A Wifi How To?

[+magking1971]

I have a HP 4560 laptop and would like to know how I could hook up to the internet wireless without having to plug into a phone jack.

It has a wireless button in the front of it and the last time I was in town (I live in the sticks) I hit the button and it said "Wireless connection detected" ok, great but I still could not connect.

Thanks in advance.

[+wildearth2001]

you have to be close to a Wifi hotspot, try around a library or a coffee shop. Or an expensive hotel. You also have to have your own ISP loaded into the laptop and config it correctly. You also need to have a wireless network addapter (an internal card) but it sounds like you already have that, and that is probably what the message was trying to tell you, maybe you could make a screen shot of the message and post it here. Try pressing the button from home (in the sticks) and see if the message comes up, if it does you know this is the case.

[+UncleRMC]

We use WiFi here at home. You connect a "access point/router" to your dsl or cable modem and then all of your WiFi enabled computers/pda's can connect to the internet wirelessly anywhere in your home or yard.

 

I use my ipaq (in the backyard) to control Winamp on one of our desktops that has speakers that point to the backyard. Wireless Jukebox!

[+Blaidd-Drwg]

OK, throwing in my $0.02. As I recently upgraded to WiFi within my house, here goes. When your system detects a WiFi connection, if you are running XP, a box will say to click here to connect. Clicking on the box will cause a window to open showing the WiFi net name. Highlight the name and click connect. You should then be able to cruise the internet. Of course this is easier said than done. There are a number of things which may keep you from connecting. First is the SSID of the WiFi spot. This is a name, and if it isn't broadcast, then you can't connect, unless someone tells you the name. Another potential preclusion is the use of WEP or WPA. These are encryption routines and again, unless you know the code, you can't get in.

I too, live in a rural area and recently got a satellite hookup for my internet service. I then set up a home WiFi network that enables all of the computers in my house to access the internet, allows sharing of files between systems and allows all systems to use a single printer.

But in answer to your initial query, the first part of this diatribe is all you need to know.

[CoyoteRed]

It has a wireless button in the front of it and the last time I was in town (I live in the sticks) I hit the button and it said "Wireless connection detected" ok, great but I still could not connect.

From this statement it sounds as though you "stumbled" into a hotpsot. Many times when you stumble into a spot, it's just a wireless network without a persistent internet connection.

 

It is of questionable ethics to hook into an open access point. Many feel if it's open then it's fair game. Some feel it's intrusion.

 

Personally, I feel if the point is open, it's open for a reason. That reason could be to sniff your traffic and get passwords, but that's rare. As long as you're not parked somewhere and downloading gigs of dirty movies or something--i.e. only for occasional and brief usage--you should be okay. Also, if you stumble into an open system don't be an a** as snoop through their computers--that is unquestionably an intrusion.

 

Hope this helps.

 

[EDIT: funny typos]

Edited May 3, 2004 by CoyoteRed

[+magking1971]

I could never snoop on someones computer, I am lucky enough to figure out how to turn one on.

Thanks for all the help!

[+Gloom]

try looking at WiFi Free Spot to see if you hit a known free spot, or just stumbled onto a wireless network.

[+travisl]

Personally, I feel if the point is open, it's open for a reason. That reason could be to sniff your traffic and get passwords, but that's rare. As long as you're not parked somewhere and downloading gigs of dirty movies or something--i.e. only for occasional and brief usage--you should be okay. Also, if you stumble into an open system don't be an a** as snoop through their computers--that is unquestionably an intrusion.

Well spoken. I've got an 802.11b network at my house, and I don't mind if someone shares my bandwidth. I'm cool with that.

 

As a security precaution, I'm not sharing out whole hard drives; just a few selected directories.

 

Want to have some real fun? Since you're here, I'll assume you have a way to connect your GPS to your laptop. Download NetStumbler, hook up your GPS, and drive around for a while. Apartment complexes and professional's offices are great spots to find open networks.

 

Based on my experience, I'd say about 15% of all the networks you find will be open. I suspect that's pretty close to the percentage of people who consciously choose to keep their network open.

 

(But isn't this stealing the bandwidth of people who are too dumb to secure their networks?) I don't think so -- it's almost impossible to tell where the network is, and impractical to ask. I'm fond of the analogy of a hose running water from the owner's faucet into the street and down the drain. If I can easily find the owner, I'll let him know. If I can't, I can't picture him being upset if I take a drink.

 

But no, it'd be wrong to follow the hose up to the house and start digging through the refrigerator. Don't go digging around on their network drives without permission.