Talk to me about Wi-Fi....

jdw174 · 02-22-2013, 06:44

I currently have DSL hookup. Can I just get a wireless router, plug in the DSL and use a wireless laptop anywhere in the house or am I missing something here?

CitizenOfDreams · 02-22-2013, 06:47

Yes, that's exactly what wireless routers do. Connect it to your DSL modem, set it up and enjoy being wireless.

deerslayer01 · 02-22-2013, 06:51

That is all there is too it, unless you have a very large house. Then you might have to add an access point or wi-fi extender. If you have neighbors close by, make sure you turn on the security features for your router so they cannot easily access it.

jdw174 · 02-22-2013, 06:58

Thanks guys. Right now I'm just considering it. Have a desktop that has cables running all over the place. Only thing I hate to give up is my 20" monitor...:(

crash22 · 02-22-2013, 07:19

Get a wreless adapter for your pc. It plugs into a usb port and allows wireless to your pc with the 20" monitor. About $20 and works great.

sbhaven · 02-22-2013, 07:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdw174

Thanks guys. Right now I'm just considering it. Have a desktop that has cables running all over the place. Only thing I hate to give up is my 20" monitor...:(

Why would you have to give up your 20" monitor?

Like crash22 said wireless usb adapters for the PC are cheap.

***Knellysford*** · 02-22-2013, 07:26

So, Wi-Fi and wireless router are both the same animal???????

***HerrGlock*** · 02-22-2013, 07:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knellysford

So, Wi-Fi and wireless router are both the same animal???????

A wireless router uses Wi-Fi to connect to computers and other equipment (Roku, etc)

However you can get a Wireless Access Point (WAP) which uses Wi-Fi to connect but is not a router.

Wi-Fi just means the 802.11x standards of computer wireless connections.

**yellolab** · 02-22-2013, 10:43

The router is the hardware that "converts" your incoming signal to wireless- thereby giving you a Wifi network.

Kevin

Don H · 02-22-2013, 11:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdw174

I currently have DSL hookup. Can I just get a wireless router, plug in the DSL and use a wireless laptop anywhere in the house or am I missing something here?

If you do get a router be sure that you enable encryption like WPA2-PSK [AES]. Leaving your router open (unsecured) is not a good idea.

tcruse · 02-22-2013, 12:37

There are two radio bands currenly around 2.4gz and 5g. 2.4g is shared with a lot of other stuff but has better coverage in general. 2.4g has channels that overlap so there are really only 3 that can be used without some interference. 5g has much fewer conflicts and more full channels available. So get a "dual band N router/access point". Many routers can be configured to be an access point also. Repeaters are generally something to be avoided if possible. Always enable encryption to the level that your clients can support. WPA2 is probably the norm today.

bill4282 · 02-26-2013, 23:23

You'll find that you can access the 'net from your wireless router cheaper than thru your phone carrier and I access the 'net with my Wii, IPhone, Nook, net book , laptop and printer thru the router. Means I can be downstairs on my IPhone and send a doc to the printer without climbing stairs.

droidfire · 02-27-2013, 00:50

Has everyone forgotten that wireless routers generally have physical ports - you could keep your same wired connection to the computer, nothing changes except you have wifi access to everything the computer has through the cable...

sbhaven · 02-27-2013, 05:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by droidfire

Has everyone forgotten that wireless routers generally have physical ports - you could keep your same wired connection to the computer, nothing changes except you have wifi access to everything the computer has through the cable...

The op asked about using their wireless laptop anywhere in their home. Much easier to do that wirelessly then stringing Ethernet wire all over one's home.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

costanza187 · 02-27-2013, 08:35

Run the cable from the DSL/Cable modem into the "in" jack on the router. It might require a little setup, but it is really easy... you might want to password protect your network.

After the initial setup, you can use wireless laptops (which i think they all are now), iPod Touch, XBOX 360. Wii, Blu-Ray players etc... on your network.

Yes I think most wireless routers have like 4 ports to accommodate non-wireless stuff.

Ralff · 02-27-2013, 10:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by droidfire

Has everyone forgotten that wireless routers generally have physical ports - you could keep your same wired connection to the computer, nothing changes except you have wifi access to everything the computer has through the cable...

I did not find this post hard to understand, but it seems that some did.

bill4282 · 02-28-2013, 14:30

I have a router and modem but can't get my cordless home phone to connect with my DVD player 😃

**DWARREN123** · 02-28-2013, 14:42

Just make sure the wireless router has the distance you need for your house.
I use a Netgear N300 for up to 25/35 ft. works well.

Drjones · 02-28-2013, 16:30

No, it's not that simple.

I know with AT&T DSL you have to put the modem into "bridged" mode and then enter the user/pass combo they give you into the proper section on the router.

It's extremely easy and unless you're a total idiot your ISP tech support could walk you through it in 10 minutes, but it's probably not plug & play, at least not with AT&T's DSL.

Ralff · 02-28-2013, 21:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drjones

No, it's not that simple.

I know with AT&T DSL you have to put the modem into "bridged" mode and then enter the user/pass combo they give you into the proper section on the router.

It's extremely easy and unless you're a total idiot your ISP tech support could walk you through it in 10 minutes, but it's probably not plug & play, at least not with AT&T's DSL.

That's odd ... I had ATT DSL a few years ago and once your connection was active it supported a router set to DHCP just fine. Just sounds weird that you'd have to set your modem to bridged mode just to supply an IP to your computer/router/whatever device was first in chain.

sbhaven · 03-01-2013, 13:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drjones

I know with AT&T DSL you have to put the modem into "bridged" mode and then enter the user/pass combo they give you into the proper section on the router.

I did not have to do that with my AT&T DSL modem. The Speedstream 4100B DSL modem was configured to do the PPPoE on the modem. All I had to do was configure the router for automatic DHCP on the WAN/Internet port and everything worked fine so long as the router's local network IP address was not set to the 192.168.0.x range. If one wants the router to do the PPPoE login then they would have to configure the DSL modem into bridged mode, then set their router for PPPoE login and supply the login information.

With ATT Uverse, the router they supplied me, when AT&T ported my area from DSL to Uverse, cannot be put into bridge mode. The option simply isn't included in the AT&T router firmware. I have to use their router. There are several ways to run my own router behind AT&T's but it takes some configuration of one or both routers to make that happen.

Drjones · 03-04-2013, 09:34

With straight DSL, I've never seen it work the way you describe; AT&T always told me to bridge the modem.

Whenever I've seen a pre-existing ATT DSL and third-party router setup, it's always as I describe with modem bridged too.

Guess it wouldn't hurt to try it the way you guys say....

And yes I know that unfortunately the U-Verse crap can't be bridged....yuck.