This week, we will be giving away 25 free copies of Ciprian’s ebook in PDF, Mobi, APK and ePub formats

Each chapter is preceded by a ‘Chapter at a Glance’ summary, which highlights its key lessons and on what pages to find them. While beginners are advised to read each chapter from beginning to end, more experienced readers can use these cues to jump to points of interest.

The chapter itself starts with a short list of what the reader will learn on the following pages and it concludes with a list of key points that were covered in the chapter. Throughout the book clear step by step instructions, plenty of screenshots, highlighting of important points or known issues, and cross-links to further information make this book an easy to follow manual.

The book addresses all networking-related features that Windows can handle. While it mostly focuses on Windows 7; it also explains how to integrate computers running Windows XP, Windows Vista, Mac OS X, and Ubuntu Linux into the network.

This is an overview of the skills this book teaches:

• Set up and configure a router.
• Connect peripheral devices to the network.
• Manage user accounts.
• Manage Windows 7 libraries.
• Create and connect to a network.
• Customize network sharing settings.
• Create and join a homegroup.
• Share libraries, folders, and peripheral devices.
• Stream media over the network and the internet.
• Secure the network.
• Set up parental controls.

The final chapter provides troubleshooting tips for network and internet problems and the unavoidable technical lingo is unscrambled in the Glossary.

There is very little left to be desired. Maybe the author should have mentioned that the minimum edition required to complete all networking projects is Windows 7 Home Premium. While the book clearly focuses on a home network and does not cover professional networking aspects, some readers may get stuck trying to use Windows 7 Starter. Overall, this is an excellent book, which should not leave any open questions about how to set up a comprehensive home network.

How do I win a copy?

It’s simple, just follow the instructions.

Step 1: Fill in the giveaway form

Please fill in the form with your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form.

The giveaway code required to activate the form is available from yesterday’s newsletter or on our Facebook page.

Step 2: Share!

You’re almost done. Now, all that’s left to do is to share the post. There are 2 options to choose from or you can do both!

This giveaway begins now and ends Wednesday, March 30th at 2100hrs PDT. The winners will be selected at random and informed via email.

Spread the word to your friends and have fun!

MakeUseOf would like to thank Ciprian Adrian Rusen for his generosity while participating in this giveaway. Interesting in sponsoring? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us via email.

Usually, people bring along laptops with them when they travel. Since most homes are equipped with Wi-Fi, and since most people bring along their laptops wherever they go, there are a lot of ways you can use that network to host some excitement. What excitement, you ask? Well, if you’re trying to come up with fun party games this year, I encourage you to make use of that Wi-Fi network and host a few networked games amongst your guests with laptops.

If you need help setting up your Wi-Fi network for LAN gaming, make sure to check out Karl’s instructional guide.  I recently covered a cool LAN game you could play called WarZone 2100, but there are a few more games that especially lend themselves well to Wi-Fi LAN gaming with the family.

Play RISK

You’ve probably played the strategic board game called Risk, but you’ve never played it like the Yura.net SourceForge project. So fire up your laptops and then download and install this desktop version of the RISK board game.

When you first launch the game, one person can launch the server and the additional players can attach to the game server.

Game play can get pretty grueling as each person takes turns situating their armies across the globe, and then attacking neighbors in order to conquer the entire world. The game automatically handles rolling the dice and calculating gained or lost armies.

The game can get pretty heated as you completely wipe out your opponents. The game is pretty addictive so if you’re going to try it out, plan to set aside a couple of hours at least.

Play Poker

If you prefer classic card games more than board games, you’ll love the multi-platform game PokerTH. When you play this game, it’s like sitting around a huge billiards table with your friends and playing round after round of Poker.

If you’re hosting the game, just select option three from the main menu and configure the game settings, including the number of players, how much cash each player starts with, and other details.

The graphics are pretty decent, especially considering the game is free. It’s a lot of fun to try your hand at bluffing to see if you can get the other players to fold.

When you’re networked together on the same Wi-Fi network with this game, there’s no need to worry about dealing with cards, chips, or keeping track of everything. The application does it all for you.

Armagetron

There’s no getting around it, Armagetron is one of the best Tron clones out there. This game is built upon the lightcycle sequence from the movie Tron, and I have to say that it definitely does the movie justice. The pace of this game really does get your heart pumping. Setting up a multiplayer game is a breeze.

