A few years ago, it would have been hard to imagine chatting about computer networks at a party. But today, you don’t have to be a geek to be interested in networking — and awareness will only increase as more people realize that a home network can be a great way to send movies, music, and digital photos around the house.

The first home networks provided a way to share expensive peripherals, letting the kids use the laser printer in the home office or store big files on the main PC’s “huge” 20-megabyte hard drive. But home networking didn’t really take off until the Internet became a part of everyday life. It’s now common for families — even those without a work-at-home parent — to have more than one computer.

Hooking things together in the early days was often beyond the capabilities of the average computer user. Setting up a network with Windows PCs wasn’t too difficult (Macs have had built-in networking almost since Day 1), but sharing an Internet connection — usually over a slow phone line — was impossible without special software patches. Then came Windows 98 Second Edition, which made it relatively easy for non-computer geeks to get more than one PC online at a time. And the arrival of broadband cable and DSL spurred a lot of people to install networks so they could share high-speed Internet access. Networking promises to become increasingly popular as more home-entertainment network devices like media servers (click to read) and media receivers (click to read) become available.

It’s Easier Than Ever
Even if you’ve never put together a network before, it’s not as scary as it might seem. Windows XP and Mac OS X make it easier than ever. If your area has broadband cable or DSL access, you probably won’t have to drive more than a few minutes from your house to your local RadioShack or CompUSA to find everything you need for a wired or wireless setup.

Start by hooking up all your computers and Ethernet-enabled home-entertainment gear like music servers to your cable or DSL modem. To do this, you’ll need a router, which can divide an Internet connection for use with multiple computers or other devices. The router also acts as a firewall to keep intruders out, and it contains a DHCP server to automatically assign IP addresses so that adding devices to the network becomes as simple as plugging them in.

Not famililar with a term? Check out our glossary.

You usually connect the modem to the router using Category-5 (Cat-5) or Cat-6 cable, either of which can support 10-Mbps (megabits per second) standard Ethernet or 100-Mbps Fast Ethernet. (Standard Ethernet is equivalent to about the maximum rate that data moves from a DVD to the player’s MPEG-2 video decoder.) From the router, you can hook up everything else using a wired or wireless connection. For the most versatile network, you’ll want to use both.

Wi-Fi wireless networking is all the rage, but using wires can still be the best way to go. Wired networks are harder to hack, they’re typically faster than wireless, they’re less subject to interference from other devices that generate RF (radio-frequency) waves — like microwave ovens or cordless phones — and they’re cheaper. But wired networks require wires, of course, and unless your house is prewired, installing one of these networks can be a hassle.

For a wired network, you simply run Cat-5 cables from the router to each computer and device you want to connect. Most new computers have Ethernet ports, but if your computer lacks one, you can use a plug-in card or a USB-to-Ethernet adapter, which are available for other devices, too.


1. Linksys LNE100TX wired network interface card for desktop PCs ($19).
2. Belkin 54g plug-in Wi-Fi (802.11g) adapter for desktop PCs ($100).
3. D-link D1-707 seven-port Ethernet router ($85).

You can also subdivide each output of the router by using a hub — essentially a dumb router. Any data sent to the hub is also sent to everything else connected to it. If several devices try to send data at the same time, collisions result, which slow things down. This isn’t an issue with many networks and applications, but it could become a problem if you try to access video streams on multiple PCs connected to a single hub, for example.

If running Cat-5 cable throughout your house is more than you’re willing (or able) to tackle, there are alternatives other than wireless. HomePNA and HomePlug let you use existing wiring to extend your network. HomePNA adapters let you send data over your home’s telephone wiring without disrupting phone service. Devices using the HomePNA 2.0 standard offer speeds up to 10 Mbps, equivalent to standard Ethernet. HomePlug adapters allow you to send data over your home’s electrical lines. They essentially turn any electrical outlet into an Ethernet jack with a maximum data rate of 14 Mbps.

Going Wireless
Of course, wireless networking has the advantage of never tying you down — even if only to an electrical outlet or phone jack. There are several “flavors” of wireless network gear, all of which go under the Wi-Fi moniker and are variations of the 802.11 standard. The oldest is 802.11b, introduced a few years ago in Apple’s AirPort. It’s still very popular but is rapidly being superseded by 802.11g, which is compatible with “b” devices but five times faster.

The 54-Mbps maximum data rate for 802.11g should be plenty fast enough for streaming video — after all, even high-definition TV tops out at 19 Mbps — but the data rate of any wireless connection decreases the farther you (or a piece of gear) are from your access point. And interference and other network traffic slow it down even more. Upcoming Wi-Fi standards like 802.11e will offer quality-of-service (QoS) support for delay-sensitive applications like video or Internet telephony, giving data for them priority over non-time-sensitive data.

