OK... I have essentially no idea how to hook up a wireless network for home or whether I even need/want one, so I have a couple of q's for the network savvy. :D

1) I have Comcast cable internet, right now hooked up with wires from the wall to the modem to my desktop PC. My PC is in the opposite corner of the room from the cable feed. Can I buy something that will eliminate the need to run the wire across the room?

2) I may add a laptop at some point and would like to be able to connect that to the internet wirelessly as well.

3) Does using a wireless setup slow down my surfing speed? (This is important.)

4) Can I buy the basic wireless setup now just to get my desktop PC working across the room from the cable feed, and then later add the laptop to the network?

5) Can I get the stuff I need at Best Buy or CompUSA or something? How much will it cost?

Thanks. ;)

Go to BestBuy or Circuit City and buy a wireless router. If your laptop already has a wireless network card (Intel Centrino has it built in) then you don't need anything for it, if it doesn't, then you do. There will be instructions with the router on how to set-up the network, but Windows has a pretty easy wizard to get everything working. So you would have a wire coming from the wall, to your modem, then a wire to your router, and then to your computer. It's pretty simple. There are different types of wireless routers as well. G and B (I think those are the letters). G is better than B, but B is plenty fast for a home network. I have my router in the basement, in the back of the house and a desktop two floors up, and at the front of the house still gets a signal good enough that I notice no difference in speed over the internet.

If you want to get rid of that wire accross the room, you'll need a wireless card for your desktop which should be fine, but you can loose the connection sometimes with wireless which is annoying.

I paid something like 150 bucks for a wireless network card for a laptop and a wireless router and now the two laptops and two desktops have internet access.

Ken, my housemate just picked up a .11G router for $8 at a compusa sale.. They can be had for cheap. I'm not sure what wireless cards for a pc are but I can't imagine them being expensive. I use a Mac laptop (internal antenna) at home on a .B network, and usually do my surfing from the basement while the wireless router is up on the 2nd floor (i.e. 2 floors and some walls in between) and I usually have no problems at all.

Anyway, most wireless routers support at least 256 connections, so you'll be able to use a pc and laptop on it no problem.

One other thing, wireless routers are originally setup as unencrypted. Changing this is real important.

1) I have Comcast cable internet, right now hooked up with wires from the wall to the modem to my desktop PC. My PC is in the opposite corner of the room from the cable feed. Can I buy something that will eliminate the need to run the wire across the room?
Yes you can, but I wouldn't. For the desktop I'd just run the wire.
2) I may add a laptop at some point and would like to be able to connect that to the internet wirelessly as well.
Get a wireless router, but plug the desktop directly into it w/ a cat5, and use the wireless for laptop(s).
3) Does using a wireless setup slow down my surfing speed? (This is important.)
No. However, depending on your setup, the signal my drop off every now and then, but this less of an issue today than it used to be though.
4) Can I buy the basic wireless setup now just to get my desktop PC working across the room from the cable feed, and then later add the laptop to the network?
As I said answering question 2, buy a wireless router with a built-in switch so you can connect a PC via cat5 as well. I'd highly recommend wiring the desktop if possible.
5) Can I get the stuff I need at Best Buy or CompUSA or something? How much will it cost?
Yes (to both BBY and CompUSA). Ignoring the stuipd mail-in rebates, Expect to pay ~$50-80 for a decent wireless router.
If your laptop is fairly new then it probably already has a built-in wireless adapter. If not, you'd need a PCMCIA wireless card for the laptop.
If you're still insistent upon wirelessly connecting the desktop, you'll need either a 802.11 PCI card or an external USB one. Between the two I'd definitely go with the PCI card. These three devices probably range from like $30-$50, but I haven't looked at these things for a while so that may not be very accurate.

And yes there is a big difference between being wired and wireless surfing. I have one desktop wired to the .11g router and another desktop, and or a laptop wireless. (Both desktops are the same model, 1 upstairs, one downstairs) Hard wired it most defiantly faster. In fact it's not even close. When I had the .11b router and cards, it really sucked. .11g is the only way to go.

