Datasheet

Book IX
Chapter 1
Those Pesky
Network Things
You Need to Know
Making Computers Talk
679
✦ A DSL “modem” is a box that connects to your phone line and (usually)
delivers always-on, fast Internet, most commonly using a technology
called asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL).
✦ A cable “modem” is a box that does the same thing, but it connects to
your cable TV cable.
✦ A hub is a box with a bunch of slots on the back that take local-area net-
work (LAN) cables. The hub connects all the PCs and other boxes that
are plugged into it.
✦ A LAN cable looks like an extra-wide phone cable. It’s used to connect
PCs (usually ones without wireless cards) and other boxes.
If the people who sell you your Internet connection don’t have a wireless
router, you can use all sorts of combinations to accomplish the same thing.
Vista works well with the following:
✦ A cable or DSL “modem” attached to the Internet and plugged into a
Vista (or Windows XP) PC:
If you only have one PC, that’s all you need.
If you want to share the Internet connection with more than one PC, you
plug a hub into the back of the PC with the Internet connection and plug
other computers into the hub. Vista (or Windows XP) can run a program
called
Internet Connection Sharing, which shares the single Internet con-
nection among all the attached computers.
✦ A cable or DSL “modem” attached to the Internet and plugged into a
hub:
You don’t get wireless that way, but any computer close enough to
the hub can simply be plugged in, and you all share the Internet connec-
tion. This is also a good solution if wireless reception isn’t too wonderful
and you already have LAN cable pulled through your house or office.
✦ A cable or DSL “modem” attached to the Internet and connected in
some way to other computers:
Alternatives include using the power
lines or using an existing telephone line (HPNA — a de facto home net-
working standard developed by the Home Phoneline Networking
Alliance). You’ll need specialized hardware for each computer.
Wired and wireless connections aren’t mutually exclusive. Almost every
wireless network has the capability for attaching wired computers. In fact,
most wireless networks you bump into every day have one or more comput-
ers running on wires. They all meet together at the router.
Making Computers Talk
Getting computers to talk to each other can be as simple as buying a box
and some cables and plugging it all together like you do with telephones —
or as painful, expensive, and hair-challenging (as in pulling it out by the
roots) as any computer pursuit you’ve ever encountered.
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