anyone using remote networking?

[Nicola McIntosh]

do they all run win xp? 😛

nik

[Robert Lambie]

yes nik… all xp pro

[Nicola McIntosh]

oh good was dreading you saying some are xp & some are win98se which do not work together!! 😛

nik

[elitesigns]

When you say remote i presume you mean wirless networking, we use both cable and wireless, no probs at all. Its surprising how far you can get a signal. I have a wirless link to work which is about 600m. The only thing you have to make sure of is you have encryption turned so people don’t sniff out the network.

[Robert Lambie]

our furthest computer is about 30-40 yards/metres not sure.. we have 4 seperate units so 2 pairs joined seperated by small road. each unit has comps.. will the wirless/remote issue be a problem then?

are there any speed issues? or does it work as good as the wirless?

thanks for advice so far….

oh, and what is the average cost of these… are there good and bad ones on the go or just about all even?

[J. Hulme]

Don’t bother Rob, wireless networks are ‘crap’ you won’t understand how ‘crap’ they are to you actually try to use one 😉
Always use cables, your network may be hacked by someone with an aircard, how on earth they do it is beyond belief, as wireless networks don’t work from one room to another.

[Andy Gorman]

I’ve been thinking about this also. I would like to get a network connection from the house to the workshop, like 20 yards away. If anyone has had success with this type of thing, what kit have you used?
I assume, like everything, that some kit is better than others, no?

[J. Hulme]

quote big G:

?
I assume, like everything, that some kit is better than others, no?

Yes mate, they’re sold as (expensive) kits, and no they’re all crap!

[Nicola McIntosh]

i was waiting for a few replies (reminiscing on bbc 2) 😛 ………i would go with outline wireless does not work…it does if your in a wee cosy office with no other rooms works a treat!! 😛 go wired everytime…you just have to hide the wires!! 😀

try http://www.videk.co.uk for buying wires in bulk i use them and they are the best and cheapest. you should not have a problem rob with a good router and xp pro will do most of the work for you!! 😀

nik

[autosign]

I’ve got a wireless set up from this room to my current office, downstairs and about 6 metres away. Also another PC at the front of the house about 10 metres away. I could go and sit in the garden or our in the middle of the street with a laptop and still use the network/internet.

Wireless router and cards cost about £50 each.

Had a few problems at first with one machine but got an external aerial and it stays connected 99% of the time now.

I only really use it for internet sharing as sending files between machines is a bit finnicky with all the firewall setups etc.

[Rodney Gold]

We use wireless from one of our premises to another , over a distance of about 200 yards. It was not possible to hard wire across a main road. You lose a little speed , but it works just fine. We have a mixed network too , 98 and Xp and there is no problem at all with this either. I wouldnt use it within a building where a switched hub and cabling is a lot better. Thing is , over here if you do want to use wireless over public spaces like roads etc , you need to get permission – and the beuracracy of doing so here is incredible , so we just went ahead and did it. some gear is better than others , the major concern is the transmission distance , some mnfgrs are pretty optimistic with this. We led the wires and units to tupperware boxes on the roofs of the 2 buildings and made sure they were in line of sight of each other. We send files backward and forward as even send directly to the soljet from across the road.
We use a Netgear Me 102 model. Been reliable for well over a year.

[Alan Drury]

I use wireless for 2 of my computers (one of which is also wired to a third which is not practical to connect to the router) and I have the D-Link 604 router modem with D-Link cards in both computers. 1 computer is in the house, 1 computer in shed bottom of garden about 18 metres away. Having a computer tucked up a corner caused problems and I got round it by using a higher gain aerial on a lead (for the computers) and larger aerial for the router (between £10.00 – £20.00 each item) now get excellent signal strength and maximum speed. Router also has 4 network ports for wired network and a built in firewall and WEP encryption which is important. Watch out for interference, mine won’t log on if the television digi-sender in the house is switched on first, other than that I am very, very pleased I can share files etc and we both have broadband.
Alan

[davebrittain]

i use a belikin wire less router with a couple of pc with belkin cards in .the one is on the next floor up, i dont loose speed with the one on the main hub which goes in to the phone line but the other ones are a little slower i run xp with broad band sending files and printing seems much the same speed just surfin the net may be slightly slower on the others.Easy to set up had probs at first getting them to comunicate but the help line sorted them out.
I would rather be wire free than have loads of wires everywhere.
if u didnt know they were wireless a user wouldnt know

[Gary Davis]

would try and run wires if you can, my view is wireless is to insecure for business purposes, WEP and limited MAC addressing solve some issues and if you have to go wireless make sure all cards/WAP’s are WPA enabled this is another more recent security protocol, if you bide your time i believe a new standard is being released with much better security.
The issues of reliability have already been raised all ill add is the use of any other wireless item can interfere (wireless mice, cordless phone etc).
If you are covering large distances from building to building you would be better off with a patch anttena, than a standard wireless NIC card with a stumpy 6inch ariel!

[elitesigns]

I think its safe to say that a hard wired network is the best solution regarding ease and security, but to say wirless is crap is probably a little harse, i remember when we first setup a wirless network it certainly wasn’t plug and play, but now i can honestly say we don’t have any probs at all. Regarding going from building to building we have got two access points configured as a bridge, so its really just a wirless link as opposed to an access point beaming out information for everbody to latch onto.

[Alan Drury]

I agree with elitesigns, wired is best including speed, wires not always practical though and wireless can be ideal for some. Outline seems to be struggling at the moment Cadet/Signlab/wireless I hope he gets sorted soon.
Alan

[Nicola McIntosh]

quote Rodney Gold:

We have a mixed network too , 98 and Xp and there is no problem at all with this either

that’s a new one on me!! been told so many times they do not like one another 🙄

nik

[Carrie Brown]

We use wireless at home, it works great and I rarely have problems at all so I wouldnt class our set up as cr*p. However, I would not rely on it 100% at the office, so I agree with most others to stick with wired.

Carrie 😀

[Robert Lambie]

great thread folks… brill info & different veiws…

my decision… can we have a drum roll?

:drums:

im going wireless 😛 :lol1:

like i have said, we run XP Pro on all systems, so compatability should be fine. the machines that run our printer, cutters and router table will run wirless. but… having listened to whats been said about security, ill use our existing “wired” networking for the two office machines only & not linking with the others… hmmm as if those two in the office dont communicate with each other enough (chat.) 😉

[Rodney Gold]

I wasnt that worried about security , as we too use our wireless link as a bridge between 2 buildings and the signal is fairly “weak” , IE its not recievable very far from the transmitter (they said up to 500 ft on the box , but its closer to 50-60ft) and in my eyes , anyone that wants to scan the transmissions would have to be parked near and be someone with a determination to do industrial espionage – perhaps Im being overconfident here?