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Can desktop act as "wireless" router?



 
 
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  #1  
Old February 7th 11, 10:25 PM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
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Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

Rather than buying a stand alone wireless router....can
a person just configure his desktop with wireless card
to ACT as a wireless "router" and save some desk space
if short on space?
  #3  
Old February 7th 11, 11:44 PM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
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Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

Grinder wrote:

Hardly seems worth the effort when you can get a small wireless router
for $25 that need not sit on top of your desk in order to do the job.


Live in a one room apartment.... very cramped for
space!
  #5  
Old February 8th 11, 12:20 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
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Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

Grinder wrote:

Do you have a drop ceiling? Put it up there, or on top of a bookshelf,
or under the desk?


I live in a VERY small one room efficiency apartment
and trying to keep clutter down (extra wires, devices,
etc). I am graduate student as well so cost is issue
too

I don't have a desktop at the moment but thinking of
buying one and using it as a wireless router for my
laptop as well....

so the desktop would have a direct WIRED connection
from the cable company INTO the unit.... and the relay
wireless signals to/fro my laptop via the wireless card
IN the desktop....yes?

The desktop would be leaved ON all the time and act as
an "entertainment" center for me.... music, iTunes,
netflix ....as well as having more horsepower for some
of the app's that don't run well on my laptop

I just didn't want to buy a stand alone router if not
needed...just more clutter for me

but I may be missing something.... is using a desktop
in this manner just as good as any stand alone wireless
router... or do the routers have some advantage I'm not
seeing given my example above?
  #6  
Old February 8th 11, 12:49 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
VanguardLH[_2_]
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Posts: 1,453
Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

wrote:

Rather than buying a stand alone wireless router....can
a person just configure his desktop with wireless card
to ACT as a wireless "router" and save some desk space
if short on space?


Are we to guess what operating system you intend to use on your desktop
(which you don't have yet despite claiming to be a poor student)?

What are your qualifications for consuming space for a desktop when your
only need is wifi access for your laptop?

You could use your desktop and its unidentified OS to run as a gateway
but you'll need 2 NICS: one for your intranet and one to the Internet.
Of course, now you'll up the cost of getting 2 NICs (one wifi and one
connected to your unidentified Internet service type) along with the
entire cost of a desktop when a wifi router would have been so much
cheaper.

Why are you getting the desktop (which you don't have yet)? Since it
will occupy space, why not get a wifi router that sits right atop the
desktop's case? If you have room for the desktop then it's likely you
have room for a router. If you're that tight, put the router under your
bed (but make sure it has breathing room to ventilate away the heated
air since routers don't have fans for cooling and rely on convection).
If you have a desk (on which the desktop will sit atop or underneath),
just get some self-stick velcro strips and stick the router on the side
of your desk or underneath on the privacy panel (in front of your feet).
  #7  
Old February 8th 11, 01:07 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
Grinder
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Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

On 2/7/2011 5:20 PM, wrote:
wrote:

Do you have a drop ceiling? Put it up there, or on top of a bookshelf,
or under the desk?


I live in a VERY small one room efficiency apartment
and trying to keep clutter down (extra wires, devices,
etc). I am graduate student as well so cost is issue
too

I don't have a desktop at the moment but thinking of
buying one and using it as a wireless router for my
laptop as well....

so the desktop would have a direct WIRED connection
from the cable company INTO the unit.... and the relay
wireless signals to/fro my laptop via the wireless card
IN the desktop....yes?


You could fit a wireless card into the desktop, and use Internet
Connection Sharing (ICS) to give the laptop access to the internet that
the desktop is getting down the wire.

The desktop would be leaved ON all the time and act as
an "entertainment" center for me.... music, iTunes,
netflix ....as well as having more horsepower for some
of the app's that don't run well on my laptop

I just didn't want to buy a stand alone router if not
needed...just more clutter for me


I guess, but this just seems dopey to me.

but I may be missing something.... is using a desktop
in this manner just as good as any stand alone wireless
router... or do the routers have some advantage I'm not
seeing given my example above?


At a minimum, having a standalone router would eliminate the need for
the desktop to be always up, making heat and noise, just for your net
connection. I see that you intend run that PC 24-7 anyhow, but having a
small, dedicated device seems to be very efficient.

Also, I'm not sure how many connections you can have through a single
wireless card on the PC. The router can have many connections as you
would ever need. If you want a third device on the network, you'll have
to do more setup to make that happen, if it's even possible.

Even if, through some bizarre regulation, I could not fit a router into
the space, I would probably look to fit a small wireless router inside
the PC's case. It's the right device for the capabilities you want.



  #8  
Old February 8th 11, 01:53 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
John
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Posts: 161
Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

wrote:
wrote:

Do you have a drop ceiling? Put it up there, or on top of a bookshelf,
or under the desk?


I live in a VERY small one room efficiency apartment
and trying to keep clutter down (extra wires, devices,
etc). I am graduate student as well so cost is issue
too

I don't have a desktop at the moment but thinking of
buying one and using it as a wireless router for my
laptop as well....

so the desktop would have a direct WIRED connection
from the cable company INTO the unit.... and the relay
wireless signals to/fro my laptop via the wireless card
IN the desktop....yes?

The desktop would be leaved ON all the time and act as
an "entertainment" center for me.... music, iTunes,
netflix ....as well as having more horsepower for some
of the app's that don't run well on my laptop

I just didn't want to buy a stand alone router if not
needed...just more clutter for me

but I may be missing something.... is using a desktop
in this manner just as good as any stand alone wireless
router... or do the routers have some advantage I'm not
seeing given my example above?



You can buy a cable modem that will also broadcast WIFI from the cable
company. Hard wire the (future) desktop comp to the modem and set the
modem on top of the desk top's case to save space. I have a DSL/WIFI
modem I bought from Verizon (cable company would do the same) and the
setup works very well. Last February's big storm had relatives who had
lost power staying with us and no one had a problem connecting to the
WIFI. My wife's laptop even works outside on our patio.

John
  #9  
Old February 8th 11, 04:00 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
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Posts: 675
Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

John wrote:

You can buy a cable modem that will also broadcast WIFI from the cable
company.


That might be a solution..
  #10  
Old February 8th 11, 04:02 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
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Posts: 675
Default Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

Grinder wrote:

At a minimum, having a standalone router would eliminate the need for
the desktop to be always up, making heat and noise, just for your net
connection. I see that you intend run that PC 24-7 anyhow, but having a
small, dedicated device seems to be very efficient.

Also, I'm not sure how many connections you can have through a single
wireless card on the PC. The router can have many connections as you
would ever need. If you want a third device on the network, you'll have
to do more setup to make that happen, if it's even possible.


well I did NOT say it was a good idea.... only hat it
was something I wanted to "consider"

It now sounds like a good wireless router makes better
sense

given that... WHICH wireless router to buy for
streaming Netflix and such?
 




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