What about security? Wi-Fi replaces wires with radio transceivers that propagate your data over a range of 75 to 150 feet — or even farther if there are no walls to block it — where it can be intercepted. If you’re not conducting any confidential business, this might not be an issue. And if you’re careful to protect access to the data on your hard drives, you might not mind if a neighbor piggybacks your broadband connection wirelessly. That said, when configuring your wireless network, it’s still a good idea to turn on the basic encryption settings that are a part of all Wi-Fi devices. If nothing else, it can stop someone from using your connection for illegal purposes like distributing spam or even pornography.

A Sample Network
Every network is different, of course, but the illustration above covers many of the issues you’re likely to encounter as you put together or expand your home network.


1. D-link AirPlus G Wi-Fi (802.11g) adapter for laptops ($49).
2. Linksys WAP11 Wi-Fi access point ($69).
3. Belkin Ethernet and USB Powerline adapters ($100 each).

This family’s cable modem is located in the den, where the main cable feed enters. Cat-5 cable (red) connects the modem to the Fast Ethernet router, which breaks the network into three legs to extend it to other parts of the house. (Some installations use a combination modem and router called a residential gateway.)

The first leg goes via Cat-5 cable to a hub to which a PC and printer in the home office are connected. The second leg goes via Cat-5 cable to a HomePlug Ethernet-to-powerline bridge, which allows the network to be extended over the home’s electrical wiring (blue) to anywhere a HomePlug Powerline adapter is plugged into an electrical outlet. Anything connected to the HomePlug network — like the “Internet appliance” in the kitchen — is limited to a maximum data rate of 14 Mbps, which is more than adequate for the Web browsing the countertop device is designed for.

The third leg is connected to an 802.11g wireless access point, with its maximum data rate of 54 Mbps, so that other devices can connect to the wired network wirelessly. For example, the home theater gear is linked to the access point in the den via a Wi-Fi bridge. Since the bridge and access point are close enough to maintain a high data rate, there shouldn’t be any problem streaming music and displaying images from the den’s PC through the DVD player/media receiver. The music server similarly has no trouble connecting to Gracenote’s online CDDB database to get album and track information.

Like the kitchen, the kid’s room is linked to the network via the electrical lines. The connection from the HomePlug Powerline adapter is more than fast enough for Internet gaming on the Xbox, or for using the Media Center PC for Web browsing or downloading TV program guide data. Also connected to the kid’s room hub is another wireless access point that fills in dead spots that are too far from the den’s access point. Without it, the PDA in the kitchen would not be able to connect reliably. Although the kid’s room has an 802.11g access point, the PDA connecting to the network is limited to 14 Mbps because of the HomePlug Powerline adapter used to connect this access point to the network.

In the master bedroom, an Internet boombox is used to stream audio from the PCs on the network and also to listen to Internet radio. The laptop connects to the main access point in the den via its 802.11b PCCard adapter, so it’s limited to 11 Mbps.

The beauty of building a home network is that it’s not an all-in-one proposition. You can start small — say, by using a media receiver to stream audio from your PC to your main stereo gear — and add things as you go. Since you can’t really hurt anything, don’t be afraid to experiment. The best way to learn is by doing. And you never know when you’ll need some small talk to break an awkward silence at your in-laws’ next dinner party.

Glossary

802.11 A specification developed by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) for wireless networking. 802.11a operates in the 5-GHz band with a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps. 802.11b operates in the 2.4-GHz band with a top data rate of 11 Mbps. 802.11g operates in the 2.4-GHz band with a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps and is compatible with “b” devices. 802.11e is a forthcoming specification that includes the QoS feature.

access point A transceiver that allows wireless devices to connect to a wired LAN.

bridge A device that connects two LAN segments together, either similar or dissimilar types, such as Ethernet and HomePNA.

Category 5 (Cat-5) Network cabling consisting of four twisted pairs of copper wire terminated by eight-conductor RJ-45 connectors. Cat-5 cable supports data speeds up to 100 megabits per second.

Category 6 (Cat-6) Like Cat-5, but able to support data speeds up to 1 gigabit per second (Gigabit Ethernet)

DHCP (dynamic host configuration protocol) A utility that enables a server to assign temporary IP addresses to devices each time they connect to it.

Ethernet An international wired-networking standard. Standard, Fast, and Gigabit Ethernet have speeds of 10, 100, and 1,000 Mbps, respectively.

firewall A system for preventing network access by unauthorized users.

HomePlug A standard for sending network data over a home’s electrical wiring.

HomePNA A standard for sending network data over a home’s telephone wiring without disrupting normal telephone service.

hub A multiport device used to connect multiple PCs to a network.

IP (Internet protocol) address A string of unique numbers assigned to each computer or other device on a network.

LAN (local-area network) A system of connecting computers in close proximity for sharing files and resources.

QoS (quality of service) A technique for identifying and prioritizing data to provide improved streaming of multimedia content like music and video.

residential gateway  A device that combines the functions of a cable or DSL modem and a router.

router  A device for dividing an Internet connection among multiple computers or networks.

Wi-Fi (WIreless FIdelity). A certification logo for Ethernet devices that comply with the IEEE 802.11 wireless standard.

— B.C.F.