Just configure network setup in a couple of quick steps and you’ve got your game server ready to roll. One very cool feature of this game is that you can split your screen into up to four views to see all four players.

Racing through these levels are wild. You’ll either crash into your opponents forcefield, or you’re going to crash into your own, but one thing is for certain – you’re going to crash.

The point is – who is going to hold out the longest? Do you have what it takes to stay alive as each of your opponents collides into a wall at full speed? Challenge your guests to a heart-pounding game of Armagatron.

Warsow – A Family Friendly First Person Shooter

The most popular type of LAN party game is definitely the first person shooter, but there aren’t many FPS games that are suitable for all ages. Warsow is unique in that way because the characters are more cartoonish than anything else, and when you shoot, you’re blasting electricity, not bullets.

Once you’ve got your local server running, additional players can log in and look for your local server to join. Once they do, all of you will be in the virtual world where you can configure gameplay to be a free-for-all, deathmatch, duel, or anything else.

The environment and scenery is of a quality that you’d expect from some of the latest FPS shooting games – it’s only the character and weapons, as you can see in the image above, that are cartoonized.

There’s a lot to be said for a good old-fashioned sit-down with family and friends for a coffee and a chat. There’s a place and time at every family gathering for that. But, once the conversations have died down and people start looking for something interesting to pass the time, give these games a shot and transform your holiday gathering into an event that your guests are sure to remember.

Do you know of any other cool games that would be great at a party? Try these out at your next gathering and let us know how it went. Share your experiences in the comments section below.

Image credit: stokfoto

In the past, we have taught you How to Build a Local Area Network Without a Router, How To Set Up a Wireless Home Network With Just a Mobile, How To Set Up A Network Domain, and I have personally explained How to Set Up a Small Business Computer Network. Setting up your network is the first step, but being able to print across it is another matter.

In this article, I am going to cover some of the easiest ways how to share a printer over a network, as well as some of the pros and cons of using each method. This way, you will be able to print from any machine in your network, no matter how many computers you have or how they are connected.

How To Share A Printer

Back in February, Karl explained How To Make A Printer Wireless. While we’re on the subject, he also covered How To Share A Printer Over The Internet the year prior. So, as you can see, printers can be shared in a lot of different ways. Allow me to go over a few of the easy methods.

[Note]: For the purposes of this article, I will be using Windows XP. You can certainly achieve the same results using Windows Vista/7, but the terminology and menu navigation may be slightly different.

1. USB-Connected Sharing

This is probably the most widely used method for printer sharing on small networks and home offices. If you have an older printer that doesn’t have an ethernet port or support wireless printing, this may be your method of choice.

All printers generally come with a USB cable. If you attach the printer to a computer on the network via USB, you should automatically be able to print on that computer.

To share the connected printer, navigate to the Printers and Faxes settings in your Control Panel. Once there, right-click the printer you would like to share and click Sharing… .

On the Sharing tab, select the button that says Share this printer. Then, type in a name for the printer and hit Apply or OK.

Now, provided your computer is connected to the network, other computers should be able to see and access the printer. Just go to the printers settings page and click Add a printer. Search for your newly networked printer and you’re all set.

The only con to using this method is that the computer you have the printer connected to must be turned on in order to print. For additional methods, keep reading.

[Note]: If any of the printers on your network can’t use the printer, you may just have a problem with the installation drivers. Take the CD that came with your printer and run it on the machine you are unable to print from.

2. Wireless Sharing

If your printer supports wireless printing, you’re in luck. Methods will differ between printer brands, but generally you will have to connect the printer to a computer via USB (to install the drivers) and enter printer setup. Insert the disc that came with the printer to install all of the necessary software.

You can usually enable wireless sharing by pushing a button on the machine or navigating to it through the menus. Your printer’s manual should have steps to do this written right in it or you can find them online. You will need to type in your network’s credentials (password, etc.) for it to connect. It may be able to find your network on its own.

[Note]: You will need to have a wireless router in order for this method to work. Without a wireless router broadcasting your access signal, the printer will not be able to find your network, and you will have to have it physically connected via USB to print.

3. Using A Network Hub

If you do not like the USB method (I wouldn’t blame you) and your printer is not wirelessly capable, you can opt to use a network hub. A network hub (or print server) is a little box that allows you to plug your printer into it via USB. It has an ethernet port on it so that you can connect your printer to a router or switch, allowing your printer to be shared on the network.

