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DSL News
Unwiring Begins At Home
Article #: 4
| Date: | | | Written By: | By Stephen Manes | | Article: | Every home net is different. I can't describe precisely how to install yours; that's what setup discs, manuals, Web sites like jiwire.com and, increasingly, very big books are for. But a few tips can point you in the right direction.
Go With G. For now, Wi-Fi comes in 3 flavors. The ubiquitous 802.11b has a nominal speed (meaning roughly twice as much as you'll ever get) of 11 megabits per second, and the compatible 802.11g, 54 megabits. Both use the 2.4-gigahertz unlicensed frequency band shared with microwaves and cordless phones. The outsider, 802.11a, delivers a nominal 54 megabits in the currently less-crowded 5-gigahertz band, at the expense of range and compatibility, but you can get dual-band products that accommodate all three standards.
For most people, B works fine, but I recommend springing a few extra bucks for G. It won't make the Net seem any faster over a cable or DSL modem, but it can come in handy if you share files or stream media. Rarely mentioned by vendors: When B products--like a Centrino notebook--run on a G network, they slow the G stuff down.
Get Certified. The Wi-Fi Alliance tests products to ensure compatibility and lists the ones that pass at wi-fi.org. But read labels carefully: Many G products are certified for B but not G. They should work, but there are no guarantees. Don't count on vendors to let you retrofit old products with new features.
Wall Yourself Off. Don't even think about setting up a home network without a router or access point. The firewall built into most routers helps keep your data safe from hackers, provided it's turned on. Sharing your connection without a router is courting trouble.
Don't Unwire Unnecessarily. If your desktop PC is near the broadband modem, get a router with multiple ports and plug the PC into it with a cheap wire instead of going with a pricier Wi-Fi adapter. It's easier to troubleshoot, and the spare ports may come in handy for configuring other Wi-Fi products.
Network First, Encrypt Next. Setting up a network can be infuriating. Until you've got everything talking, don't make it more complicated by encrypting it.
But you do need encryption to keep invaders from getting behind your firewall. When possible, buy products certified for the new Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) scheme, which is very hard--but not impossible--for outsiders to crack. But WPA can be tricky to implement and may require special software, and it's unavailable on many current devices.
For now, you may be better off sticking with the simpler and almost universal Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) scheme, whose failing is that it can be broken by determined hackers who probably don't live near you. Learn to enter WEP key codes in hexadecimal characters (where 0 through 9 and A through F are the digits) and write them down in a safe but unforgettable place; some products let you enter easy-to-remember passphrases, but the way they generate keys isn't standardized, and you'll need the hex codes to get other devices working.
Check For Updates. Wireless (news - web sites) products often develop glitches that get fixed only via Web downloads. Few products actually know how to get the updated software automatically. But updates are the rule, not the exception.
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