Wireless all- In-One for Dummies- P2

Wireless all- In-One for Dummies- P2:I still remember when I got my first cordless phone. Suddenly, I didn’thave to run to the kitchen when the phone rang, I just carried the phonewith me. I could make a phone call from wherever I was. Wireless meantfreedom, and this is just a phone that I’m talking about!
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Wireless all- In-One for Dummies- P2 Chapter 1: Living Without Wires In This Chapter ✓ Saying goodbye to the wired life ✓ Connecting to the world on the go ✓ Dealing with the downside P repare to do away with wires. Technology is terrific, but until recently the term has also been synonymous with snakes nests of cables under every table, counter, and desk in the whole darn house. No longer must this be the case. This chapter introduces you to the ways of wireless. Wires have all kinds of downsides and few positives, and we take a look at the good parts of remov- ing as many cords, cables, and technological tethers as you possibly can and still have your gizmos function the way they should. I cover wireless broadband, clearing cable clutter from beneath your household surfaces, and always knowing exactly where you are with a GPS device. Moreover, I talk about keeping connected to the world while on the go and the wonder- ful world of Wi-Fi. There are downsides to living wirelessly, and you can glance at them, too. Wireless stuff is usually “always on,” and that can be a hindrance. Find out why, and much more, in this introductory chapter.Bidding Adieu to Wired Life When you think about it, wires can be a real hassle. They limit your ability to move freely and to place things where you want them. A very good exam- ple of this is the ordinary everyday telephone. If you use a wired telephone, you have to sit at your desk or stand next to the wall phone to have a con- versation. If the doorbell rings, you have to tell the person on the other end of the line to hold on while you go see who’s at the door. If you’re using a cordless phone or a cell phone, you can simply continue your conversation while you walk to the door. A whole world of wireless possibilities Now multiply the convenience provided by your wireless phone to include the whole multitude of gadgets that fill your home. Just imagine how these additional examples might apply to your situation:10 Bidding Adieu to Wired Life ✦ You’re stuck with a slow dial-up connection to the Internet. Broadband is tempting, however, even if you’re out of range of your phone company for a DSL connection or cable and fiber connections are unavailable. Consider a satellite connection. Even though the latency of such a hookup is worse than that with the aforementioned broadband solutions, you can still download big files, stream rich multimedia content, and perform other bandwidth-intensive tasks far more efficiently than you could with dial-up. ✦ You’re pretty much solo at your computer. By adding a wireless network to your home, you can share files, printers, your Internet connection, music you’ve downloaded, and multiplayer games without the hassle of running wires. If you want to move a PC from one place to another, you can do it and not worry whether a handy network outlet is nearby. Why, you can even take your wireless laptop out into the backyard and surf the Internet in a lawn chair under your favorite tree. ✦ You’re stuck at home waiting on messages and phone calls. With a wire- less PDA, you are within reach of e-mail at your favorite coffee shop — you don’t have to worry about missing that important message from a potential new client. You may even listen to an Internet radio station, so you don’t have to listen to the rants from a fanatical talk radio show host. Figure 1-1 shows an example of a text message using a Pocket PC. Book V talks more about PDAs.Figure 1-1:My wirelessPocket PCcan sendand receivemessageswith thebuilt-inmessagingapplication. ✦ You’re sans cell phone. It’s hard to imagine another device that can help you keep in touch nearly as well as a cell phone. With it, you can quickly check to see what someone’s scribbled notes on your shopping list really mean. Don’t take a chance that what looks like sour cream in someone’s poor handwriting is actually whipping cream! Bidding Adieu to Wired Life 11 ✦ You’re sick of the wiry clutter at your desk. Cutting the wires to your Book I keyboard, mouse, printer, and other devices sounds like a sure way to kill Chapter 1 your computer, but wirel ...