You may still need to install printer drivers on your machines, but if you attempt to find the printer on the network by going to Add a printer (see 1st method), it should be able to locate the device.

[Note]: As you may imagine, network printer hubs are not free. You can, however, pick one up for relatively cheap. I would advise searching around on sites like Amazon or eBay, or going to your local computer store.

Conclusion

In summary, you can share your printer a variety of different ways and you don’t have to make it difficult. These were the three easiest methods I could think of, but how do you have your printer shared? Is there an easy method I may have missed? Leave your thoughts and ideas in the comments section below!

Image Credit: manci, liewcf, Tiago A. Pereira

There is, however, a third way. Known as powerline networking, this rarely considered option has many appealing strengths. It is even easier to set up than wireless, but provided network performance similar to wired network. Let’s take a look at the wonderful world of powerline networking.

What Is A Powerline Network?

Your home already has a network of wires in it that connect every room in the house. These are the wires that provide each room with electricity. Normally, these wires are used for only that task, but it is possible to turn them into a way of conveying data like any other wire.

This is exactly what a powerline network does. By using network adapters that are plugged into power outlets throughout your home it is possible to use your existing electrical wires as a sort of substitute Ethernet cord. Doing this has no effect on the normal function of the electrical wires, either – all your power outlets will continue to work normally.

Why Is Powerline Networking Awesome?

Powerline networks operate like standard wired networks in terms of security and performance. Since the entire network is routed through wires there is no chance of your home network being hijacked or used by an unauthorized person (short of someone breaking into your home). Performance is not quite as fast as Ethernet, but real-world usage is typically between 40 and 80 Mbps depending on the adapters you use. You don’t have to worry about reception issues, either.

However, because you don’t have to lay any new cable, setting up a powerline network is much easier than setting up a home network with Ethernet cord. Connecting a computer via powerline networking requires only that you plug a powerline network adapter into a power outlet and then run an Ethernet cable from the powerline adapter to your computer’s Ethernet port. You can use multiple powerline network adapters on the same network, and they don’t have to be the same brand or model.

What Is The Cost Of Powerline Networking?

The primary cost of setting up a powerline network is the adapters themselves. Most major network hardware companies, like Netgear and Belkin, offer powerline adapters. These adapters are mostly sold in pairs of two and cost around $100 a pair. Adapters that offer less performance may cost only $60 to $80 a pair, while the fastest adapters are closer to $150. My personal recommendation is to buy the least expensive pair of 85Mbps adapters you can find.

Besides the adapters, you also may have to buy some Ethernet cord if the cord you currently have is not enough to reach from the powerline adapter to the computer(s) you need to connect. This can add $10 or $20 to your budget.

Overall, a powerline network with two computers will cost around $100 if you buy online. You’ll usually spend more if you purchase at a brick-and-mortar store.

What Are The Limitations Of Powerline Networking?

Although powerline networking is a great alternative to more popular networking methods, it does have a few limitations that are important to note.

First, powerline network adapters cannot be plugged into a surge protector unless the surge protector that you own specifically states otherwise. This can be a bit of an issue if you already have a power outlet crisis in your home, which isn’t unheard of these days.

Second, powerline network adapters are usually on the larger side. The ones that I use are approximately five inches long, an inch and a half thick, and three inches wide. There are some smaller models, but none are tiny. This can be an issue if your power outlets are behind a piece of furniture or otherwise in a confined space.

Finally, powerline adapters still have to connect to your computer with an Ethernet cord. If your computer is not already near a power outlet with a free socket you may need to re-arrange your furniture or simply deal with having an Ethernet cord visible.

Conclusion

Those minor problems aside, powerline networking is an incredible solution. I personally use it for all the desktop computers in my home, and I would never go back to wireless. Powerline networking combines the flexibility and simplicity of wireless with the performance of wired. You must check it out if you’re unhappy with wireless performance in your home.

For more information check out the MakeUseOf PDF Guide To Computer Networks.

Configuring the shares and then permissions for each, the Windows way, might not be the quickest and easiest way as you shall see. You can do it a lot better and easier with Easy Share.

As is the case with most Codeplex downloads, a license agreement pops up just before you download the application. Go through it and you will be able to download Easy Share, if you choose to accept the agreement. The download is relatively small (under 1MB). Once downloaded, install the application and you should be good to go. The only difficulty that can crop up might be due to the unavailability of the .NET framework on your computer, which is required to install and run Easy Share.