One other thing, wireless routers are originally setup as unencrypted. Changing this is real important.

Most important thing if youre going to do a wireless setup. I was impressed when I flipped on my wireless router and found that I could browse all the available networks in the area very easily. I found that my neighbors about 200 yards away had a wireless network, theirs had encryption on it though.

With no encryption it's just that much easier for someone to hop on your connection and work their way into your system(s).

Thanks for the advice, guys. :buttrock

Any real difference among brands? I see D-Link, Belkin, Linksys etc...

And yes there is a big difference between being wired and wireless surfing. I have one desktop wired to the .11g router and another desktop, and or a laptop wireless. (Both desktops are the same model, 1 upstairs, one downstairs) Hard wired it most defiantly faster. In fact it's not even close. When I had the .11b router and cards, it really sucked. .11g is the only way to go.

It should be noted that this a latency issue. The actual bandwidth of even 802.11b is much faster than any internet connection you could get.

I just bought a wireless G router this past weekend for almost nothing after standing in line at 0 dark 30 at Best Buy. Which means I've got a linksys wireless b that you're welcome to have, just pay for shipping.

Alex

And yes there is a big difference between being wired and wireless surfing. I have one desktop wired to the .11g router and another desktop, and or a laptop wireless. (Both desktops are the same model, 1 upstairs, one downstairs) Hard wired it most defiantly faster. In fact it's not even close. When I had the .11b router and cards, it really sucked. .11g is the only way to go.

sounds like a configuration problem. my wireless connection isn't noticably slower than my wired connection. 802.11B is easily fast enough to keep up with cable or DSL, those who transfer files or print lots of stuff might want the extra speed of G.

It should be noted that this a latency issue. The actual bandwidth of even 802.11b is much faster than any internet connection you could get.

Exactly, .11b will run at 54 Mbps and g can run at 54 or 108 Mbps. The fastest residential broadband Ive heard of is 5 Mbps, hardly a challenge for wireless.

As far as brands, I use Netgear products but Linksys is also good. Ive heard a few bad things about D-Link though I have no personal experience with them.

Thanks for the advice, guys. :buttrock

Any real difference among brands? I see D-Link, Belkin, Linksys etc...
I'm a netgear guy after burning up a lot of linksys equipment. The linksys solution to any given problem is to relay, "do you have the latest firmware?" ...and then silence.

Netgear interface is better, and it doesn't have to be reset nearly as often. D-Link has a bad rep' among my gamin' friends, fwiw. No personal experience.

The 11b speeds are better than your cable modem, so no worries/impact there. 11g is faster and backward compatible, so no probs there either. 11g gets cool when you start tossing files around the network. If you're moving a few dozen cd's worth of mp3's around, you appreciate the extra speed. And, I can run mp3's over my wireless network through the tivo. Plenty of speed for that, too.

And ya, enable wep. When I set up my tivo on my wireless network, I had to scroll down a bit to find my network. My neighbors aren't very security-conscious :rolleyes

hth

*edit* another option is to look at what comcast offers. They have some sort of deal where you get increased speeds and I think it includes up to 4 machines. Might wanna check their site for details.

I just bought a wireless G router this past weekend for almost nothing after standing in line at 0 dark 30 at Best Buy. Which means I've got a linksys wireless b that you're welcome to have, just pay for shipping.

Alex

Thanks man, that's very generous. I ended up just getting a long-ass cable to run to the opposite corner of the room for now... since I don't have the laptop yet. It was a pain in the arse to get the cable all tucked away out of sight, but it was less expensive than getting a router and card (even though I did see some screamin' deals for routers and cards.) What surfacewound said made sense to me... use a cable for the desktop PC since it's stationary.

When I do get the laptop, I'll get a wireless router... probably g, just for good measure. I'll keep the desktop PC wired and just use the network for the laptop.

Thanks again guys! ;)

I use a Belkin wireless router at home. Works pretty well once it got configured, though configuring it was a PITA (required a firmware upgrade to the unit itself). They mighta fixed that out of the box, but seems like more trouble than it's worth, especially since you can get netgear or linksys gear for about the same. FWIW...