What equipment do we need?

purplepatch

Be gentle with me, I'm not a techie.

The inlaws wanted to get a computer so they can email/received photos and vids etc from the rest of the family and do some moderate surfing. They are extremely limited for space, no room for a desktop whatsoever, so we've gone for a laptop, this one from ebuyer.

Now we've got to sort out internet access for them. Despite various complaints I've read about plusnet, think that speeds/throttling is not an issue for the sort of usage they'll have so we're probably going to go with them. The £15 pm option comes with either a free 1 port router or a free wireless 1 port router. Their phone point is not in the room where they are likely to use the laptop, so I'm guessing they need the wireless router - is that right?

Also, is there any other equipment that they are going to need? A wireless adapter of any sort for example? I know the laptop has integrated wireless lan (whatever that might be!!) but as I'm completely clueless, I'd appreciate confirmation of anything else we'll need.

Omertron

You are right, the laptop has a wireless connection built in. You will need the wireless router from Plusnet and then you should be good to go.

Chippy_Minton

Yes, they'll need a wireless router. The laptop has built in wireless so no other equipment is needed.

stockwellphotography

Hi.
You are right that you need the wireless router.
You shouldn't need anything else, as the laptop's inbuilt WLAN is effectively a wireless adapter and will communicate with the router.
They can be a bit of hassle to get set up (WPA/WEP keys etc.) but if you follow the instructions and the various threads on here on the matter, you'll be absolutely fine

S

purplepatch

Gosh, what a fab place the techie forum is, many thanks guys for your superfast replies!


:T

purplepatch

Another quick question. The laptop and router have now arrived and broadband has been activated. The instructions for setting it all up look fairly straightforward, but a friend told me that as it's wireless, I should take steps to ensure their internet connection is made secure, both from unscrupulous individuals who might try to steal personal info and also to stop other people using their connection for their own internet use. Any tips on how to do this?

superscaper

Have you looked at the wireless sticky? Encryption is also pretty straightforward.

purplepatch

superscaper wrote: »

Have you looked at the wireless sticky? Encryption is also pretty straightforward.

Thanks, don't venture onto the techie board very often so didn't know it was there. Off to investigate further...

:beer:

superscaper

purplepatch wrote: »

Thanks, don't venture onto the techie board very often so didn't know it was there. Off to investigate further...

Just beware the lions, tigers and bears (oh my)

debt_free_soon

As a side point, if the built in wireless card within the laptop will support it, try to use WPA-PSK encryption for their wireless setup.

Not only is it easier to set up, but WEP can now be hacked in about 30 minutes

superscaper

debt_free_soon wrote: »

As a side point, if the built in wireless card within the laptop will support it, try to use WPA-PSK encryption for their wireless setup.

Not only is it easier to set up, but WEP can now be hacked in about 30 minutes

I agree except the 30 minutes is a vast underestimate. WEP (even 128 bit) can be cracked in under 5 minutes, even one or two mins.