SunnySideUp

I need an Ethernet Card for my PC ... have found these two - have no idea which one to buy? What's the difference?

10/100 Ethernet PCI Network Card : Wired Network Card - PCI : Maplin

10/100Mbps PCI Ethernet Card : Wired Network Card - PCI : Maplin

And NO prizes to anyone who says that the difference is £3!!

ChefDude

if i was buying, i'd get a make i knew about...
Scan.co.uk: Linksys By Cisco LNE100TX-UK EtherFast 10/100 LAN Card inc WOL

SunnySideUp

Went to buy ..... £7 Delivery stopped me!

ChefDude

ah, that's not that insurance thing is it?

i just ordered some hard drives yesterday, so that's useful. maybe not on a 7 quid network card tho.

tried overclockers or ebuyer?

i stand by the linksys recommendation though.

SunnySideUp

Thanks for your Input

SunnySideUp

Will my 8 year old Motherborad accept it?

I see statements like 'PCI 2.2' I'm not sure whether my MotherBorad will recognise it - if the PCI standard is different than when my PC was made????

ChefDude

they should be backward compatible with pci 1.1. check it says that.

SunnySideUp

Thanks ChefDude ... you've been helpful - I'm about to walk the dog and then may pop down to Maplins and grab one .............. I've had my new Home Hub for months, about time I got it up and running!

I'm assuming the speed of my internet will improve with an Ethernet connection?

hodgy0_2

the difference between those cards is that the more expensive one supports WOL - Wake On Lan -- not needed for a home PC

SunnySideUp

Cheers hodgy0 2

The cheap one gets it then?

My kinda thinking

ChefDude

np

I imagine your DSL line will be the bottleneck, not your ethernet.

SunnySideUp

Are you saying that I will be wasting my time hooking up the new Black Home Hub with an Ethernet connection ...... versus my current set-up ... white Home Hub with USB Connection?

hodgy0_2

no get a Network Card -- it will improve performance -- imo

(athought the bottleneck is technically correct)

boomer

So why not ask your questions at Maplins, or do you do everything standing up in a hammock?

mb

SunnySideUp

Have you seen the people in Maplins?

Anyway - I've bought it .... will put in tomorrow .... I may not be able to get on the internet ever again ........
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STOP CHEERING!!

BlkKnight

Was going to offer to post you one out FOC.

I've 10 or so kicking about from dead pc's.

Drop me a PM if you want.

J

hodgy0_2

good point BlkKnight

I have quite a a lot of various lengths of Cat5E patch leads -- I would hate for someone to pay way over the odds at PCworld.

happy to send some to a deserving cause

BlkKnight

Incidentally I was at PCW to by a fan.

Kettle lead. . . . . £19.50

hodgy0_2

i have chucked hundreds of Kettle leads away in my time

SunnySideUp

Well - the Maplin card is in ..... something I noticed when I was inside the PC - the fan had been noisy for a while, the heatsink on which the fan is mounted was blocked with dust! I mean REALLY blocked up with it!

Took the fan off and cleaned it all up ..... the thing runs so much quieter, staggering the difference! Brilliant!

Anyway, the card is in and it runs fine - the new BT Hub has been put in - all working fine ..... oddly, without running the driver CD which came with the card - odd?

Speeds I am getting now are 240 Download and 253 Upload .... I did a test yesterday and wrote the speeds down, but can't find it now! I think the Download was quicker but the Upload was slower?

BlkKnight

Yep, upload is usually capped at around 256 with BT. Download is dependant on line quality.

Your line stability will fluctuate over the next 10 days with drop-outs.

You don't need to install the BT software - and I'd recommend that you don't.

Cleaning out your PC should be an annual event

SunnySideUp

Just updated the driver for the card, I was running a 2001 driver it seems.

The new driver is a 2009 driver .... and, amazingly, the Upload Speed has shot up to 366 (from 253!) ... Download Speed remains stuck at 240, sadly.

hodgy0_2

i hope you used the correct install procedure - did you shut your mains electricity down and wear corduroy trousers whilst facing due east

problems can (and do) occur otherwise

ChefDude

Did you put the card in the right way round?!

ChefDude

SunnySideUp

It was very difficult to fit, I have to say .... but a tap with my camping mallet soon set it in its slot right next to the RAM - I must say, it was a bit weird routing the ethernet cable round the fan so it didn't get caught - but that was the only way I could attach it

SunnySideUp

I did look up the PC Ethernet Forum equivalent of SN .... they were quite clear what I had to do.

I got some cooker cable (it's the only wire with enough copper they say) - and wrapped it around my wrist ..... the other end went around the radiator, it's tough to bend that stuff! But, better to be safe than sorry I say!

hodgy0_2

one can only imagine the high jinks those guys get upto on there



(said with a deep sense of irony)

boomer

I hope that you didn't throw the dust away - you should have kept it in case your PSU "dust reservoir" runs out, thus you can top it up with "bedded in" dust rather than the sharp (and expensive) stuff the PC World sell!



mb

SunnySideUp

OH, crap!

I KNEW I would forget something! I blew the dust all over to be honest ... I did wonder whether it was needed

When I powered it up there was a Green light on the new card - I assumed that meant everything was OK - just like a KockLink.