How do I get wireless Internet?

[WiFi.com]

In order to get a wireless Internet connection you can go about it a couple of ways. I will highlight the most common methods to setup a wireless connection below. The topic of wireless Internet and WiFi connectivity is available on many sites; use your favorite search engine and query terms like; "wireless internet" or "wifi." You will be much more pleased with the results if you combine multiple words or phrases through the use of quotes, just like I did with "wireless internet."

You create a home network - wireless environment using your existing Internet connection. If you do not have an Internet connection send me an email or PM through these forums and I will lead you in a good direction.

"How do I get wireless Internet?"

First you need to know where you are going to use your wireless connection. Commonly people want to have a wireless Internet connection in thier homes and in other cases people on the run want to be able to access the Internet while at remote locations. So, lets break down the options with an "At Home" section and a "On the Run" section - each described in the upcoming paragraphs.

"At Home"
There is a good chance you have multiple desktop computers and likely a laptop or two that get used at home. The idea behind a wireless connection at home is; the cable or DSL modem are in one room and I dont want to re-wire the house or find a cable long enough to get my Internet in another room. You may even want to use the Internet on your back porch.

The easiest way to turn the wired connection into a wireless environment throughout the home is to purchase a wireless router. Dont get scared off, now! Granted, the first time I heard someone mention "router," my response was something like "Of course, a router," but I was actually thinking about how much trouble it would be to set this thing up. Dont they sell those extension cord dealies? Anyhow, dont worry yourself of the terminology...

There are a number of manufacturers of "wireless routers." (hint: search term in quotes for your favorite search engine)

The four most prevelant names to me are; Linksys, Belkin, Netgear, and D-link. A company called Cisco (Parent company to Linksys) also makes routers but in general these are higher end jobbers for the big dogs (Corporations and the like). You can reserach each companies website for further details or you can take my word for it. Read on at your own risk!

The last wireless router I purchased was through Amazon. You can also use Best Buy, Circuit City, Buy.com, or other online retailers. If you prefer the brick and mortar stores; as mentioned above, Best Buy and Circuit City have a selection of routers for home usage. Or your local computer hardware store will likely have them in stock too.

Ok, so now you know how you are going to purchase the router but what do I do once it's at home and out of the box? Surprisingly, I have found the step by step instructions offered by the router manufacturers are quite good. Please follow the directions, especially if you consider yourself a technophobe! I consider myself somewhat tech savvy and had trouble the first time I tried to setup a router without following the directions.

In essence this is how it works; an Internet cable comes out of your wall at home. This is connected to something called a modem. From there, the modem is connected and transmits the signal to your computer - all of this is wired, of course. With your new wireless router it will be a little something like this; an Internet cable comes out of your wall. This is connected to your modem. From there, the modem is connected to the wireless router. Then the wireless router sends a signal to your computer(s) one of two ways: 1) through ports on the back of the router which allow you to connect a wire from the router to the computer, or 2) wirelessly to any computer which has a Wireless Network Interface Card (referred to as a wireless nic) and the card is enabled to receive a wireless signal.

Now, if you plan on using the wireless connection on a desktop computer, then you will likely need to purchase a wireless network interface card. Im relatively sure most desktops come with a nic, but it is probably a "wired" version. In this case I would recommend purchasing a USB wireless card - this means plug in directly to the computer ports rather than taking the computer box apart and inserting it into the motherboard. If you are comfortable playing around inside the computer, then by all means dont let me stop you!

For your laptop computer; most laptops now come equipped with a wireless nic pre-installed. There should be information about this for you in the manual for your laptop. If you determine there is not a wireless nic in the laptop, then again I would recommend purchasing a USB wireless nic.

Once you have the wireless router setup and your wireless nic sending and receiving a signal you should be able to surf the net in most, if not all, of your home. The typical signal strength for a home wireless network is about 100-500 feet (depending on the structure of the home). I have lots of thick walls at home and can easily get a signal in and around the outside of the house.