Once installed, go ahead and fire it up. You are greeted with a minimalistic UI, which looks like the one below:

The application presents two sections “Share details” and “Permissions“. The former lets you configure the folder and sharing details on the network, whereas the latter can be used to configure who has access to the shared folder on the network. Let’s just share a sample folder and see how easy the entire process is.

• Click on the browse button next to Local Path and browse to the location of the folder you want to share.
• Give it a share name and share description that will help others identify the contents of the folder.

That is all the folder configuration you need to do. Next up is configuring who you want to share the folder with and what permissions they can have.

Contact management and easy permissions is what really makes Easy Share worth the install and bypassing the Windows Sharing and Security configuration. You can easily add contacts with whom you want to share files and folders with simply by using their usernames.

• Click on the manage link to add users to your list.
• Click on the Add button and specify an alias that will help you remember the contact.
• Next you need to provide the domain name followed by the username of the contact on the domain. You can hit the “Check” link to see if the user exists on that domain.

Once you have added the users you want to share with, you will see them listed in the main window. You can then check or uncheck the users you want to share the files with. If you scroll to the right you will also be able to edit the permissions that each of these users have for that folder.

That is all you need to do. The next time you would be able to use the already added contacts, making your job that much easier. You can of course, remove or edit details for the contacts as and when required.

Easy Share is a nice little utility that makes sharing files and folders on the domain a whole lot easier and faster. Once you have your contacts configured, you can easily share folders in a snap with just a few clicks. If your computer is a member of a domain then Easy Share is a useful little application to have.

How do you share your files and folders on the network? Any special tools with similar functionalities that you use for this purpose?

Active Directory is centralized network management at it’s best. There are lots of reasons to set up a network domain and they include security, ease of administration and the ability to automate a lot of features that are cumbersome to roll out manually. Think about being able to manage all your user and computer accounts from one console. You can set “rules” for specific groups of users and say who can and cannot do what on YOUR network!

We will walk you through how to set up a Windows 2003 Active Directory Domain. To start you will need a Windows 2003 Server and the installation media that came with it. We will need to install the Windows DNS Server, configure the machine to have a static IP address and let it point to itself as your server’s DNS server. Grab everything you need and let’s get started.

When you start up your Windows 2003 Server you will see this screen:

To begin we will need to click the green arrow pointing to the right that says add or remove a role. This will start the wizard. Make sure you have all your network cables connected and your server online.

I would set your IP address to be static at this point if you have not already. To do so obtain a static IP address from your network administrator or choose one yourself if you are on your own network. To do this right click on network neighborhood and choose properties.

Next highlight Internet Protocol TCP/IP and hit the properties button to configure your IP address.

You will want to have the use the following IP address button checked as well as the use the following DNS server addresses button. Fill in the appropriate information and let’s move on. Click OK. That will take us back to our add a server role wizard. It will detect your settings as seen below:

Once it completes you will see the following screen:

If this is your first time setting up a domain run with the first option. This will install DNS and DHCP for you automatically. DNS stands for Domain Name Service and allows for your computers to talk to each other as well as connect to the Internet. DHCP stands for Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol and this allows computers to automatically have their IP addresses configured for them from your server. These services are very important for your network.

After you hit next we will see the screen that allows us to name our domain:

Choose your name carefully as it is almost impossible to change it later. You can use the extension .local instead of .com or .net to separate your domain from an Internet address. In this case we have AskTheAdmin.com which is a internet address and and active directory domain. If you are just testing you can use whatever you want to. The next screen asks you for your netbios names. You can leave these as the default. This is how older machines will see your computer and domain name.

Now we will get into how you want to handle name resolution. When you set up your clients to use your new internal DNS server you have an option of what to do with requests for Internet names like www.makeuseof.com. If you choose to forward queries to another server you can use your ISP’s DNS server to allow websites to be resolved. If you choose no your DNS server will not return web addresses and you might be unable to browse the Internet.

Click next and continue on. You will be asked to insert your Windows 2003 Server media and then you will see this screen telling you that you are complete.

You can now restart your server and begin setting up your users using the new shortcut on your start menu called Active Directory Users and computers like so:

That will take you to this console:

You can set up group policy or “rules” for each of your OU’s (organizational units) and that is a fancy name for the folders on the left. You can right click on any folder and choose properties ““> group policy ““> open to configure it. We will get further into what you can do with your domain and group policy in future posts.

