Setting up wireless internet.

[Azazel]

My wife just got an iBook for work and she wants me to set up a wireless router so she can use it at home. I'm running a 2.8ghz P4 with Winblows XP Pro SP3.

So - what do you guys recommend?

Az

[Azazel]

Don't all jump in at once

Oh yea, where's a good tutorial on how to set it up - or should I just follow the instructions that come with the router?

My biggest concern is getting an apple iBook to connect to it - should there be issues?

Az

[Lesk]

Oh you have a wife, never ever forever would have guessed.... ever.

But anyway, to set up a wireless router...
1. take the ethernet cord that links your PC and cable modem (or dsl modem or wahtever) and remove it from your pc... and attach it to the back of the wireless router (the jack that says "Internet")

2. Configure the router. (if CDs came, use those!)

3. You will definitely need wireless network cards. (Unless your mac and pc have internal wireless detection devices)

4. To configure the iBook with the router... just have it detect the wireless signal via whichever internet wireless connection program it has. "Find wireless networks" and when you see your router "connect".

[bair]

id recommend a linksys router, and setting it up is pretty much self explanatory. instructions/CDs are good

[Lesk]

Or you can just get a super long ethernet cord... i mean it's better that way anyway... DL speeds, and no d/c and all that... etc.

and also, it's not JUST the router that matters BUT ALSO the wireless card. My room isn't too far away from the router... (perhaps 11 +- 1 yds away) and like... i get sucky connections. Sometimes it's intermittent while others it does 10 mb/sec. (when IT COULD do 108)...

now of course i'm def not gonna be able to do the ethernet trick seeing as how........ that would require A REALLY ******* LONG CORD... (which you can still buy) but i got all my cords free from school (just gotta go down to pc support and SERENDIPITOUSLY ask for cords (or even Anti-Virus CDs and Microsoft Office)).

___________________

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reads she straightens her blouse"
"She put back the letter, one tear
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the letter concluded

P.S. All my love"

[Azazel]

Yes I have a wife. There's quite a lot about me you'd never expect.

I'm not sure that I'll need a wireless card for my pc - I was looking at several linksys routers that had ethernet outs.

I'm wondering does anyone here have specific experience running an iBook like this. I believe it has the AirPort wireless adapter.

Az

[Lesk]

http://www.atpm.com/8.04/networking.shtml

It says here that "The iBook has two network options: one built-in 10/100BaseT Ethernet port and one AirPort card slot for wireless use."








_____________

oh angel, angel
your emerald eyes have faded to brown
oh angel, angel
please come back to me...

[Arkhinor]

Heres what little i have to offer as its fairly non-specific.
My oldman went out n bought a wireless modem router ..DLink i believe for our familys network which consisted of like 4 laptops and one Mac (for who knows WHAT reason...someone thought it was worth it for graphic deign)

Suffice to say most, if not all Macs so far as i've seen have AirPort, which means whatever you plug into your PC Az, will work with your wifes iBook Mac thingie..

If it helps cool, if not - happy to have wasted someones time

[Azazel]

That's the kinda feedback I need. This iBook has airport and the other wireless card too I think.

Ok, I'm leaning to a linksys router. I'll have to look around on eBay some or buy.com. Wife is worrying the **** outta me about it.

Az

[Valynn]

Just as a report, I dusted off my old iBook G3 600 today to see if it would work with my D-Link (802.11n draft) wireless router. I currently have the router set up with MAC address filtering but no encryption.

I turned off the MAC address filtering so that I could connect to it my iBook G3 600 in "Mixed 802.11n, 802.11g, and 802.11b". I manually entered the MAC for my AirPort card when I couldn't get connected. It worked fine connected via Ethernet. Then I turned the MAC filtering back on.

I could get AirPort to connect with my wireless router set to either "802.11b mode" or "mixed 802.11g and 802.11b mode". Something about the mixed mode (with 802.11n) didn't agree with AirPort. I know this could be dependent on my particular wireless router, but I thought I'd just mention it anyways.

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jsp ... 7&tstart=0

If your ibook is like mine, it has the older airport card in it which only delivers 10mbps connection speed ... you can use almost any of the wireless router/hubs that are 802.11b capable. If you do not plan on getting a newer Airport Extreme capable devices, simply go for one of the cheaper 802.11b router/hubs. If however, you are going to have other computers with the newer 802.11g cards, then get one that has 802.11g. If you already have a "hub" that is not wireless equipped, I think you might be able to just add a wireless access point.

I prefer belkin or d-link products.

http://forums.macosxhints.com/archive/i ... 22817.html

D-Link router (this model)--when set for mix n/g/b cards won't let b cards on. If reset to mix b/g then they can get on. Tried it and sure enough it allow the iBooks runnning B cards to work. D-Link aware of the problem and working on a solution--(famous words in IT land)

http://forums.dealnews.com/read.php?4,2773002

Hope some of this helps.

[Azazel]

Not that anybody cares, but thanks to the comments here as well as conversations with Genghis and Doink - I went with the Linksys Wireless-G router. The install disc was crap, but their customer support was (aside from the thick Indian accent on the tech support) very helpful. If they knew how much I knew about working within a shell, and how comfortable I am with computers it would have been even faster.

Much to my wife's amusement, all she had to do was turn on the Mac and it instantly found the network - and with the addition of a password she's been at work ever since.

Thanks,

Az

[Arkhinor]

Hooray!

*cares* haha

[ghnat]

but could you re explain it to someone with computer illiterature so that they could understand?

[Derubael]

Wish I could have helped ya out - ghnat if you're still having headaches pm me or talk to me in-game. Ill get you set up, or even if you're just curious I'll fill you in.