Some review about wireless routers, how they work, their advantages and disadvantages.
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How Routers Work.. (Basically - lol)\n\nThe Internet is one of the 20th century's greatest communications developments. It allows people around the world to send e-mail to one another in a matter of seconds, and it lets you read, among other things, the articles in Verizon's Learning Center. We're all used to seeing the various parts of the Internet that come into our homes and offices -- the Web pages, e-mail messages and downloaded files that make the Internet a dynamic and valuable medium. But none of these parts would ever make it to your computer without a piece of the Internet that you've probably never seen. In fact, most people have never stood "face to machine" with the technology most responsible for allowing the Internet to exist at all: the router.\n\nRouters are specialized computers that send your messages and those of every other Internet user speeding to their destinations along thousands of pathways. This article looks at how these behind-the-scenes machines make the Internet work. \n\nRouters Keep The Messages Moving\nWhen you send e-mail to a friend on the other side of the country, how does the message know to end up on your friend's computer, rather than on one of the millions of other computers in the world? Much of the work to get a message from one computer to another is done by routers, because they're the crucial devices that let messages flow between, rather than within, networks. \n\n\n\nImagine a small company that makes animated 3-D graphics for local television stations. There are 10 employees of the company, each with their own computer. Four of the employees are animators, while the rest are in sales, accounting and management. The animators will need to send lots of very large files back and forth to one another as they work on projects. To do this, they'll use a network. \n\nWhen one animator sends a file to another, the very large file will use up most of the network's capacity, making the network run very slowly for other users. One of the reasons that a single intensive user can affect the entire network stems from the way that Ethernet works. Each information packet sent from a computer is seen by all the other computers on the local network. Each computer then examines the packet and decides whether it was meant for their address. This keeps the basic plan of the network simple, but has performance consequences as the size of the network, or level of network activity increases. To keep the animators' work from interfering with that of the folks in the front office, the company sets up two separate networks, one for the animators and one for the rest of the company. A router links the two networks and connects both networks to the Internet.\n\n------------------------------------------------------\n\nThe router is the only device that sees every message sent by any computer on either of the company's networks. When an animator sends a huge file to another animator, the router looks at the recipient's address and keeps the traffic on the animator's network. When an animator, on the other hand, sends a message to the bookkeeper asking about an expense-account check, then the router sees the recipient's address and forwards the message between the two networks. \n\nOne of the tools a router uses to decide where a packet should go is a configuration table. A configuration table is a collection of information, including: \n\nInformation on which connections lead to particular groups of addresses \nPriorities for connections to be used \nRules for handling both routine and special cases of traffic \nA configuration table can be a simple as a half-dozen lines in the smallest routers, but can grow to massive size and complexity in the very large routers that handle the bulk of Internet messages. \n\nA router, then, has two separate but related jobs. First, the router ensures that information doesn't go where it's not needed. Th
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here are some: PC's, internet conection, small network... do you want to provide wireless service for customers that have their own laptops?? are u gonna serve food, drinks?? r u gonna charge for usage time? may need some software to check that...
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You can connect a wireless router to a DSL modem in order to accomplish this.  I've used a Netgear router successfully for this that I purchased for a steal on ebay.  If you go this route, decide between 802.11b and 802.11g by weighing cost against desired speed.  802.11b routers are cheaper and offer the same distance, but a limited speed output.  802.11g routers are a new technology and are more expensive but offer a faster connection speed to your modem, and consequently to the internet.\n\nAnother alternative if you've been a loyal customer of a service like Verizon DSL for a year or more is to ask them for one of their upgraded combo modem/routers that they've been handing out to new customers for the past year.  My father successfully accomplished this by calling and mentioning that he was growing more interested in switching to a cable internet service because of speed limitations.  They seem pretty prone to throwing technology at a potential lost customer in attempts to appease them.
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friend, hardwiring is more secure and much faster period. Wireless is ok, I used to do it and then got sick of it's problems. I also know what I'm doing because I have been an IT Consultant for years.\n\nSeriously, do you absolutely need wireless? Break out the drill and run some cat 5 cables to a router. You can get 50 foot cables on ebay for about $15 each and guess what? I guarantee your problems will go away.
