5 Reasons Why You Need a Wireless Network

So far as I'm concerned, wireless networks are one of the greatest inventions in history -- they really are the best thing since sliced bread. I mean, really, bread is easy enough to cut yourself, but have you ever tried to wire up a network? Thus, in the spirit of spreading the word, I will give you five reasons why you will need a wireless network.

Share Internet Access.

Wireless networking gives you a cheap and easy way to share one Internet connection between multiple computers, eliminating the need for at least 1 modem. You can add new computers to your network by simply plugging in a wireless card and switching them on -- they get an online connection straightaway! There are not many wired networks that can say .

Share Files and Printers.

A wireless network gives you access to your files wherever you're in your house, making it easy to synchronise the data on a notebook with a computer. It's far easier to send files between computers with a wireless network than it is to send them by email, or even by burning them to a CD.

Plus, with the printer attached, you may also write things wherever you want, press print, and go and collect them from a printer attached to another computer -- printers that are plugged into one of the computers on the network are shared between all the computers automatically.

Play Games.

You may have seen an option in your favorite game to play over a LAN. Well, wireless networks are LANs, meaning your entire family can play that game together -- without having the computers to be anywhere near each other. It is much more fun to play against real people you know than to play against random people over the web, and of course that the game will work much quicker. You might even invite your friends to bring their computers and join in -- a'LAN party'!

An extra plus is that wireless equipment enables you to easily connect any games consoles you or your children may have to the world wide web, and begin playing online. It is far easier to play online with a wirelessly connected Xbox or PlayStation 2 than to have to connect it to your modem every time.

Always On.

A huge factor in the spread of broadband was that it let Internet connections be always-on, without having to dial in. Well, wireless networking lets network connections be always-on, meaning that any of your computers can connect to the Internet whenever you want! You can take laptops from room to room, and it does not matter -- they will always have access. Additionally, there is not even any need to establish a username and password system, as wireless networks operate without logging in. It is just so convenient!

No More Wires.

This, obviously, is the biggest reason why you need to change your network over to wireless. Wires are inconvenient, expensive, ugly and dangerous -- you'll be delighted to see the back of them.

The average Ethernet wire does not cost that much per metre, but when you've purchased enough metres to do anything you will need to do, well, it tends to accumulate fast. Not only that, but if you would like to run your cable between rooms or floors, you must knock holes in the walls -- which may not even be allowed if you are renting. I know loads of people in rented flats who needed to maintain their network confined to one room until they went wireless. With wireless networking, well, you can even take your computer out, if you would like to!

No more wires also means no more spaghetti all over the floor and in the corners. Does this improve the security of your home, as it is all too easy to trip over exposed wires, but in addition, it means that you don't need to go to all the trouble of packing all the wires up and re-connecting them at the other end when you move. Additionally, it means that you don't have to examine every wire for damage if your Internet connection breaks down.

Convinced?

If you are excited, then that is great -- read these articles for advice on the best way best to set everything up. If you do not think it's for you yet, well, do not give it up -- I am positive you'll come round when you realise exactly how easy and inexpensive wireless really is.