wireless adaptor

[riptide]

I have seen an HP desktop which has b/g wireless connectivity on it. I am keen to get a desktop with wireless because of limited space I have my computer equipment upstairs and the router is immediately below it downstairs. As a few of you will know my laptop has a corrupt file on it but is still going strong at the moment and this has b/g wireless on it with no problems.

I would like to know if I buy a wireless usb adaptor with "N" capability on it, BT recommend the Belkin one for their Homehub, will this override the b/g signal, as I understand this may give me a slightly better connection and also may make the computer slightly quicker.

I know the Apple imac is completely compatible with its' wireless technology, but it is so expensive and I can get an HP desktop for a lot less.

Thanks for your help.

Riptide

[ChuckFickens]

for a desktop you would be much better getting a wireless card to fit inside the machine, they are more reliable and have better antennas.

something like

http://www.amazon.co....qid=1263464442&sr=8-3

As for the wireless that comes with it, it depends if it's an extra card (like above) in which case simply remove it, or if it's built onto the main board, in which case you will be able to disable it.

That said for most people wireless b/g is plenty fast enough, even the slowest wireless is normally faster than most peoples internet connection so it's not the wireless thats the bottleneck in most cases.

[ummmm]

So Chuck...I have a desk top that isn't wireless. I can buy a card and move it upstairs?

[ChuckFickens]

Yes, as long as you have a wireless router and the positioning of the desktop is within range of the router. you probably wouldn't need a wireless n card though (unless your router is wireless n) so a cheaper card would do

http://www.amazon.co....id=1263464852&sr=1-12

Though I don't normally recommend that anyone uses wireless for a desktop, I'd always recommend running a cable to it if possible.

[ummmm]

Why's that?

[ChuckFickens]

Wired is generally faster, more stable and more secure.

the one and only single benefit of wireless is mobility and as people are not likely to pick a desktop up and walk round the house using it then mobility is irrelevant on a desktop

[riptide]

Why is it that everyone says use ethernet cabling. My download and upload speeds are exactly the same whether I am wireless or cable, is it because you only get 54Mbps speed on wireless. What other advantages are there of being cabled. I am never disconnected with my Homehub on the wireless facility. Would recommend it to anyone, my previous router the BT Voyager was not as good. I have to say though BT is not much good on speed, although a friend over the road has Virgin and they are even worse. Suppose it depends how near the exchange you live and we obviously do not.

Thanks

Riptide

[dizmouk2009]

You may not have been unlucky enough to have wireless problems but some people do. Ethernet cable isn't too expensive and you get the 100mbit connection. I onced tried a usb wireless network 'stick' and I had connectivity issues all the time, I didn't even need to use wireless since I've got a 30 metre CAT5 cable running around my house :)

[ChuckFickens]

As I mentioned above, the speed of your wired or wireless network won't be the limiting factor for your internet speed. either way of connecting the computer will be faster than your internet.

Wired is a more secure and stable connection, if you use wired nobody can sit outside your house and (potentially) snoop on what you are doing on the internet, which although unlikely is possibly with wireless.

A good solution to save you running network cables round the house are the home plug network adapters, these enable you to "piggy back" a network signal over the mains cabling in the house.

http://www.amazon.co....id=1263465553&sr=8-10

[riptide]

Thanks all, comments appreciated. I must say it is one of the the things that is worrying me that if I change and I find that I am having connection problems that I will have to move the new desktop downstairs which is not really practical, although could be done. Also they are saying that windows 7 is having connectivity problems with wireless, hence the though of an apple mac. My present laptop has lasted me 5 years, but is about to expire, corrupt file. Have had no problems whatsoever with it other than it is a bit slow. It is a Sony with an Intel Pentium M750 1.86Ghz and with only 512 MB Memory. Am wondering now whether would be better to go for a 17 inch screen laptop rather than a desktop but with a better spec. At least they come with wireless built in. I use it with the battery out as it is never moved around the house, presume this does it no harm?

Riptide

[dizmouk2009]

The only harm it will be doing is if there is a powercut and it turns off prompty without being properly shutdown. Although the chances of that doing any damage is extremely rare. I never turn my desktop off and our power goes off 3 times a week because of the dodgy wiring. I've never had any problems related to that. If you do get a new laptop, be aware that it might not run without the battery, some do, some don't.

[ChuckFickens]

"Also they are saying that windows 7 is having connectivity problems with wireless"

It's those famous "they" people again, I believe they are closely related to "a bloke in a pub"

There are no issues with windows 7 and wireless it works very well, anyone who says they have had problems it is due to either user error, or they are trying to install windows7 on old equipment and there are not windows7 drivers for the wireless card.

Why not simply take your laptop upto where you want to put the desktop and see what the wireless signal is like there.

[riptide]

If I am wired and not wireless, although my BT Homehub is still showing on the wireless network, does this mean that if someone was sitting outside my house, they could not access my computer. Highly unlikely but am interested to know.

Must say the Dynamode home plug looks an excellent piece of equipment, means I could buy a desktop without wireless and just connect the plug to the router downstairs, and connect the desktop via cable to the other plug upstairs. Brilliant, I could then look at the Dell computers which seem to be very good value for money.

Thanks

Riptide

[ChuckFickens]

If you are not using the wireless it would be best to simply switch it off. but as I believe homehubs come supplied with the wireless security turned on as default somebody would have to crack your wireless network key first, also to access your computer you would have to setup the computer with file sharing enabled and have it set to not require a password.

In short the chances of somebody accessing your computer through the wireless is very slim, it is however a possibility but would require a very certain set of unlikely circumstances

[Mobius1]

Much like riptide, I think wireless is a very viable solution that many people don't give enough credit to, and that includes for use with desktops.

Ethernet cables are more secure, but it's a non-issue if you know how to manage wireless security. With modern WPA2 encryption the chances of someone hacking into your wireless network are slim to none providing you use a strong password. A hacker will pick the easiest, and many people still use WEP.

Secondly, 100mbit connection speed is only really relevant if you're interested in transferring files between systems. If the network connection is primarily for the Internet, then a 54mbit connection is more than sufficient, and as mentioned, the network speed isn't a limiting factor for most net connections. If it is, then you use wireless N.

Using wireless might be questionable if you only have a single desktop, but it's a better solution than running wires every which way if you have multiple PCs in your home, particularly if one or more of those machines is a laptop. Not to mention the fact that mobile device internet connection is fantastic. My wireless network supports two desktops, a laptop, an iTouch, iPhone, 360 and PS3. If the majority of those were wired (where applicable) the place would be a mess.