Let me know if you run into problems or need help with other aspects of Active Directory and group policy.

We each have different Internet connections. Personally I have a 15/MBit connection to the Internet but some of my friends had slow DSL hookups and one of them was even on dial-up! Can you imagine that people are still using dial-up where broadband is available? Talk about a blast from the past!

So connecting over the Internet to play was just out of the question. We needed a faster connection!

The next step was to figure out a way to connect all of them to the same network without running cables from apartment to apartment. We decided to use Wi-Fi. Most of the apartments were close together. They would be able to access a central wireless router in an apartment near the middle. But we had one apartment that was not getting a very good signal two floors up.

In determining how to set up this WiFi network, I could have upgraded to a Wireless N router from the wireless G router I was using but all of the machines except one only had 802.11G adapters. So to keep things simple and cheap we stuck with the 802.11G. Then I was able to throw a Range Extender into the mix and boost his connection and after a few hours of trial and error we were able to get our game going from the comfort of each of our respective homes.

I will walk you through how how to set up this WiFi network.

Your first job will be to find the central point between all of the houses or apartments. Take an educated guess and try it out. We want a central point so all the machines will get the best wireless signal possible. We will then put a wireless router in that central location. You want both antennas on your router pointing in different directions and away from walls or other obstructions.

Remember this has nothing to do with your Internet connection so this will be a totally separate network. We will set up the wireless router to broadcast a SSID (Service Set Identifier). Name it something that you will easily be able to recognize. Then set up any security protocol of your choice like WPA or WPA2 to protect your network from outsiders.

After setting up the wireless router, turn on the other computers that will want to connect to your wireless LAN to play. If they do not have wireless cards in them you will need to purchase or acquire one for each machine. Scan for wireless networks and see what kind of signal you are getting from the router. If you have more than 3 bars you are golden.

You can see an example of the wireless network selection box below. The first network listed is my Internet connection and the one at the bottom with the 3 bars is the router that was set up four doors down. I have three bars to connect to it and it works wonderfully.

If you do not have at least 3 bars you can try moving the router to another location or adding a range extender. You can follow this post on how to set up a range extender. What that will do is take the weakest point of your new network and boost it. The extender will be broadcasting for your wireless router and relaying the information back to it seamlessly.

You can still connect to a network with one or two bars but  you might experience a lag. This means while people are shooting at you ““ you are a sitting duck waiting for your screen to refresh!

If you already have a wireless connection to the Internet you will need to disconnect from it and connect to your new gaming network (at least while you want to play). If you have a wired Internet connection you should be able to run both connections simultaneously.

When you are all on the same network you will be able to play any type of network game with each other and transfer files as an added bonus! Back when Internet connections were expensive (more so then now anyway) we used this to share not only a network but also Internet access!

How do you set up your WiFi network? Do you do something similar? We would love to hear about it in the comments!

Depending on what you want to do, there are a few options to build a local area network which doesn’t involve buying a router.

The most common functionality for a network without a router is to be self-contained and have no point in or out. This is a secure network as it has no connection to the Internet and is good for keeping two or three computers linked up for sharing financial documents or a QuickBooks database.

We can connect two computers directly with a cross-over cable and have a LAN without a router. Computer 1 can access computer 2′s resources, printers and file shares. Computer 2 can access computer 1′s resources as well but this setup limits you to having only two computers connected.

If this is all you need, then you can connect the two machines up together and be good to go.

You can see an example of this setup below:

To build a local area network with this setup, you will need to set both of them to have an IP address in the same subnet. A subnet is a group of machines that can call out to each other. For example, you can set one of your computer’s IP address to be 192.168.0.1 and the next one as 192.168.0.2 or you could set one to be 192.168.1.100 and the other to be 192.168.1.101.

Make sure you use the subnet mask 255.255.255.0. By using this subnet mask, we can use any address between 192.168.1.1 through 192.168.1.254.

You can see the example shots below for a visualization of how the TCP/IP settings should be set up.

The second computer should be set up like this:

By keeping both machines in the same subnet, they can ‘talk’ to each other. In the example above, you can use 192.168.1.1 through 192.168.1.254 if you keep the subnet mask the same at 255.255.255.0.

Once this is set up, you can share resources on both machines and be able to access them by launching the Run window and entering the other computer’s IP address in this format \\192.168.1.1, like so:

Now if you get a window that looks like this instead of the window above, you will need to setup your folder’s security. You can do this by right-clicking on the folder you’re trying to share/access and choosing Sharing and security. From here, you can give the appropriate permissions.

