Just installed XP SP2

[noel]

I strongly agree with your last paragraph, but every experience I've had with it and everything I've read is that it's fickle and not particularly fast unless you're willing to drop some major bucks, or put your computer close enough to your router or whatever that you may as well just pop in a cable.

Granted, the last time I used a wireless network of any kind was a good six months ago, but at that time I could barely go two rooms away, let alone a floor up, without running into signal problems.

A lot of the distance thing depends upon which type of wireless you choose to use. Obviously there are limitations, but for the most part, throughout an average sized home, you can get pretty good connections and distances. As far as speeds go, given that most home networking is done for Internet connectivity, typically the wireless networking speed will be much faster than the connection speed to the Internet. Since you're only as fast as your slowest link, wireless connections tend not to matter for Internet communication. The only time wired helps you at home is when you're doing file transfers within your local network. If you have two computers, they can generally transfer at wirespeed within your local network on wired connections. Since most Wireless routers come with wired ports, I typically just plug in when I need to transfer some giant file.

At any rate, here's some quick info on the different wireless standards:

802.11b
IEEE expanded on the original 802.11 standard in July 1999, creating the 802.11b specification. 802.11b supports bandwidth up to 11 Mbps, comparable to traditional Ethernet.

802.11b uses the same radio signaling frequency - 2.4 GHz - as the original 802.11 standard. Being an unregulated frequency, 802.11b gear can incur interference from microwave ovens, cordless phones, and other appliances using the same 2.4 GHz range. However, by installing 802.11b gear a reasonable distance from other appliances, interference can easily be avoided. Vendors often prefer using unregulated frequencies to lower their production costs.

Pros of 802.11b - lowest cost; signal range is best and is not easily obstructed
Cons of 802.11b - slowest maximum speed; supports fewer simultaneous users; appliances may interfere on the unregulated frequency band

802.11a
When 802.11b was developed, IEEE created a second extension to the original 802.11 standard called 802.11a. Because 802.11b gained in popularity much faster than did 802.11a, some folks believe that 802.11a was created after 802.11b. In fact, 802.11a was created at the same time. Due to its higher cost, 802.11a fits predominately in the business market, whereas 802.11b better serves the home market.
802.11a supports bandwidth up to 54 Mbps and signals in a regulated 5 GHz range. Compared to 802.11b, this higher frequency limits the range of 802.11a. The higher frequency also means 802.11a signals have more difficulty penetrating walls and other obstructions. Because 802.11a and 802.11b utilize different frequencies, the two technologies are incompatible with each other. Some vendors offer hybrid 802.11a/b network gear, but these products simply implement the two standards side by side.

Pros of 802.11a - fastest maximum speed; supports more simulatenous users; regulated frequencies prevent signal interference from other devices
Cons of 802.11a - highest cost; shorter range signal that is more easily obstructed

802.11g
In 2002 and 2003, WLAN products supporting a new standard called 802.11g began to appear on the scene. 802.11g attempts to combine the best of both 802.11a and 802.11g. 802.11g supports bandwidth up to 54 Mbps, and it uses the 2.4 Ghz frequency for greater range. 802.11g is backwards compatible with 802.11b, meaning that 802.11g access points will work with 802.11b wireless network adapters and vice versa.

Pros of 802.11g - fastest maximum speed; supports more simulatenous users; signal range is best and is not easily obstructed
Cons of 802.11g - costs more than 802.11b; appliances may interfere on the unregulated signal frequency

I almost forgot to add that prices for wireless have come down significantly these days.

[Niffoni]

Thanks, noel, I probably just had a bad experience. Still, it's enough to sour me on wireless for at least a few more months, til its use becomes more widespread, and better stuff becomes available.

[Neost]

I don't know how wide spread wireless is among typical home users, all my friends are computer geeks too.

I know the company i work for is fairly conservative on new technologies and we've been working on implementing wireless throughout the corporation for about six months now.

The cool thing going on now is IP Telephnony. Got to play with my 1st IP phone today as well as the call manager. We have to continue to deploy QoS for awhile before it becomes widespread but we're about ready to start our pilot program.

I'm holding out for one of the softphones or the 802.11b portable. With the softphone and my laptop, anywhere i can get an internet connection my office line will follow. The 802.11b portable IP phone is just cool since it uses wireless and you can walk the entire campus and not lose a conversation.