Send music 
wirelessly
HOME NETWORKS
NEED TO
KNOW
A home network connects computers to other computers and to the internet. It can also send music and video to a
Wireless networks are particularly handy.You can wander to the shed with a laptop, say, and stay connected to the internet.
Connect to the internet wirelessly
3Find the best place for your router
Where you put your router is obviously limited by where you have telephone or cable connections for the internet. But the other consideration is what gets in the way. Some types of wall and floor are harder for wireless signals to pass through than others; brick walls get in the way much more than plasterboard.
Wireless signals pass easily through wood. If you’ve got wooden floors you’ll probably get better reception up and down rather than side to side. If the house has three floors, put the router on the second floor for the widest reception.
If the signal doesn’t reach as far as you’d like, buy a ranger booster (or ‘booster station’) for around £60 – choose the same brand as your router to make sure they’ll work well together.
And remember that if you want to send video through your network, you’ll get a much better picture with a cable.You connect this from your computer, through the router, to other devices.
Make the |
4network secure |
The problem with wireless links is that people can potentially piggyback on your internet connection or snoop on your online activities. However, there are a few steps you can take
to make your network more secure.
REDUCE THE POWER
The most basic way to protect yourself is to make sure that the signal strength of your wireless base station is no higher than it needs to be.You adjust the signal strength using computer software that comes with the router.
This requires a bit of experimentation. If you can turn the power down and still get a decent signal throughout the house, it’s worth doing.
It will make it harder for people to spy on you and lessen the chances that your wireless network will interfere with your neighbours’.
PASSWORDS AND SETTINGS
There are a couple of passwords and settings to go through.The software settings are rather difficult to find for some routers but it’s pretty straightforward once you’ve got them on screen.
First, change the name of your network, which people need to know before they can use it.You do this by changing the ‘service set identification’ setting in your software.
Then change the password. In your settings, this will be described as the ‘WiFi protected access’. It’s often
You can also control which computers your router will agree to talk to.To do this, change the ‘media access control’ settings.Turn all your computers on and they should all appear in the settings; then select only your own computers and deselect others that pop up.
To set up a wireless network, you need adaptors, known as WiFi, for your computers (unless they have
If you like, you can also add a media PC. These tend to have
WIRELESS LINKS A good wireless link will be quick enough to send music and keep up with a broadband connection – even if you’re a couple of rooms away.
If you want to send video, a wireless connection
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WHICH? JANUARY 2006 45
