newbie to wireless hookup....help

All,

I'm thinking of getting the SO a laptop for Xmas and want her to be
able to connect to the internet via a wireless hookup. I know nothing about
it. Are there brand names for the router/card that are better than others?
Could I just go to best buy and pick up what I need? I have seen that they
make the 11mbps and now the 54mbps. I know company's have their own "way"
with numbers when making a claim on what their product can do. Is there a
noticeable difference between the two? Also, how GOOD is a wireless
connection? Does it work pretty fast or will it be like using dial-up
again(aaarrrrrrrgghhhhhh!!!) I have cable modem now. Also one computer
would be running WIN98 and one probably XP, will this make a difference?
Thanks for any advice.....

Ron

rferoni wrote:
> All,
>
> I'm thinking of getting the SO a laptop for Xmas and want her to be
> able to connect to the internet via a wireless hookup. I know nothing about
> it. Are there brand names for the router/card that are better than others?
> Could I just go to best buy and pick up what I need? I have seen that they
> make the 11mbps and now the 54mbps. I know company's have their own "way"
> with numbers when making a claim on what their product can do. Is there a
> noticeable difference between the two? Also, how GOOD is a wireless
> connection? Does it work pretty fast or will it be like using dial-up
> again(aaarrrrrrrgghhhhhh!!!) I have cable modem now. Also one computer
> would be running WIN98 and one probably XP, will this make a difference?
> Thanks for any advice.....
>
> Ron
Can't advise on the type of card, etc. 802.11g can be faster than
802.11a or 802.11b, but not necessarily. 802.11b is the most used
system, so if you think you may connect to wireless access at WiFi
hotspots, be sure to have 802.11b. Many systems can run multiple protocols.

If security is an issue, look for systems having WPA. The WEP
encryption, though useful, is flawed and can be broken.

So far as speed, that is only an issue on a LAN (transferring files on
your own computers, playing games between your computers). Even the
slowest wireless card is many times faster than your cable or ADSL
connection to the Internet.

Check out the following sites

http://www.cablemodemhelp.com/
http://www.netgear.com
http://www.dlink.com
http://www.linksys.com/

try this for Dlinks configurator

http://www.dlink.com/configurator_v2...orSection=soho

What you will need is a wireless router that your modem plugs into, this is
then connected
to your desktop via a cable, the laptop will need a PCMCIA card or if you
get a laptop with
a built in wireless network card this won't be needed. most laptops come
with 11Mbs cards,
the speed difference will only make a difference when transferring files
from PC to PC, your
internet speed will depend on your modem.

You may find it usefull for ease of setup to upgrade the 98 machine to XP
not essential but it may help.

A good place to buy from, I have only used the UK version of this company
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/home/index.html?_LOC=US