1 x Linksys BEFW11S4 (ver 2) EtherFast® Wireless AP + Cable/DSL Router w/4-Port Switch, 802.11b, 2.4GHz $35
2 x Linksys WPC11 (ver 3) Instant Wireless Network PC Card, 802.11b $25 each

coworker is selling the above. i've been thinking about going wireless, so all i'd buy would be the router and 1 wireless card. is it worth it? is 802.11b old hat and not worth it anymore? help!!

 

umm. $70-80 total I'd say. stuff can be had for pretty cheap these days.

 

im still iffy on the difference between bridge and switch and router h:

 

ok, assuming i could get the lot for $70-80, is it worth it? are these good, reliable components? am i shooting myself in the foot by going 802.11b? are there any security issues that i should be looking at?

i've always had the impression that linksys is a good brand.

 

go for it, that is still cheaper than it can be had new. I love my Linksys wireless setup

 

yea, linksys is good. they are one of the biggest in the wireless industry right now. I'd say it's a good deal.

 

Well they name them after real life things. So just think of what other real life thigns with those names do... in a similar way they work for computers too.

Bridge for example. It simply creates a connection between 2 points. Real life talking about 2 roads or when talking about an RG-6 cable that needs a TSplice, or a dsl modem. It's just connecting. It's not doing anything to it other than connecting and allowing traffice or signal to move from one spot to another.

A switch and be thought of as "or". A light switch is either on OR off. Same with a 24 port switch with computers connected to it. Port3 is talking to Port6 OR not.

Router is a little more complicated. But it really just makes routes or defines a path for info. Just like a person that's planning on what roads go where, he is a router. He's telling things where they can and cannot go.

 

even if you are getting 3mb/s download speed on your cable/dsl you're still not going to max out the 802.11b connection speed (11mb/s).

802.11b is very reliable. as for security, you can enable WEP and mac address filtering which will keep most people out.

 

noob :fawk: go read a book

 

im reading php and c++ :fawk: