Laptop and Desktop Network help!

Hi

It will be less complicated and problably less expensie to just get a Wireless /4port wired Router, they cost $29 - $120, Staples had the Netgear 3500 L for $79, and the WNR2000 for $49.
Both have wired/wiress networks (as well as a guest wireless network, so if your firends come by they can use that and have to give out your password)

But just the addition of the WiFi Access point will work, though depending on what you buy it may not be a simple Plug & Play type setup.

Lots of WiFi Access Points by default separate the Wired and Wireless Networks so you need to change this in their Setup Utility when you plug them in and Bridge the Wired and Wireless LAN's.

As for the cheapest way the answer is run a CAT5 cable to the NB your not going to get anything cheaper than a CAT5 Cable and it's going to be faster than a Wireless Connection.

Depending on what you buy you'll need to read the Destructions that come with it and setup accordingly, however depending on the OS's in use here there may be more to Networking them than just plugging in the WiFi Access point. If that is something you want to do of course.

As far as Guest WiFi and so on you also need to realize that the more WiFi Systems connecting to the WiFi Access Point the slower each computer will be in transferring data/reading the Internet and depending on what security is supported by the WiFi Device itself you may have a lot of the available Bandwidth taken up by the Security Protocol in use.

But basically the more populated area that you live in the better the Security you need to use, all WiFi can be accessible for up to 500 Meters so the more people around you the more you have to rely on the Built In Security of the WiFi Device. For instance at my home there are 23 WiFi Signals available most of which are secured but there is one which is wide open and it's a nuisance when I open up a NB. Most of the customers NB's are set to lock onto the nearest available WiFi LAN and this kills the wired connection so half way through a 300 MEG Download I'll see the connection speed drop through the floor and instead of being the 20 MPS that I have on my Wired Connection I'll instead see a WiFi Connection through the neighbors WiFi Access Point.

Now if only I could find out who had this WiFi Access Point I could lock it down for them but till that happens it's more than a bit of a nuisance.

Col