I strongly recommend applying the security settings on your router. Although most wireless Internet hi-jackers (refer to the term "war driving" in your favorite search engine) just want the free Internet, it does expose your network and possibly your personal information to outsiders. The router instructions will direct you on setting this up - look for the acronyms WEP or WPA - these are for encryption (password protecting) of the network. Once your router is secured you will need to apply the security code to each of the computers you would like to have access the network.

I use the Linksys Wireless-G 4-port router for my home network and apply the WPA encryption for protection. The router cost me about $60. If you need a wireless network interface card it will set you back between $40-$100. Those are one-time payments for the hardware you get to keep, so if you move you take the router with you!

"On the Run"
This assumes you are using a laptop because lugging around the desktop everywhere would be a painful experience. This is going to be short and sweet, especially if I just bored you with the home networking portion of this post.

You need to be sure you have a wireless network interface card installed on your laptop. Most newer laptops come with them standard. If you dont have on installed, I recommend purchasing a USB wireless nic.

Ok, when on the run you might want to access the Internet at an airport, cafe, bus station, hotel, or any number of other spots. In this case you will be exposed to "pay for" and "free" wireless Internet hotspots. The general term for this is "WiFi." To determine where you can find a hotspot I recommend calling the location you plan on using the Internet and verifying the availability of WiFi. Or, you can use a hotspot search engine like the wifi.com hotspot tool linked with the "sun" icon at the top of the page. You can also find hotspot specific sites which offer more detailed information by typing terms such as; "wifi hotspots" in your favorite search engine.

Some of the hotspots are "pay for" wireless Internet connections. Many hotel chains for example offer WiFi at a daily charge of around $12. In my opinion this is extortion! There are also "pay for" providers such as those offered through the wifi.com providers page. The benefit to these wireless Internet service providers is they offer monthly subscriptions at around $20 per month. Not cheap, but if you plan on using the connection often it will easily pay for itself.

You may also search for "free wifi" or "free hotspots" in your favorite search engine and identify a site which offers information about free wireless Internet locations. Some examples of free WiFi locations are; Panera Bread, McDonalds (not all offer wifi), some city parks, and select hotels. Again, it may be best to call ahead if you plan on accessing the Internet from a location other than home.

[WiFi.com]

Here is a little add-on to the previous post for addiitonal information and clarification:

There are two general ways to access the Internet; via a wired connection or wirelessly.

In general about 70%+ of Americans access the Internet through a broadband (highspeed) wired connection (I think that number is actually closer to about 85% now). There are a smaller and shrinking percentage of Americans who use a dialup connection (through the phone lines). Either way, these are wired connections.

The primary broadband access methods from home are Cable, DSL, or Satellite. The cable connection is often offered through your cable t.v. provider and the mode of connectivity is actually through the same lines used to send the signal to your t.v. The DSL connection is typically offered by your phone company and the mode of connectivity is through the phone lines. However, unlike dialup, DSL offers much higher bandwidth and connection speeds. The satellite connection is primarily offered through independent satellite providers and the mode of connectivity is through a wireless signal which is collected by a dish you attach to the outside of your home. That signal is then transferred to the modem through a cable/wire from the dish. There are advantages and disadvanatges to each, you should research to verify which is best for your purposes.

Wireless connectivity is actually just starting to blossom, especially in the U.S. There are thousands of wireless hotspots - which are generally referred to as "wifi" hotspots. These hotspots are actually local area networks which have transformed the wired signal at a central location (router or access point) and then send the signal wirelessly to devices within the hotspots range. Typically these ranges are anywhere between 50-300 feet from the access point.

This WiFi technology, along with a sister technology called WiMax, is how cities and large metro areas are now implementing WWANs, or Wireless Wide Area Networks. Essentially a number of wifi nodes are spaced out to create a mesh which allows users to move throughout the network without dropping the connection - think of it as a small cellular network used specifically for the Internet. WiMax is WiFi on steroids. The bandwidth and speeds are greater and the signal can be transmitted longer ranges - miles, instead of feet. Many municipal wireless Internet networks are using a combination of WiMax and WiFi mesh technologies to blanket the areas with access to the Internet.