CAT5 uplink and hook that up to your router.

EDIT: Don't be surprised if the Mods move this thread to the Networking Forum.

 

[VegasD]

Thanks, I never even noticed the networking forum before - my apologies.

So, is this what you are referring to? http://www.linksys.com/support/display.asp?biggie=big_befw11s4v2.jpg&prid=415&scid=

That looks like a router that would do both cat5 for my desktops and wireless for my laptop. I'm not familiar with all of the various wireless standards - if I were to buy that would I need some exact special wireless PCMICA card for the laptop or would practically any do? (I might be going to a computer show in a few hours which is why I ask)

Thanks

 

[MDE]

Originally posted by: VegasD
Thanks, I never even noticed the networking forum before - my apologies.

So, is this what you are referring to? http://www.linksys.com/support/display.asp?biggie=big_befw11s4v2.jpg&prid=415&scid=

That looks like a router that would do both cat5 for my desktops and wireless for my laptop. I'm not familiar with all of the various wireless standards - if I were to buy that would I need some exact special wireless PCMICA card for the laptop or would practically any do? (I might be going to a computer show in a few hours which is why I ask)

Thanks

That router would do the trick. To keep it simple, look at 802.11b (commonly referred to as WiFi) and 802.11g (commonly called 54g). 802.11b is 11Mbps and 802.11g is 54Mbps. For simple web surfing 802.11b is fine, but don't expect to transfer huge files over it without waiting a long time (just imagine a really fast cable modem connection, that's about the speed). 802.11g is backwards compatible with 802.11b, but it'll drop down to 11Mbps.

 

[GtPrOjEcTX]

Originally posted by: VegasD
Thanks, I never even noticed the networking forum before - my apologies.

So, is this what you are referring to? http://www.linksys.com/support/display.asp?biggie=big_befw11s4v2.jpg&prid=415&scid=

That looks like a router that would do both cat5 for my desktops and wireless for my laptop. I'm not familiar with all of the various wireless standards - if I were to buy that would I need some exact special wireless PCMICA card for the laptop or would practically any do? (I might be going to a computer show in a few hours which is why I ask)

Thanks

that picture that you linked to had a nice compatibility chart on it. Right now there are basically three standards:
*802.11a
*802.11b
*802.11g

If there could be a "best one to get" it would be the last and newest technology (802.11g). It is basically 802.11b but with higher transfer rates if I'm not mistaken. But with the chart I referenced you see that 802.11a is only compatible with 802.11a wireless networks, but 802.11b and 802.11g are interchangeable (can work on the same network).

As for product specifics, I actually have that router you linked to for a home network. The computer upstairs is on it with a usb adapter card. On a cable modem internet connection, the computer upstairs gets about a maximum of sustained 180k/sec download rates when the computer downstairs (directly cabled to the router) gets about 250k/sec sustained rates.

Its a good solution for me. But here's your dilema: should you go with 802.11b or 802.11g. I'd check the prices on both and see which is more feasible for you do to.

 

[AFB]

You can use a wireless router, but you would need to replace your current router with it. If you do not want to do that, you need a wireless access point.

 

[WackyDan]

Originally posted by: MDE

Originally posted by: VegasD
Thanks, I never even noticed the networking forum before - my apologies.

So, is this what you are referring to? http://www.linksys.com/support/display.asp?biggie=big_befw11s4v2.jpg&prid=415&scid=

That looks like a router that would do both cat5 for my desktops and wireless for my laptop. I'm not familiar with all of the various wireless standards - if I were to buy that would I need some exact special wireless PCMICA card for the laptop or would practically any do? (I might be going to a computer show in a few hours which is why I ask)

Thanks

That router would do the trick. To keep it simple, look at 802.11b (commonly referred to as WiFi) and 802.11g (commonly called 54g). 802.11b is 11Mbps and 802.11g is 54Mbps. For simple web surfing 802.11b is fine, but don't expect to transfer huge files over it without waiting a long time (just imagine a really fast cable modem connection, that's about the speed). 802.11g is backwards compatible with 802.11b, but it'll drop down to 11Mbps.

Keep in mind that 802.11G does not run 54Mbps. You are maxed at roughly 22Mbps per channel(most AP's), and you can only be on one channel with any given machine. So, yes it is faster than 802.11b, but RF interference will still downgrade the per cahnnel performance. Ultimately, 802.11b is a little bit cheaper than "g", and your broadband connection will still be feeding you at the same speed regardless of what spec you buy into. If you do a lot of file sharing on your local network then "g" might be the one you want for the added speed.