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Spookster
12-16-2003, 05:38 AM
I am about to set up a wireless network at my gf's house. This will be my first wireless experience. There will be two desktops, one with WinXP and one with Win98 and then one laptop with WinXP.

The laptop came with the wireless router and wireless card for the laptop. Now I need to get the other two PCs set up. I have noticed there are two different ways to hook PCs into a wireless network one way using a wireless USB adaptor and the other using a wireless PCI card.

Which one is better/faster?

Also I was considering not setting the PCs up as wireless. If I chose that route what would my options be to get everything hooked up? I suppose I could hook the cable modem into a hub and then hook both the PC's and wireless router into that? Thoughts? Suggestions?
missing-score
12-16-2003, 01:18 PM
Im not 100%, but i think the PCI would be faster than the USB, and probably less likley to fail + you dont have to use the USB port.
kwhubby
12-17-2003, 05:19 AM
I say the PCI...

Ive had many problems with the usb wireless connections, ive never gotten em to work. Ive only tested the usb in XP, but I would definately go with the PCI. I usually only use linksys stuff, and all the linksys usb wireless things seem to be completely nonfunctional, its really anoying.
sage45
12-17-2003, 06:54 AM
PCI... USB as a standard still has a ways to go as far as stability in supporting the continuous transmissions required for network protocols...

-sage-
Spookster
12-17-2003, 07:10 AM
Ok PCI it is. Is it feasible to have the PCs wired in and only have the laptop wireless? I've never worked with anything wireless so I don't know what the best way is to go about this. With a wire network its pretty straitforward but this adds a little complexity.
sage45
12-17-2003, 06:15 PM
I know that most wireless hubs/routers also have a couple of wired ports on them... If not you can use the uplink port to uplink to your wired hub/router... You'll actually find that wireless is only as complex as you want it to be security-wise...

-sage-
Spookster
12-17-2003, 07:13 PM
Originally posted by sage45
I know that most wireless hubs/routers also have a couple of wired ports on them... If not you can use the uplink port to uplink to your wired hub/router... You'll actually find that wireless is only as complex as you want it to be security-wise...

-sage-

See that is what I was wondering if the wireless router would have an output port for a hardwire. I've never seen a wireless router before.