If you are using default accounts like Administrator on both machines, make sure both accounts have the same password. You can set the password by hitting Control + Alt + Delete and clicking on Change password. You can change it on that form. Then go ahead and try to connect again and this time, it should connect.

If you are using different user accounts, like ‘Karl’ on one and ‘Sophia’ on the other you will need to setup a ‘Karl’ and a ‘Sophia’ account on both machines with the same passwords. This usually does the trick.

Now if we want to print to a printer connected to the remote machine instead of connecting to a shared file, type in the IP address for the remote computer in the Run window and this time, choose Printers and Faxes like so:

Then by double-clicking on that folder you can double-click on any of the printers. That will open a printer window like below:

Your computer will add the printer and you will be able to use it from any application on your (local) machine.

We can also set up a wireless network without a router using something called ad hoc mode. To set this up, you will need to have a wireless card or adapter on each of your machines. You can connect up to 9 machines using this method.

Start by opening your Control Panel. Choose Network and internet connections. Next, click on Network connections and right-click on your wireless network adapter. It should be called Wireless network connection.

Choose View available wireless networks. On this screen, hit the Advanced button as you see in the screen shot below:

Next, click on the wireless network tab at the top of the window and then on add like shown below:

After hitting Add you will see this screen:

Make sure you tick the check box at the bottom of the screen to make the connection an ad hoc network. Then click OK. You will need to set up the IP addresses to be in the same subnet. You can refer to images in the beginning of the article on how to do that. Next, just connect to the ad hoc network from a client computer and you will be on the same network. You can then perform the same actions like we did above including Printer and file sharing.

I have done a MakeUseOf article in the past on how to setup a LAN with just a Windows Mobile Device here. Do you have another means of setting up a router-less network? We would love to hear about it in the comments!

A wide area network (WAN) is a large telecommunications network that consists of a collection of LANs and other networks. WANs generally span a wide geographical area, and can be used to connect cities, states, or even countries.

Although they appear like an up-scaled version of a LAN, WANs are actually structured and operated quite differently. This wide area network tutorial serves to explain how WANs are designed/constructed and why their use is beneficial.

Wide Area Network ““ Connection Options

“Many WANs are built for one particular organization and are private. Others, built by Internet service providers (ISPs), provide connections from an organization’s LAN to the Internet.” Several options are available for WAN connectivity: leased line, circuit switching, packet switching, and cell relay.

Leased Line

WANs are often built using leased lines. These leased lines involve a direct point-to-point connection between two sites. Point-to-point WAN service may involve either analog dial-up lines or dedicated leased digital private lines.

Analog lines ““ a modem is used to connect the computer to the telephone line. Analog lines may be part of a public-switched telephone network and are suitable for batch data transmissions.

Dedicated lines ““ digital phone lines that permit uninterrupted, secure transmission at fixed costs.

At each end of the leased line, a router connects to the LAN on one side and a hub within the WAN on the other. Leased lines can get pretty expensive in the long run.

Circuit Switching

Instead of using leased lines, WANs can be built using circuit switching. “In telecommunications, a circuit switching network is one that establishes a circuit (or channel) between nodes and terminals before the users may communicate, as if the nodes were physically connected with an electrical circuit.”

In other words, a dedicated circuit path is created between end points. The best example of this is a dialup connection. Circuit switching is more difficult to setup, but it does have the advantage of being less expensive.

Packet Switching

Packet switching is a method that groups all transmitted data together into bits called packets. Devices transport packets via a shared single point-to-point/point-to-multipoint link across a carrier network. Sequences of packets are then delivered over a shared network.

Similar to circuit switching, packet switching is relatively inexpensive, but because packets are buffered and queued, packet switching is characterized by a fee per unit of information, whereas circuit switching is characterized by a fee per time unit of connection time (even when no data is transferred).

Cell Relay

Cell relay is similar to packet switching but it uses fixed length cells instead of variable length packets. Data is divided into these cells and then transported across virtual circuits.

This method is best for simultaneous voice and data but can cause considerable overhead.

WANs vs LANs

Depending on the service, WANs can be used for almost any data sharing purpose for which LANs can be used. The most basic uses of WANs are for email and file transfer, but WANs can also permit users to access data remotely.