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Wireless Networks\nWhat I know\n\nBegin with the high speed DSL or cable service.  As far as I know, wireless networks would need one of these, although it is not certain that a simple wireless network needs a dedicated line; it might work with a dial-up but configuring the wireless router might be impossible since it seems to depend of internet access to do so.\nAssuming broadband is available, the next step would be to install a wireless router, such as a Linksys WRT54G, a device capable of speeds up to 54 Mbs.  The device itself has an internet-like address of 192.168.1.1 and each device attached to or accessing it has an address which converts the last digit to the form 100 or 101 and so forth.  Thus, a laptop with a wireless card might be address 192.168.1.101.     One can access and configure a Linksys router by entering the address 192.168.1.1 into a web browser and is immediately presented the configuration screen. The person doing the configuration change must have the user name and password originally entered at the time the device was installed, assuming the person installing it changed the default factory user name and password.  The Linksys router is installed by first attaching your main computer to the DSL or cable modem, then using the supplied software on the CD accompanying the router, following the steps as directed on the installation CD.  It directs you to attach an Ethernet cable from your computer to the modem, either DSL or cable, then arranging the wires from wall outlet or TV cable to the modem, then from the modem to the router, plugging cables into the jacks as shown.  If one follows this set of instructions, internet access is immediately available through the router.\nA simple wireless network need not be entirely wireless. One or more computers can be wired to the router, usually up to a limit of four, plus other wireless devices.  The Linksys routers are limited to 253 devices and defaulted to 50 total devices, but realistically it is not likely anyone would attach that many to a network.  My original configuration had the desktop wired to the router via Cat 5 ethernet cable and the laptop using a wireless card.  Later I installed a Netgear  USB adapter to the desktop and converted it to wireless.  The advantage of attaching the “main” computer by cable is that the speed is much faster, around 100 Mbs compared to 54 using wireless, although Netgear makes a wireless router capable of 100 Mbs.This higher speed would be an advantage when two devices on the network are exchanging files or accessing a shared printer.\nHaving installed the router, the next step is installing or inserting a wireless adapter in each computer.  This usually implies installing drivers and/or utilities supplied with the device on a CD.  If the main computer is wired to the router, it is only necessary to attach the Cat 5 cable from the back of the computer to one of the available ports on the router.  The computer must have an Ethernet (RJ45) port built in or a network card installed to do this.  At this point, no network exists, but internet access at each computer, wireless or wired,  normally comes on automatically with little trouble by the user.\nNow for setting up a true network.  Assuming each computer is running Windows XP, the next step is allowing Windows to create the network.   On each computer it is necessary to go to the Control Panel and select Network Connections, then select Network Setup Wizard. Windows will construct the network using the names of the computers involved and the name of the network which you gave the wireless router.  Simply follow the windows presented making sure you know the name you have given to that computer and the name you gave the network when you installed the router.   Where are the names to be found?  The computer name is located internally and is accessed by going to the Control Panel and selecting System.  A tab is labeled Computer Name and it also has the workgroup name
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Many people have had problems with this router, from the VoiP to the Wireless feature. Read more at: http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/125822/rpem/ccd/productDetailReview.do#tabs
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Discovering a router signal from 1/2 mile away is simple.\n\nThe real problems start when you try to get your  wireless card to send a "mouse click" on a 1/2 mile hike back to that router.\n\nNot saying it can't be done, in fact it's done every day by major corporations, municipalities, government agencies and others with tons of cash to burn. \n\nSave your money, time and sanity. Sign up with a service provider.
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There is no best one, however, your problems may be related to how you've set it up.\n\nThings to do:\n\nTurn off SSID broadcasting\nEnable MAC address filtering\nTurn on WEP or WPA encryption\nMake sure you're on a clear channel\n\nLastly, other devices, such as some cordless phones (those running on the 2.4ghz frequency) etc, can interfere with your wireless router.\n\nIf you've done all those things, and you still have problems, there may be issue's with that particular router, i.e., maybe it's a lemon.
