Way More Than You Want To Know About Wireless Services

So you are ready to enter the 21^st century and get high speed internet. The problem is that you live in the middle of nowhere and there are limited options for you. At least in this area your options probably include wireless service from I-land or Easynet, or a cell phone company's wireless service. The next problem becomes that you have no idea how either one works or even what they are. The short explanation is, expensive. They know that you have almost no options so you will be paying a premium for the service. This is the part where I give you the long, complicated answer, but I will make it as simple as I can.

Let's separate this into two categories. Wireless internet from a cell phone company, and wireless internet from an internet service provider (ISP), like I-land and Easynet. Although they are similar types of technology you are going to judge their effectiveness in different ways. One thing they both have in common is that they overcome the problem of not being able to run cable for internet to every single house in a rural area.

Cell phone companies provide you internet the same way they provide you with cell phone signal. It will take fairly good signal for you to be able to get internet. If you only get cell phone signal occasionally in your house or only in some parts of your house then you will probably not be getting internet connectivity at your house through that company. These services are available at cell phone stores or some big box stores like Walmart. They require that you purchase a piece of equipment that attaches to your computer as well as a service plan. These plans vary by company so make sure that you shop around to get the best deal. There are limits on how much you can use on these plans so make sure you check those limits.

Wireless ISP companies do something similar; they even use some of the same towers to put up their equipment. In the most basic terms they send a signal from their source through routers to an antennae and receiver on your house. This signal is then sent through your house with wires to your modem. The modem is a device that translates the signal into something your computer will understand. So although the signal comes to your house wireless it is not actually wireless inside of your house. Check the What is Wifi and Wireless Without Worries blogs to guide you down the wireless road inside your house.

So now all you have to do is choose the one that is right for you, and we will have solved all of your problems. OK, we have solved all your immediate internet connection problems, trust me you will have more connection problems eventually. So, go browse the internet at high speeds and enjoy the 21^st century.

What Is Wifi?

All day I have people tell me that they are computer illiterate. Now most of these people are using it as an icebreaker. What they don't realize is that they are exactly correct in their assessment. These people are not stupid, but they are illiterate. Calm down, it is actually a compliment. If you went to Russia without learning the language you would be illiterate. The same thing is true of computers. It is a whole new language that you have to learn. This is a process just like learning any other language. I cannot teach you the whole language in one blog, but maybe I can clear up one of the more common terms that people have problems with, wifi.

Most people have heard the term wifi, but still have no clue what it really means. People assume that like other confusing terms wifi is short for something. That is not the case. Wifi has never been short for anything. It is simply a term used for the universal standard used to send wireless signals. Wireless standard is IEEE 802.11. This refers to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers standard for sending wireless signal. There are now letters attached at the back of IEEE 802.11. These indicate a larger data sending capacity which translates to a faster connection for you. The most current standard is IEEE 802.11n.

Now that I have given you a bunch of technical jargon that you don't understand or care about let me see if I can put it in English for you. Basically a wireless device takes the signal it receives and turns it into radio waves. It then broadcasts these radio waves so that another wireless device can pick them up. The wireless device that picks the radio waves up translates them back into a language that the computer can understand. So you are basically just sending and receiving radio waves.

You basically need three things in order to make wifi happen in your life. You need an internet connection that makes a signal to translate. You need a wireless router to translate the signal into radio waves, and you need a computer with a wireless device to pick up the radio waves and translate them into computer language. If you are missing one of those then you cannot have wifi. Yes it can be confusing, and no it is not easy the first time you deal with it. However, just like learning a language if you start at the beginning and take it one step at a time you can do this, or you could always just get someone who is ten to do it for you, they are all computer literate.  

More Options Than Answers

So you have already had the desktop vs. laptop debate, with yourself, your friends, your spouse, your kids, and everyone else who would hold still. You have chosen laptop. You are sure of your decision and confident that you will find just the right machine for you. The research begins online, and that is when you run into the problem. Now you have been inundated with a whole new set of options. You have run into terms like netbook, notebook, tablet, and laptop. Calm down, take a breath, and before you alienate everyone who is your friend on facebook let me see if I can make things a little clearer.

The best thing to understand is that a lot of these terms have become somewhat interchangeable so there are not black and white definitions that everyone agrees on. Now that I have scared you more let me reassure you there are some standards. Laptops, notebooks and netbooks are all defined as having screens and keyboards attached with hinges. So anything you open and see a screen and keyboard is one of those three things. A tablet is a different creature. This is just a screen, and they mainly run on app style programming. There was a time when tablets even ran on different operating systems than other computers. They are getting more mainstream. They now run on traditional operating systems, however, they still have computing limitations. These are a good option if you run your life with apps, and are addicted to your smart phone. If you are limited in your technological abilities, and just made a confused face when you read the word apps, then this is probably not the machine for you.

Now laptop, notebook, and netbook are differentiated by size going from the biggest to the smallest.   Laptops are traditionally the biggest machines physically as well as having the biggest computing power. This term is still used for the biggest and baddest computing machines. The big gaming machines are still considered laptops. Then we have notebooks which are smaller with a smaller price tag, but the trade off is that they did not have the big computing power. Now, however, unless you are running huge game programs the lines have really blurred. There are lots of machines in mid price ranges that have excellent computing power with exactly the size, screen, and weight you are looking for. Now netbooks are still a different creature, although even this line is starting to blur. Netbooks are much smaller and are not actually meant for full computing functionality. They run on smaller operating systems and do not have the space for large program installations. They were mainly meant for internet and email use at their inception. They do tend to run quite a bit cheaper, so if that is all you intend to do that may be a good way to go.

 Now that I have filled your head with a ton of technical stuff that you don't really understand I am going to tell you again, relax. This is easier than it sounds, and you can do it. The names mean very little. What matters is that you get a machine that does what you need it to do. Make a list of all the things you do on your computer and the programs that you cannot live without. Now go to a computer store that you can trust, or take a computer literate friend with you shopping. Get something that works for you and then give a name you can remember and enjoy, like Ginger or Shadow.