Regarding Don, AA5AU's comments about TCP/IP addresses on your network...
1. He is right about the "subnet mask." 255.255.255.0 is appropriate for a
home or any small business network.
2. Almost any TCP/IP address will work. There are some cautions:
a: Do not use either the number 255 or the number 0 in any address
segment. These are reserved for broadcast protocals and automatic assignment
purposes (as in using a DHCP server).
b: Examples of "good" addresses: 192.168.2.1 or 200.200.200.10
c: Each PC MUST have a unique address. Only the digit in the last segment
should change (the numbers 1 and 10 in the above examples are in the last
"segment"), otherwise your PCs won't "see" each other. This has the affect of
each PC being on its own network, or band in Ham radio parlance. So, PC number
1 could be 200.200.200.10 while PC number 2 would be 200.200.200.11 etc.
d: Numbers in the last segment do not have to be sequential.
3. "IT" pros will tell you that they assign single digit numbers, in the last
segment, to represent routers and gateways in their networks. Unless you have a
large network with wide area connections, you don't have to worry about this.
4. Use good quality CAT-5 wiring. The twists in the wiring pairs give some RF
suppression and help extend the frequency response of the wiring.
5. You can connect two PCs together, without a network HUB or SWITCH. To do
this purchase what is called a "crossover" type of cable. Most PC shops will
have these pre-made. (CompUSA does as does OfficeMax.)
6. For many reasons, more than 3 PCs on a network would require a HUB or
SWITCH.
a: Network SWITCHES give each data connection its own route and don't limit
data bandwidth. A HUB divides up the available bandwidth among the PCs
connected, so throughput on a busy network slows down.
7. To limit the visibility of your home network to internet hackers, remove any
references to protocols, other than TCP/IP, from "dial up" adapters. The only
exception to this rule I can think of might be if you are dialing into a
businesses Novel Netware based network. In that case check with your companies
Network Administrator to see what is needed.
a: To do this; right click with your mouse on Network Neighborhood on your
desktop. Choose "PROPERTIES" from the menu and look at what appears in the
properties box. Highlight what you want to remove and then press "remove" from
the choices at the bottom of the box.
b: Again; Do Not Remove References to TCP/IP protocols or you are likely to
hurt your ability communicate with the internet.
Hope this gives you some useful guidelines.
Mitch Ravitz
W1GI
w1gi@arrl.net
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