What do i need??

mrme

I got my new Laptop today and want to connect it to the internet with no wires, i already have the modem router thingy for my 2 pc's, anyone know what i will need to buy. I haven't a clue and neither did the muppet in pcworld ::) It has wireless lan system written on it ??? Thanks for any help

Tony_H_3

You will need an appropriate wireless either 54g or 108g wireless PMCIA card.

monomer

It might be helpful if you could mention:

1) which laptop you've bought (some laptops such as those with Centrino processors have wireless capability built-in)

2) which router you have (make and model would help)
You don't mention if this is a wireless router - if it is, then things should be straightforward

I assume your 2 existing pc's are connected to your 'modem router thingy' with network cables?

mrme

Sorry for the lack of details, i got the sharp PC mm1110, it has wireless lan system written on it. At the moment i have 2 desktops that are connected via a lan cable. I am using an Origo router. Thanks for any help and if any more info is needed please ask - have no idea about this networking stuff ::)

monomer

From what I can gather, the Sharp PC-MM1110 is certainly Wi-Fi ready, with an 802.11b mini-PCI card installed. This means that you should be able to connect it to any wireless access points that's available. The trouble is... setting up an access point!

The Origo router, as far as I can tell, isn't a wireless one.

I'd reckon your options are:

1) Buy a new wireless ADSL modem router to connect all your machines to that. A lot of wireless routers have the ability to use LAN cables too.

2) Get a wireless card for one of your PCs and try and set up Internet Connection Sharing on it so that your laptop can share the PC's internet connection i.e. try and use one of your PCs as a 'middle man' between your laptop and your router. Probably a cheaper solution, but more complicated.

I've successfully set up a wireless internet connection between two laptops running Windows XP in the past. One laptop was connected via a USB modem (not a router) and I used the Internet Connection Sharing to let the other laptop access the internet. It worked pretty well, although there were occasional blips were the signal would drop, but I rarely had to reinitiate the connection (which can be annoying).

If it were me, and I was really wanting to go wireless I'd go for the wireless router but then I'm a lazy bum!

monomer

There seems to be a third option here:

http://www.belkin.com/uk/networking/net_basic/net_basic7.html

(The site provides some useful ideas and I've highlighted for that purpose. I have no particular recommendations for which brand to use though!)

mrme

Thanks for your help  :D Looks like the third option is best, failing that i will go for a new wireless router - the less complicated the better ::) Think your going to be my post of the month! The laptop came with a card - 56k data/fax modem card, is this anything to do with it or will I need to buy another type of card or is it already in there?? Sorry for all these questions. I have found a really good site and I think i understand what i need to get - just not sure on a card!

monomer

It's not a problem!

I got the impression that the wireless is already built-in to the computer, so it ought to be ready to go. You could check by going to the Control Panel (in Windows) > System > select 'Hardware' tab > click 'Device Manager' button. Your wireless network card should be listed somewhere under 'Network Adapters'.

Re: 56k data/fax modem card - this sounds like a normal modem (probably a card that you can fit in a PCMCIA slot in the computer) that you use to send/receive faxes or for dial-up internet - the old-fashioned way!

mrme

Thanks so much, it seems all i need is the third option May just have to go to pc world because i hate waiting for things ::)
It seems to have the card built in like you said which is great as it will save a few ££