Wireless Networking Basics - Installing the Hardware
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I currently have three wireless cards: a Linksys WMP11 for my Athlon 700 (Windows 2000), a SMC 2402W for my dad's overclocked Pentium II-266 running at 333 MHz (Windows 98 and Red Hat Linux 9 dual boot) and a Linksys WPC54G for my Pentium II-300 laptop whose screen is busted (Red Hat Linux 8). I also have a D-Link DI-614+ wireless router.
Installing the SMC card and the Linksys WMP11 were a snap, since they're just regular PCI cards. All you need to install them is about 10 minutes and a Phillips screwdriver.
Keep in mind that the PCI cards come with the antenna not attached to the card itself. Don't attach it until you install the card. You could accidentally jam the antenna in the external slot for the PCI card. The antennas also allow lots of flexibility in the install, as you can rotate the antenna without unscrewing it by holding the base with one hand and using the other to turn the antenna.
Installing the WPC54G was easy too. Just plug it in:
I didn't have to do much to the router. The install instructions came in a PDF file on a CD. Most routers, like this one, come with a default IP address of 192.168.0.1. The kicker to this is that the initial configuration should be done over a wired connection to the router, not a wireless one.
Having said that, I fired up Mozilla Firebird and went to 192.168.0.1, using the username and password given in the manual. The router greeted me with a really friendly wizard:
The first page after this asked me to change the admin password. I can't stress this enough - change the admin password. When setting up the WAN, or the internet connection, I set mine to dynamic. Most cable providers require this. DSL users, choose PPPoE (point-to-point protocol over ethernet).
My only complaint about the wizard is that there isn't an express setup. Some users would be confused by some of the questions, like cloning MAC addresses (totally unnecessary) and encryption. This screen, however, is completely necessary:
I'm being asked for the SSID and the channel that I'm operating this on. Accepting the defaults is ok for now, and if you're not worried at all about security. On the other hand, if you're paranoid, this should be the first thing to be changed. Whatever settings you do put in there, write them down because you will need them later.
I was asked about my encryption keys, but because I didn't have them at the time, I didn't type them in. I wasn't worried about hackers sniffing my network, only because there wasn't much to sniff, and I'm on a wired connection to the router.
Next: "Installing the Software >>
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