Mr. S Posted May 16, 2004 Share Posted May 16, 2004 My parents have cox high speed cable internet and we also recently bought a dlink wireless router for the cable modem as well. Being back from college, I set up my computer in my room and Im trying to think of the best way to set up my computer to our wireless network. We bought an older 802.11b router, so I know the top speed is about 11 mb/s. Is it hard to install an actual wireless network card, I dont know if I really want to install something and I heard its hard to get the compatibility to work. Is it worth buying one of those usb wireless adapters, one came on sale in Best Buy that is the same brand as our router and I was thinking of just buying that as I heard its easier to set that up but it does not have as fast a connection. If anyone can let me know if there really is much a slowdown between a usb adapter and actually installing a card, let me know, as well as any other differences that may be there. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarhog Posted May 16, 2004 Share Posted May 16, 2004 By no means am I a computer whiz, I'll say that up front. I've used DLink in the past, and I found their router and wireless system to be difficult to setup and maintain. Others may have had different experience with their stuff, and my problems might be due to my lack of formal computer training. When I recently bought a new computer, I went with a Netgear router and am using their USB relayers on the computers in my house. It required nothing more than plug and play to install. And its worked like a charm. I have nothing but glowing reviews for the Netgear system. Just my :2cents: I'm sure DLink works well for some, but I found it complicated for a non-expert. Netgear was a piece of cake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulmer1 Posted May 16, 2004 Share Posted May 16, 2004 I work for charter cable and I personally would reccomend if you can to use ethernet. It is much more dependable in a lot of cases. The wireless card is the hardest part of the system. If you have a friend you trust with computers maybe they can help. USB connections tend to overload easier and the modem ends up needing to be reset more often. As far as the setup goes I unfortunately am not to familiar with it so I dont have much advice on that.But try with ethernet if its too complicated for whatever reason USB is not bad hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pga Posted May 16, 2004 Share Posted May 16, 2004 My girlfriend had to get a laptop for working at home and they were supposed to send a guy over after they gave her the laptop and the router and card. The guy didn't show, so I did it myself. I am not a computer wiz, but I am fairly literate and it only took about an hour total... opening boxes and setting up cables and what-not. NetGear router/card (with rebate from Staples) is great stuff as far as I can tell. She has had no probs. Newer PC with cable modem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. S Posted May 17, 2004 Author Share Posted May 17, 2004 i see, so im guessing there wouldnt be too much a difference between installing a card and just using a usb device? I just wanna make sure i get a fast connection using as much as the full potential possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Punani2 Posted May 17, 2004 Share Posted May 17, 2004 Get a wireless ethernet bridge. It's really easy to setup. It doesn't need drivers!! Just plug it in to your router first to program it and then plug it into your computer and you're done! I have one the Linksys WET11 Wireless Ethernet Bridge. It works great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ancalagon the Black Posted May 17, 2004 Share Posted May 17, 2004 Just my I'm sure DLink works well for some, but I found it complicated for a non-expert. Just to make you feel better: my ex-roommate and I had D-Link. We had endless trouble setting it up, and their customer service department offered little to nothing. We never quite got it working right. Here's the good part: my roommate was a computer-science graduate from Harvard who was doing his PhD in computer science at Berkeley. Tell me that he didn't know what he was doing, I dare ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. S Posted May 17, 2004 Author Share Posted May 17, 2004 Originally posted by Johnny 'Luscious' Punani Get a wireless ethernet bridge. It's really easy to setup. It doesn't need drivers!! Just plug it in to your router first to program it and then plug it into your computer and you're done! I have one the Linksys WET11 Wireless Ethernet Bridge. It works great! that does seem like a good idea. However, I was trying to look for a cheap solution, like either installing the network card or the usb plug, each of those i can do for 30$ and is from the same dlink company as the router we have. Heh, with all these bad reviews for dlink, shoulda told my family first before my brother went out and got it, plus I think he shoulda gotten the faster one anyways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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