Re: which? network card
 

Mbit, the max data transfer speed of the card.

Personally, I would buy a wireless router if I were you. It will require a wireless card for all your machines (and Linux may not support them), but you could still use that cabled.

Re: which? network card
 

all routers should be OS independant.

to 10/100/1000 refers to the speed of the connection (in Megabits).

Bearing in mind that cable is less than 10 Megabits, you will only see any difference when sending data within your own network.

Re: which? network card
 

both comps in the house have a network card, but personally I am not going to go wireless yet, I can't afford extra cards.

ik

Re: which? network card
 

Fair enough, but if you are going to fork out for a router, it may be wise to pay a bit more for wireless even if you will not be using it straight away.

However, if money is tight...

Re: which? network card
 

with a wireless, one, this may sound stupid, but can you still use cables as well?

ik

Re: which? network card
 

Yes, (at least with mine you can), sorry, that was the point I was trying to make, but I did not make myself very clear.

edit:
this one has four wired ports, and is a very popular router. You can get that one, start out using it wired, and buy wireless cards if/when you have the money.

Re: which? network card
 

ah, right, so then I could go for it, I just thought cause it is wireless you cannot connect cables.

sorry

ik

Re: which? network card
 

Yup (see my edit)

Re: which? network card
 

When I bought my router in PC world I took to the counter a Linksys and the bloke said you don't want to get that, get Belkin its cheaper which I did. Never had any problems and straight forward to use. I say get a Belkin router, but then that is my opinion.

Re: which? network card
 

I will highly recommend the Linksys BEFW11S4 Router... currently ~£42 on http://www.ebuyer.co.uk

A guy who worked where I am got a Belkin (from PC World believe it or not - PC World must get bribed to sell more Belkin stuff!) and he says its great. But I have heard of people say they're not so great. I think its the luck of the draw to be honest...

Many say Linksys' router firmware is weak... but many have said its improving since Cisco Systems have been stamping their impressions onto the kit.

I've heard of some people having trouble with Netgear stuff too... and I find their LAN cards (although pretty cheap and decent quality), they can die pretty miserably.

All in all though, I'd go for the Linksys... but as I have one, I'm biased :p

Alternatively, get a 3com TX-905C NIC (I got one off ebay for £5 + £1 P&P) - have an onboard dedicated processor to minimalise (sp?) any usage of the main CPU to process it's data.

Re: which? network card
 

I have problems with my BEFW11S4, but when it worked fine it worked flawlessly.

I have a Belkin wireless card, based on the Broadcom 54g chipset, tbh, its a heap of **** compared to my old d-link card. Not recommended. Its the one that is in all the dixons group shops..avoid.

Re: which? network card
 

True although I thoroughly recommend at least a 100MBit cabling standard especially for transferring data between PCs in your house as 10MBit gets terribly sluggish even for LAN gaming.

Re: which? network card
 

Got a Sweex router myself, £25 - looked at the Ebuyer one (Origo/safecom), but got scared of by the speed drop reports on the ADSLTECH forum (all Safecom products there)

Probably firmware-fixed by now, I should think!

Re: which? network card
 

ok, guys, I went and got the linksys wireless one, but another wee question:

what kind of cable do I need? I just need one I think, cause I have a cat5 cable that is connecting the both comps, so do I just go for this? 1m UTP CAT-5 Cable (RJ45) from scan at 45p http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...roductID=15101

ik

EDIT: bearing in mind I might not buy it online, as carraige will cost about 100 times the cost of the cable

Re: which? network card
 

Yes, but presumably you are now using a cross-over (x-over) cable to connect the two machines? You will need to change this to straight through. Either by buying a new cable, or buying an adaptor.