Showing posts with label Right. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Right. Show all posts

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Choosing the Right Router for Your Cable Internet Plans

Cable high-speed internet plans provide a single connection for your home. If you want more connections, that is not a problem at all, but obviously you will have to pay extra money. Such situations usually occur when you have more than one computer in your home that needs a cable Internet connection. Whether you have a family or a roommate, ideally you should share the connection, rather than just interfering one with each other and getting conflicts over the Internet.

For all these situations, the routers are the perfect solution. A router is a device used to "split" the cable Internet connection in more directions. In order to choose the right device, you need to know first how it works. The cable Internet goes in the router, while at least two other cables go from the router to the computers. In order to start your search, you must first ask yourself how many computers you will have to connect. Each model has more "outs", but the most common ones come with 4 of them, which is normally enough.

Once you install the router - normally in the middle of your house - it is time to set it up. You will get a CD or a DVD with the software and a manual of instructions or just a read-me file to follow some steps. The cable Internet connection should have no problems going through the router, since the configuration is very easy and can be done within minutes. Once you got it all ready, get some extra wires and connect the other computers as well. The router will not affect your cable Internet connection. The only problem you may consider is sharing the connection. If two of your roommates download a game for instance at the same time, the overall download speed will obviously be smaller.

If you own more laptops than desktops in your house, then perhaps you should split your cable Internet connection with a wireless router. A wireless router is similar to a regular one, just that you won't have to bother with cable Internet wires going out from the router to the other computers. Everything is done wireless, therefore your cable Internet connection is up wherever you decide to place your laptop. Make sure you protect your router with a password, to avoid intruders. Obviously the signal will go farther than your home. Also, place the router in an open area, not under your desk.

Before opting for a router, make sure you contact your cable high-speed Internet provider. Although such cases are very rare, there are cable Internet plans that precisely forbid routers through their contracts. Finding such a device may lead to a suspension of your service or a fee.

As long as you ask your cable high-speed Internet provider if you are allowed first or you just check the contract from the first to the last paragraph, a router shouldn't give you too much headache. It is easy to install, fast to set up, provides the same service and you also lose some of the cable Internet wires in your home if it is wireless.


Picking the Right Cable Internet For Subscribers

If the cable internet is your option to get online, then you should know that most companies use the Ethernet products in their cable high-speed internet plans. In this situation, you must identify the type of existing Ethernet network or the type of network you wish to configure. Every type of network you can have uses a particular equipment, such as an Ethernet router to connect the elements of the network. Such a network created through cable Internet is known to be an infrastructural network. It ensures reliability, security and superior performances.

The Ethernet cable high-speed internet networks may or may not be connected. If you place your equipment in a connected network, you are recommended to use a gateway, so the IP address of your extra equipment to be dynamically assigned through the DHCP protocol. A gateway can be a router or a Windows based computer that runs ICS - Internet Connection Sharing. Most cable Internet plans are not so detailed in their descriptions, since a lot of people cannot really understand these aspects, therefore they don't care too much about them. An advanced user can always ask about these details and choose whether to configure everything at home, without help, or just get a professional from the provider to do the whole operation.

There are two types of Ethernet connections with cable Internet. If your network has access through cable Internet or DSL, you can use a router or a computer as an Internet gateway. In both these situations, you have access to all the features of your extra equipment. With a router as a gateway, the router manages the connections and a cable Internet or DSL modem provides access to the Internet. Using this configuration opens more possibilities for other devices.

With a computer as a gateway, the network equipments are connected to a commuting device or a router. A computer in the network has the role of a gateway. It has to use ICS or a similar software to part the connections and provide access to Internet to the other equipments, everything through cable Internet. If the gateway computer is turned off, the other computers lose the access to the Internet, which is a big disadvantage.

Reliable cable Internet deals should be generally able to provide their customers with any of these options, as long as they opt for wired cable Internet plans. Each option brings in both advantages and disadvantages. Is it worth getting a router? Or just maintaining one of the computers open all the time? Most customers would agree that making a small investment in a router is the better option. First of all, you don't really depend on another computer, especially when you encounter small power cuts and second of all, the gateway computer will work faster if there are not as many other computers connected to it. The other cable Internet option is the cheap one and therefore, it is not too popular, although it is a lot more secure and faster than using a router.


Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Choosing the Right Wireless Internet Provider in Your City

Everyone wants to go wireless these days, and why not? You don't really need wires anymore, especially when all they do is get in the way and limit your mobility. Wireless technologies have advanced so much lately that they're no longer at a disadvantage when it comes to speed and reliability. They're also more affordable than they've ever been before as well. You may already be sold on the fact that you could benefit greatly from a wireless internet connection, but which provider should you choose? You've actually got a few options to choose from, though only one is going to make sense.

An example of a wireless option that doesn't make sense for most people is satellite internet. The one thing that it does have going for it is that it's a broadband connection you can sign up for no matter where you happen to live, which makes it a great replacement for dial-up where cable and DSL are not available. Other than that, because it's somewhat slow, cannot be used in a mobile capacity, and a bit expensive, it's not a good wireless internet solution for most people.

Sometimes Wi-Fi is advertised as being a wireless connection that people can use throughout their city, but that's a bit misleading. Wi-Fi was first designed to allow computers in a home to connect to each other without wires. Its range was and has always been limited to a few hundred feet at the very most and under ideal conditions. If there are obstacles in the way such as walls or even trees, you can expect the signal to weaken significantly. Since most cities have a lot of buildings scattered around and because most also span a distance much greater than a few hundred feet, one Wi-Fi router is not going to be enough to provide a complete wireless internet solution. In order to do that, numerous routers have to be spread out over the entire city. Thus, you're likely to end up being disconnected a lot as you move around over long distances,which ultimately makes Wi-Fi an undesirable solution.

The only thing left to consider is a cellular internet connection, and this is where you can expect to find what you're looking for. This technology has advanced a lot lately from the somewhat lackluster 3G network to the fast, reliable and affordable 4G network. At the current time though, there are a number of different standards competing against each other. As far as performance goes, there really isn't a big difference between them, contrary to what their marketing campaigns might lead to you to believe. They're all going to be plenty fast for most people. The only difference arises from coverage areas.

Although it's best to look up coverage maps online, you're probably going to discover that Wimax has all the others beat, which is due in large part to the fact that it has been around a lot longer than the others. Because of this, it should be your choice for wireless connectivity.