As I was sitting at my desk the other day procrastinating over starting some filing that needed to be done, I was contemplating the huge morass of wires and power cables required just to power all the elements of my computer setup. I have a power cable for the printer, the monitor, the docking station for my laptop, the speakers, the docking cradle for my MP3 player, the table lamp, a shredder. Then I have wires for the mouse, keyboard, the docking cradle for my mp3 player, for the speakers, etc. Wires everywhere! The only wire I seemed to have removed the need for is a network cable, as I have a home WiFi network and all the cables for the access point are thankfully in a separate room.

So as I sat there, still avoiding doing any of the filing that I should be doing,  trying to think of ways I could at least reduce the cable spaghetti that I have under the table. To be honest there is not a lot I could do with the power cables, except perhaps I could remove the docking cradle for the MP3 player, as I normally use the USB cable for recharging anyway. So I I just untangled the mess, and bunched the cables neatly together where I could with cable ties. I have put the docking cradle away in a drawer, in case it turns out I do need it.

The next step was to look at the cables on the desktop. The obvious solution here is to get rid of the mouse and keyboard cables by going wireless. So I have researched this and have found some nice solutions. For instance how about this nice looking wireless keyboard and mouse from Microsoft. While this combination set from Targus provides a neat alternative to the feature rich Microsoft set. So what would you choose? Any advice? How do you deal with your own cable nightmare?

The iPhone is continuing along its disruptive path in the world of mobile computing. The iPhone, while actually having a very small foot print in terms of global mobile phones, (it is slightly bigger if you only look at “Smart phones”), is having a significant impact on the whole approach and the success of mobile computing. The iPhone has a significant number of issues, which can be quickly run off along the lines of:

• Lack of 3G - significant problem for surfing
• Low quality camera - way behind some of the competition
• Software and usability issues - learning curve with the keypad and lack of effective search

Despite these ongoing issues the iPhone is having a significant impact in some unexpected areas. One of these areas is in web browsing. Despite the lack of 3G the iPhone is credited with significantly driving up the level of data use on networks, and is becoming the websurfing platform of choice for a growing number of people. It also seems to be getting a disproportionate focus from 3rd parties. Last week the BBC launched a version of its iPlayer for the iPhone and the iPod Touch. Users will be able to view streaming video of shows over WiFi networks. This might disappoint a number of people who would have preferred to be able to download the video to the device. The BBC has said that the iPlayer will be supported on a large number of projects in the future but it is interesting that they choose the Apple devices first.

In related news Apple have also finally announced their iPhone software development kit (SDK), and an application store so that users can browse for soon to be available 3rd party applications. Good 3rd party applications will increase further the viability of the platform for mobile computing. If you don’t need or want the phone capabilities I would say that the iPod Touch is increasing looking like a great buy.

In the last post we talked about the tactic of searching for available WiFi while on the road and looked at a tool to help with that. But there is a wireless alternative to WiFi, and that of course is through utilising the mobile networks.

3G vs. WiFi

If you need a reliable connection and you need it from just about anywhere not just your favourite coffee shop, then WiFi is not really going to cut it. You will spend more time searching around for a connection than you will actually doing anything online. A more reliable approach that will work from just about anywhere including on the commuter train for instance is the mobile data services.

Just plug a 3G card such as the 3G-Gprs Vodafone Mobile Connect Card into the card slot of your laptop and you are online and good to go. In most cases it will be as simple as that. 3G will give you and bandwidth of five or so times the bandwidth you can expect from a dial up connection. While this will general not give you the bandwidth you would get from a WiFi connection back in your favourite coffee shop, it will normally be perfectly adequate. Even in the worst cases where you loose 3G, the card will fall back to Gprs which will still effectively support your ability to read email.

Continuing the theme of travel with a laptop, what has become your standard method of obtaining Internet access?

The old and new

For myself, in the bad old days it was a tedious process of finding a suitable telephone line to enable dial up access. This was often a difficult mix of trying to find the right socket adapter for whatever country you happened to be in and trying to get your modem to work. Once all that was sorted out there was still the matter of the line cost, which if you were in a hotel could often be quite substantial. Move forward a few years and things have improved; we are no longer tied to land based phone lines. In fact I can’t remember the last time I resorted to dial up to read my email, if I had to I probably just wouldn’t bother at all.

Broadband access

Now we will generally have a choice of wired or wireless broadband access and data services through a mobile phone network. Which is of course a big improvement, but what about the cost? Here things are not so different. With very few exceptions as a business traveler you will still be charged high rates for Internet access, and mobile data services costs will always mount up. However there is one thing that has changed all that, and that is the relatively wide availability of free or inexpensive WiFi which can often be found even in the most unlikely of places. Lots of establishments around the world such as pubs and coffee shops now provide free WiFi access, and there is often free WiFi schemes set up by local groups.

Finding WiFi access

The trick is of course to find the available access points, and if you can manage this without booting up the laptop so much the better. One tool I have found invaluable for this sort of thing is the Hawking Tech. HWL2 Hi-Gain WiFi Locator, which works really well and will even boost weak signals if used as your adapter.