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What Do You Think Wireless Networks Just Exist Naturally ?..They've Just Been Floating Around Us Since The Begining Of Time ?.. One Computer MUST be Hooked Up Or A Wrieless Network Doesn't Exist ... You Prolly Won't Understand This Answer Asking Such Questions .....
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IT will give you some understanding but very little real world practical experience.\n\nMost employers would like to see that you have actually seen and worked with various routers and cables rather then just read about them.  Nice to know if you can distinguish between twisted pair and co-ax cable.
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You can get a wireless router, but they aren't that cheap, and to set up for dial-up internet might be a bit unusual.
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If you are just looking for 802.11b you should be able to get one pretty cheap.  If you want to put a new wireless card in your laptop later that is capabable of 802.11g, then you may want to get a router with both b/g compatibility.  You'll also want to see what type of encryption it has like WEP, WPA, etc.  You'll will want secure your wireless connection with the highest level of encryption possible.  Also, don't forget to change the default password for the router.
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A device that forwards data packets along networks. A router is connected to at least two networks, commonly two LANs or WANs or a LAN and its ISP’s network. Routers are located at gateways, the places where two or more networks connect.\n\nRouters use headers and forwarding tables to determine the best path for forwarding the packets, and they use protocols such as ICMP to communicate with each other and configure the best route between any two hosts.\n\nVery little filtering of data is done through routers. \n\nA system designed to prevent unauthorized access to or from a private network. Firewalls can be implemented in both hardware and software, or a combination of both. Firewalls are frequently used to prevent unauthorized Internet users from accessing private networks connected to the Internet, especially intranets. All messages entering or leaving the intranet pass through the firewall, which examines each message and blocks those that do not meet the specified security criteria.\n\nThere are several types of firewall techniques:\n# Packet filter: Looks at each packet entering or leaving the network and accepts or rejects it based on user-defined rules. Packet filtering is fairly effective and transparent to users, but it is difficult to configure. In addition, it is susceptible to IP spoofing.\n# Application gateway: Applies security mechanisms to specific applications, such as FTP and Telnet servers. This is very effective, but can impose a performance degradation.\n# Circuit-level gateway: Applies security mechanisms when a TCP or UDP connection is established. Once the connection has been made, packets can flow between the hosts without further checking.\n# Proxy server: Intercepts all messages entering and leaving the network. The proxy server effectively hides the true network addresses.\n\nIn practice, many firewalls use two or more of these techniques in concert.\n\nA firewall is considered a first line of defense in protecting private information. For greater security, data can be encrypted.\n\nI have a router and a firewall.  A combination of both will provide the best security.  The more layers an attacker has to get through, the less likely he will try.  I have a D-Link router and I use ZoneAlarm as my firewall.
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well, if you all live REALLY close together 1 person could buy a router and everyone else could buy wireless cards and if you all live within 400 feet of each other, you all connect to the router and therefore be networked
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From what i understand , that router acts like a hotspot.
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The capacity of 802.11(a,b, or g) systems is limited by two main factors; 1) The capacity of the DHCP Server and router and 2) the available bandwidth of the radio interface.\n\nThe typical residential wireless router has a built-in DHCP server to automatically assign wireless (and wired) users an IP address.  Residential DHCP servers usually max out at 256 users.  Enterprise wireless networks use dedicated DHCP servers capable of handling 1000s of users.\n\nThe next limitation is the radio link.  As you know, 802.11g supports link rates up to 54 Mbs.  54 Mbs is achievable only under the best conditions, meaning no other access points or users on the same channel in the area to generate noise.  \n\nAs users are added, the maximum rate available to each user is lowered accordingly, until the number of users are generating more noise than usable signal and effectively jam the access point.\n\nAnother factor in radio capacity is called Near-Far affect.  This occurs when one user has acquired service at a great distance with no interference.  Then a second user, located much nearer to the access point, acquires service and the Near users strong signal over powers the Far users weak signal, effectively jamming the Far users and reducing the access point capacity.
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The range of a wireless router depends on the brand of router,its location,how many walls,interference from other equipment etc...\nYou can buy booster antenna for some brands but 2 miles for a off the shelf router?I can reach mine from about 50 yards on a good day.