New types of network-based software used for productivity, like work-flow automation software, can also be used over WANs. This allows workers to collaborate on projects easily, regardless of their location.

Unlike LANs, WANs typically do not link individual computers. WANs link LANs together. They provide communications links over great distances.

The Existence Of WANs

WANs have existed for decades, but new technologies, services, and applications have developed over the years to dramatically increase their effect on business. WANs were originally developed for digital leased-line services carrying only voice (not data).

At first, they connected the private branch exchanges (PBXs) of remote offices of the same company. WANs are still used for voice services, but today they are used more frequently for data and image transmission (like videoconferencing). These added applications have spurred significant growth in WAN usage, primarily because of the surge in LAN connections to the wider networks.

A wide area network allows companies to make use of common resources in order to operate. Internal functions such as sales, production and development, marketing, and accounting can also be shared with authorized locations through this sort of network.

In the event of a problem – say a company facility is damaged from a natural disaster – employees can move to another location and access the network. Productivity is not lost.

Conclusion

The wide area network has made it possible for companies to communicate internally in ways never before possible. Because of WANs, we (the consumers) can enjoy benefits from companies that we wouldn’t have been able to in the past.

What do you think of WANs? What’s next for connectivity? Leave your thoughts, ideas, and comments below.

Image Credit: 4shaws, pseudoxx, nazreth, jaylopez, svilen001

There are many advantages to having a wireless network over just a wired network. You can still plug machines into your router via an Ethernet cable but you also gain the additional benefits of having a wireless network.

There are a lot of things to take into consideration such as security, widest range and best speed. MakeUseOf has done a Networking Guide in the past and it will be a good starting point for you.

A normal topology for setting up a home wireless network would look like this:

The wireless router gets connected to your Internet modem and servers out your Internet to connected computers.

Wireless networking has come a long way since I first set up my 802.11a network about 10 years ago. To begin we will need to take an inventory of what equipment you have and then see what you will need to purchase. Let’s make a list of computers and what type of wireless adapter they have in them.

• Karl’s Laptop N
• Karl’s Netbook G
• Karl’s Desktop N
• Sophia’s Laptop G
• Kayla’s Laptop B

So my fastest machines have a N adapter in them and my slowest has a B adapter in it. So I would want a wireless router that can handle 802.11N as well as be backwards compatible to 802.11B. If I wanted to save money I could find a 802.11N router and not be able to achieve the fastest speeds on my 802.11N machines.

If any of your machines do not have wireless cards you can look into buying USB WiFi adapters, internal PCI cards for the Desktop or Mini PCI cards for a laptop. The USB WiFi adapters do not look like they used to. They can be incredibly small. Check out this one from Buffalo for $30:

I went looking and found this LinkSys Router for $60 here on Amazon:

This router has multiple radios meaning it can serve multiple machines at the same time. It is also very high tech looking! The router comes with four Ethernet ports so you can connect it to your Internet modem.

Now we need to assess where the computer will be and find a middle ground to set up the router. You want the router to be in an area that does not block either antennae. Their path should not be hindered, placed near electrical equipment like micro-ovens or cordless telephones and not be in a room that is closed off. This may take some trial and error and you will probably want to first try setting up somewhere near your Internet modem.

Setting up the router is a breeze. Most modern routers (this one included) comes with a setup CD. You simply pop the CD into your computer that has the Internet. Chances are you will be directly connected to your modem. The CD will then have you unplug your computer from the modem and connect the router to the modem. You can then plug your computer into the router to continue setting it up.

Most routers are set up to be 192.168.1.1 but some of them use an IP of 192.168.2.2. Your set up utility should tell you what your URL is to access your setup. Below you will see the set up page from my Wireless G Linksys Router.

By default there will be NO SECURITY – this is a NO NO! You will want to enable WPA or at a minimum WEP. Both of them can be hacked but then so could your dead bolt. Some security is better than none!

Once you set the security on the router you will want to rename your SSID. That is what your wireless network will be called. Then you will connect to your wireless router from each client and configure the same security that you set up on the router.

Next I suggest turning off SSID broadcasting so people walking by your house cannot see or steal your network (without a bit of effort that is!)

That’s it! You now have your very own WiFi network! You can print wirelessly by sharing out a printer, check recipes in the kitchen or stock quotes in the backyard. Go ahead and pat yourself on the back! Good job.

If you have any problems setting yours up, let us know in the comments and we’ll see if we can help.