Introduction to home networking

When you sign up for broadband you'll usually be given the equipment needed to access it, but this can be basic. In this video we'll explain how to upgrade to a more useful wireless connection.

Many broadband ISPs offer a simple USB broadband modem such as this Thomson Speedtouch 330. It's simple to install: plug the telephone cable in and then plug the USB socket into the computer.

The problem with the USB modem is that you can only really use it with one computer. It is possible to share the connection, but trust us, it is far easier to buy a modem/router such as this one here. It will take care of splitting the connection between the different computers.

You can see here on the back of this router a socket just like the one on the USB modem. You can use the same cable that you did with USB modem.

The difference is that once the modem router has connected to the internet it will then share it with the four sockets on the back, and over a wireless connection if available.

If you use a cable internet connection you'll need a different type of router. Instead of this small DSL socket it'll have another socket, the same size as the others, marked WAN. Simply connect this to your cable set-top box or modem.

By far the easiest way to connect a computer to a modem/router is with a network cable such as this one. Sometimes they are called Ethernet cables. Plug one end into the router and the other into the computer. The router and Windows will sort of the rest.

It's not always convenient to have the computer next to the router, though, and the answer is to use a wireless connection. If you have a notebook, it probably has wireless built in. If not, wireless adapters are cheap and easy to install.

USB adapters can be used with both notebooks and desktop computers. If you have a laptop it might be more convenient to use a PC card adapter such as this one. They don't poke out as far as USB adapters so are a little more robust on the move. If you have a recent laptop check what type of expansion slot is has: either PC Card or the newer Express Card.