VERY SIMPLE HOME NETWORK

[GCC Consulting]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: filepro-list-bounces at lists.celestial.com 
> [mailto:filepro-list-bounces at lists.celestial.com] On Behalf 
> Of Fairlight
> Sent: Saturday, December 25, 2004 12:56 AM
> To: 'filePro List'
> Subject: Re: VERY SIMPLE HOME NETWORK
> 
> When asked his whereabouts on Fri, Dec 24, 2004 at 11:28:24PM 
> -0500, GCC Consulting took the fifth, drank it, and then slurred:
> >  
> > The last choice I would make is wireless unless you plan to 
> use this 
> > with broadband.  Wireless takes a little more care in setting up.
> 
> All of a screenful of parameters that are pretty simple.  
> Really, I was a wireless virgin in March and had next to no 
> trouble getting it going.  The biggest headache, in fact, was 
> -from- the 10b2 to 10/100bT hub--My old ethernet cards were 
> configured for one frame type that the hub just had no idea 
> about--it would light up when there was traffic, but I 
> couldn't communicate with the bridge I had on the hub.  It 
> was a card-specific issue, and the card has to be a good 
> seven years old.  :)  Changed the ethernet frame type in use 
> on the card and *poof* all was well.  It was literally a 
> difference between the .2 and .3 frames, as I recall.
> 
> Wireless, like just about every other subsystem over the 
> years that I've been told is quirky-to-bitchy to set up and 
> maintain, is something beset by large amounts of FUD.  It's 
> really pretty simple if you do the tiniest modicum of reading.
> 
> NOTE:  MAC filtering will -only- prevent bandwidth stealing, 
> -not- packet sniffing.  Use WEP encryption at a minimum.  I 
> haven't dinked with WPA or WPA-SP and the like, but WEP 
> couldn't be more simple.  
> 
> > Once the router is set up and the wireless NIC turned on, your 
> > computers will find the network.
> 
> Assuming you leave everything at the standard DHCP 
> configurations, even the IP stuff will set itself up 
> correctly.  Of course, I totally reject the thought of 
> -anything- dynamic, and I use static addressing.  I entirely 
> disable DHCP.  The only annoyance I've run into there is that 
> if you have problems, tech support staff at the wireless 
> vendors seem to be unable to cope with the fact you're not 
> using DHCP, and do all but refuse to support their 
> products--despite the fact the features for static IP 
> addressing are amply supported in their hardware.  Tech 
> support for these places (D-Link, LinkSys, in my experience) 
> is mostly only good for the lowest possible level of problems 
> on stock configurations with factory defaults.  Change 
> anything they don't expect changes in, you're possibly on your own.
> 
> > Just remember that you will need to set up shares on both 
> machines for 
> > sharing files.  Some folders are set to share by default.
> 
> Only the administrative ones like C$ and such, I thought.  
> And I thought not in the conventional sense...?  You go to 
> change the password on Win2K for C$ or E$ and it says it's 
> for administrative purposes.  You have to actually make a new 
> user-based share, in my experiences.
> 
Mark

When setting up networking, and I may be thinking of the home addition of XP,
wants to know if you want to share the media and picture folders.

Richard Kreiss
GCC Consulting