I want to connect 2 computers in our house
PC world said i needed a router at 70 quid and the cables another 20
any cheaper options,would like inty connection on both (broadband)
oh one more ? the new one uses xp home and the other win 98 any probs there?
waky

 

You need a network card in each machine (£12ish each) and an ethernet "crossover" cable to connect the cards £8ish). It MUST be a crossover cable, and anyone who sells ethernet cables will sell them. There are (of course) a couple of minor downsides:

1) Only one machine will connect directly to the internet, the other will have to use Internet Connection Sharing, with the associated problems, and obviously can only connect if the first machine is actually running.

2) If you are on ADSL/cable then bringing the connection into the router is more secure and also avoids the above. If you are on dial-up then you are stuck with ICS. In the case of ADSL then the best bet is to buy a modem-router and take the connection into that. Easy to install and secure.

For NICs or router I'd advice Netgear or Linksys.


M

 

Cheapest option is don't go to PC World, have a look at www.ebuyer.com they have hard wired routers around £20 or with builtin ADSL modem £30 and network cards from £2.34, if you have ADSL I would recomend going for one with builtin modem cuts down on cable and more reliable than seperate modem

Andy

 

This should be a sticky somewhere in this forum...


M

 

Doh! I nearly forgot: most AMD motherboards built in the last two years now have built-in NICs, and Intel boards have had them for even longer. Especially if you have an OEM machine like a Comcack or Dull. If either or both do, then you may not even need both NICs either.


M

 

if your after cat 5 cables (network cables) go to B&Q well cheap and so are the usb cables.....

i make my own it's cheaper!

 

defo get yourself an adsl modem router. basically, it's an all in one box, adsl modem and a 4-port router. have a look at the one at www.ebuyer.co.uk, and www.adsltech.com for the support. it even comes with SPI firewall!

i got mine from www.qtds.com. dead cheap!

 

Router is by far the best way to go, make sure you get one for the type of connection you have. If you have Broadband you should already have one cat5 cable and you should get another with a new router, which is all you will need. Dont bother with crossover cables, the router should detect this. Oh, and a couple of Ethernet cards if not already built in to your MB's. If you need cards, get same make as router, its not absolutely necessary but should avoid conflicts.

By the way, dont dismiss PC World, I just bought myself a new wireless router from there and it was cheaper than I could get from anywhere on line.

 

I like dismissing PC Pants!

But to be fair, their add-ons and components prices are OK, it's just their built rigs which are a rip-off.


M

 

Only just cheaper than the £2.95 they charge for a xover... nice and purple too... stops the rest of the scotes in the Siemens lab nicking mine...