What is your preferred way to find that elusive WiFi signal? If you don’t use WiFi what is your preferred method of getting on line while traveling?

So did you get the wireless network sorted out over the holiday period? If you are one of those people who still haven’t managed to get around to doing it yet, then really what are you waiting for? As mentioned in a previous post in this series, a home wireless network will really add significantly to the use and enjoyment of your home computers, the Internet and all those gadgets that increasingly are wireless enabled, such as mobile phones.

In the previous post we had a look at wireless access points. However those require that you already have a separate modem to manage your broadband Internet connection. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could have just one device that did everything you need to get your wireless network up and running securely?

Well you can. The majority of the wireless networking manufacturers also produce units that will act as a cable or ADSL modem, a wireless access device, and router all at the same time. One word of caution, as these units are multi functional an important thing to look out for is the ease of setup. Some very good example of these can be found, such as the Netgear 54mbps wireless ADSL firewall router, or the D-Link DKT-710 Wireless G ADSL2.

So now you have no excuse, get working on that wireless network!

If you remember we had a look at wireless adapters in Wireless Networking Part 1: Wireless adapters. In that post we looked at buying a wireless capable computer and what you might need to make an older device wireless capable. Now that you have your wireless capable device we need to create or find a wireless network to connect to. You can find wireless access at many hot spots around the country, although often you may have to pay for the privilege. However more and more restaurants, cafes and pubs are starting to provide free access to their customers so it is worthwhile getting to know the places near you.

Wireless Network

The true power of wireless though is best appreciated when you create a wireless network at home. This will allow you to share your internet connection with everyone else in the house and to provide access from anywhere within range of your access point. This means you should be able to connect to the internet, from in front of the telly, at the kitchen table or even out in the garden.

Wireless Access Point

To create your wireless network you need to have a wireless access point. The access point will connect to your broadband modem. In some cases the access point can also act as a firewall providing increased security. All access points will allow you to restrict access to your wireless network and provide encryption of traffic. More about security in a future post.

Access points are available in a range of prices, but for home use something like the NetGear WG602 should provide perfectly good coverage in the average UK home. An alternative for someone who is looking for more functionality such as the firewall capability mentioned above might something like the D-Link DIR-655 Wireless Router.

This week I have been in the market for some flash storage, specifically an SD card. This was to give me extra backup storage for my truly excellent Pentax K100D DSLR camera. If you want an entry level digital SLR, that takes fantastic pictures, makes it easy for first time user of an SLR, but still gives you the control you may want when you have learned enough to start playing, then I can highly recommend this camera.

Now if you are in the market for SD storage for a camera, there is a new, and expensive, product that has caught my eye which has the potential to change the way we work with our cameras. The new Eye-Fi 2GB SD wireless card allows you, in theory at least, to automatically upload pictures from your digital camera to your PC or Mac and even to your favorite photo sharing, printing, blogging, social networking or whatever website. Which hopefully means no more cables, no more trying to find a card reader that works, and basically a lot less hassle. Unfortunately the Eye-Fi is only available in the US at present, so for now we are restricted to standard flash storage.

Here there is plenty to choose from at least. If you are into digital photography and want fast write and transfer speeds, you might want to look at the SanDisk 1GB Ultra II Plus USB Secure Digital Card, which is also available in larger capacities as well. The neat thing about this model is that it has a built in USB adapter which means this card is a very versatile, and means you can eliminate the hassle of trying to find a card reader etc. Not as elegant as the Eye-Fi perhaps, but a nice pragmatic solution at a good price.

If you do need a card reader the SanDisk 12 in 1 USB2.0 Card Reader should do the trick nicely.

So hands up who still hasn’t got a wireless network at home? Come on don’t be shy, we won’t laugh at you, honest. If you are someone who has got their hand up, isn’t it high time you got it sorted out? If you asked anyone who has a wireless network up and running at home, whether they want to go back to what they had before, the vast majority would decline. I for one can’t imagine living without a wireless network at home anymore. It means the whole family can access the internet from wherever they are in the house. Its very liberating! So here is the first of a number of posts that will take a look at hardware you need to get a wireless network up and running at home. BTW I am assuming here that you have broadband internet connection, because to really get the best out of your wireless network it is an essential prerequisite.

Wireless Adapter

First of all the device that you want to join to your wireless network, must have a wireless capability.

Even the least expensive of new laptops these days, like the good value Acer Extensa 4420-05058Ci Notebook will have a wireless capability already built in. For older laptops and desktop computers, which don’t have a built in wireless then you need to purchase a separate wireless adapter. I would recommend something like the Netgear WG111 Wireless Network Adapter which is simple to install, just plug into an available USB port.

For some old laptops with few USB ports a CardBus based adapter like the Belkin F5D7010uk Wireless G Notebook Card may be a better option. OK, so now we have the ability to connect to a wireless network. In another post we will look at the wireless access points you will need to create your wireless network.