ok here it goes. i have one modem on the main floor of my house. from there i have a router and have run 2 ethernet cables to the basement for my son(one for PC and one for Xbox) and have 2 more ethernet cables running across the house under the floor for my PC and my Xbox 360.

here is my predicament. i am moving my living room from the main floor into a bedroom upstairs to have as a private den. it was easy for me to run the ethernet cables before as my basment isnt finished. but i dont have the foggiest idea(well maybe a foggy one) as to how to run the ethernet cables across the house then up through the walls into the upper bedroom.

i called my cable company (rogers cable -southern Ontario) to have them either run the ethernet cables OR just set up a 2nd modem right in the upper bedroom. but they say NO. they DO NOT provide support for running cables across the house, and if i want a 2nd modem i would have to start an entirely separate new account meaning i would pay monthly for an entirely separate account -odbviously not keen to do that!

so my question - should i pay s/one to come and run my cables for me or just get a wireless router? if wireless what would you recomend as something that will be ROCK SOLID, as i may even have to expand in the near future to 6 internet connections in the house all together.....

thnx alot -Christian

If cost is no object, I would recommend that you have someone come in and run CAT-5, CAT-5e, or CAT-6 cabling as you prefer to all the points that you wish to have ethernet enabled.

If you have the time to experiment on your own, you can either add a wireless access point to you existing setup or replace it with a wireless router.

There are companies that make "wireless bridges" and many access points have bridging capabilities built in. I personally have used the Linksys WET54GS5, which is a bridge with a built in 5-port switch. This has been discontinued and currently they only offer the WET54G, which is a dedicated bridge w/o the switch.

If you are connecting computers througout the house and they are wireless, you may be done simply by changing over to a wireless router. If it is a desktop PC and it is not wireless, you can add a PCI card with a wireless adapter, which is typically cleaner installation wise than going with a bridge (less power supplies, cables, things to break, etc...)

There are also wireless repeaters, but I really hate using these as I feel it is a band aid for a poorly designed setup. Different people will have different suggestions. There are ALL TYPES OF THINGS you can experiment with. directional antennas, high gain antennas, etc...

...BUT wired is the way to go with a copper based Gigabit ethernet setup not much more expensive than a 10/100 setup and going to give you more life out of the network as emerging and future technologies start to come into play.

Unless your planning on running a gaming server, Wireless is fine. Sometimes people get caught up in the Latest/Fastest/Newest and dont see through it. The cable modem itslef can run full speed ona 10mbs connection.... There are wireless options that put you over 100mbs now....

Hi, thanks for your response but i'm a little ignorant so found it a little hard to follow -

what is cat 5? and i dont have any wireless PC's... i think my personal PC is wireless ready as it tells me every time i turn it on there is no wireless network detected...

so i would have to have s/thing installed into my PC in order to have a wireless router? i thought it would be as simple as plugging some unit where the ethernet cable goes into the back of the PC.

is it possible to just leave the hard wired ethernet connection running to my son in the basement but have a wireless connection for my 2 devices upstairs?

thnx again!

sorry i didnt see this post before my last one.... so you feel running ethernet cable is unnecessary? as no i wont be setting up a dedicated server or anything...

Go wireless, wireless card for a PC = $29-$89, retrofitting a new wire = $100 trip charge plus time and materials at $90hr.

does this mean i have to install it into my pc? i suppose i could take it in and have it done where i buy the card from?

cat 5 is the type of cable (what is between the two Ethernet jacks and has all the wires in it). Ethernet tends to be Cat5 for the cable and RJ-45 jacks. What he is saying is get someone to pass Cat5 from one room to the other and then terminate the cable to an RJ-45 wall plate.

It is hard to give advice with no info. For a fixed install (a PC that won't move) wired is better, for a laptop that you might want to use in different locations wireless is more handy. once the cables are passed Ethernet is faster (if you transfer large files from one PC to an other) and more reliable (no RF interference.....) on the other hand pulling cables can be a nightmare

installing a wireless card is easy, I think they might also make external ones. But the more complicated part is setting up the network

Netgear are great routers and I have installed a couple of these now - at my house and also at the in-laws. Will do 4 wired ethernet ports and upto 56 wireless running the wireless connection at 108mbps (wired is only 100mb) Also the routers are ADSL 2 ready which means they will handle connections at upto 22mbps

Even if you do run a gaming server the wireless connection works fine - i run a wireless gaming server from my pc and connect using my PS2 on another wireless port. I only have a 2mbps connection but it all runs sweet as.

If later on you need more wired ports - do as someone else suggested and get yourself a router which will give you a minimum of 4 extra wired ports.

Wireless is so much bettre and cheaper than it used to be I wouldn't think twice about it. Just make sure you set up encryption and the
other security features ont he router so your neighbor isn't using your connection.

Good point Jim about the encryption but that takes only a second or two and you shouldnt feel that you shouldnt go wireless because of it - it is a very simple step to do.

Guess this is over your head, take it in and get it installed, hire a pro to come out and set up the wireless system, prepare tp pay for it.

Set up wireless. It will let you use more of the features on that NEVO you and I fight over! :)

Pick up a wireless router. The WRT54G from Linksys is real easy to deal with. They have all sorts of wireless adapters too. SOme connect via USB but need drivers. Using a WET54G (wireless bridge) lets you just use the ethernet jack on the computer as long as it can communicate with the router. The WET is a good compliment to the Xboxes of the world.

Plus then you could hook up to the NevoLink. BLAH Cough
That was har to get out.

:)

Go w/ belkin. I have one of the 125g's and it is fast and simple plus you get lifetime 24/7 phone support (have used this feature a couple of times do to children messing up a little and also reinstalling windows but it is really nice to have if it starts acting up and u don't know how to fix. They have really helped and are really nice) And it is really fast compared to other poeples computers i have used that use dofferent ones. installation is very simple and i think the instalation CD tells you how to set up the wireless PCI card. Very simple.