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Benefits of Wireless Networking

Wireless networking offers some benefits that are apparent (no wires) and some that you might not have considered . The most obvious is portability. In particular, if you set up a laptop for wireless networking, you can roam around your house or around a coffee shop. (Starbucks, for instance, plans to offer wireless networks for Internet access for all of its stores in the next few years .)

Moving Your Equipment at Will

It's true that a wireless network will allow you to surf the Internet by your pool, your fireplace, or anywhere else in your house (within about 150 feet, the range of most wireless equipment indoors; more details on that later). More commonly, though, you might find that wireless networking equipment allows you to move your desktop and laptop computers around the house or around your desk or across the room without unplugging cables.

If your office uses a wireless network, you can buy networking equipment for your home that is compatible with your office equipment. That means you can pack up for the day and take your computer home, knowing that when you walk in the door, you will instantly be connected to the Internet, printers, and the other computers in your home that you have connected to your home wireless network. No more plugging and unplugging a laptop from the network.

The convenience that wireless networking provides is obviously a good fit for laptops. But if you want to create a network quickly, and place the equipment wherever you want, without worrying about wires, a wireless network is really the way to go.

Taking Wireless on the Road

More and more hotels, airport business centers, convention centers, and other businesses are setting up public wireless networks that will help you to access the Internet, at high speed, while you travel. An airline layover can be used to catch up on e-mail and surf the Web. You can turn typical downtime into something really useful, or at least more fun than catching a nap at the terminal.

Companies, including Boingo (Figure 1.4), Sputnik, and NetNearU, are working to create broadband access for travelers. Sometimes called visitor-based networks (VBNs), you can find Internet access when you travel at hotels, convention centers, and airports.

Figure 1.4. Boingo offers wireless Internet access to travelers with 802.11b network adapters.

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You can use your Web browser to search Boingo (www.boingo.com), for example, to find public wireless access points, or hot spots , before you begin your next trip.

Wireless Speed in the Real World

As we discuss various wireless networking technologies, we invariably discuss speed. All the technologies have a maximum speed in which they can transfer data. The data transfer rate is often referred to as bandwidth, or throughput. For instance, Fast Ethernet, a wired technology, can transfer data over cables at up to 100 megabits per second. 802.11a and 802.11g, the fastest current wireless standards, top out at 54 megabits per second. And 802.11b, the most popular standard, transfers data at 11 megabits per second. These speeds are the maximum rate at which data can travel. In the real world, however, wireless networking equipment is likely to offer something on the order of half these speeds.

Compatibility among Manufacturers

As we mentioned earlier, this book concentrates on Wi-Fi (also known as 802.11b) wireless networking equipment. You can purchase 802.11b wireless networking equipment from different manufacturers, and it should work together. I say should because a few 802.11b devices are not compatible with the majority of 802.11b equipment. To ensure compatibility among manufacturers look for the Wi-Fi logo, which is displayed on equipment that has met the requirement set up by the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (Figure 1.5). You can find out more information about the wireless standard at www.wi-fi.com.

Figure 1.5. The Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance is a trade group that promotes 802.11b compatibility.

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Importantly, 802.11b does not work with a newer , faster, and more expensive networking standard called Wi-Fi5 (or 802.11a). Wi-Fi5 is, as you might have guessed, about five times as fast as Wi-Fi equipment. Wi-Fi5 can carry data at a maximum of 54 megabits per second, where Wi-Fi equipment has a maximum speed of 11 megabits per second. Figure 1.6 shows a Wi-Fi5 access point from Proxim. Even newer is 802.11g, which offers the same speeds as 802.11a and is thankfully, compatible with the older and more widely used 802.11b.

Figure 1.6. Wi-Fi5 (802.11a) wireless network equipment.

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As seen in Figure 1.6, Wi-Fi5 (802.11a) equipment, such as this access point from Proxim, works at up to five times the speed of Wi-Fi (802.11b) wireless networking equipment.

All of the 802.11 standards offer plenty of speed for surfing the Web, printing documents, and listening to MP3 files. The bottom line is that you should make sure that your products are compatible (by asking the seller or vendor or by looking for the Wi-Fi logo). You'll then be able to purchase equipment from any vendor you choose.