Getting Started With Wireless Internet?

May 17, 2008 7:17 PM

I have a laptop. I have wireless internet in Philadelphia through the city-wide wifi program that will be ending very soon. Please help if you can. I know NOTHING.

I don't know anything about wifi. All I know is that when I got the laptop I followed the instructions to find a network, there was "Wireless Philadelphia", I connected and followed instructions to sign up for Earthlink. Now I need to find a replacement.

Apparently I need some sort of connection card thing that sticks in the side of the laptop? Plus a modem? AND a router? I have a useless modem I rented from Earthlink which I shall be returning. It never seemed to improve the signal at all.

What companies offer wireless service? All I know is Earthlink, and when I google, I get confused between wireless cell phone services and wireless internet. I know there will be a monthly fee and it will surely be higher than what I've paid Earthlink, but will I need to buy other things in order to get it to work? How can I make this as simple as possible? Thank you.

posted by Danila to computers & internet (17 comments total)

I don't know about Philadelphia, but for a wifi you wouldn't need a modem nor a router. If you need an additional card thingy to connect then it's probably cellphone internet (GPRS/EDGE/whatever they use in the US.)

What do you mean when you say the wifi program is ending? That it will cease to be free of charge? In that case all you'd need to do is signing up for an account. No equipment required.
posted by semi at 7:41 PM on May 17, 2008

semi, Philadelphia has a citywide wireless network run by Earthlink. As of June 12, Earthlink will no longer run it, and presumably the network will go down. So I need to find a replacement. I don't know where to find one.

All I did when I got the laptop was open Internet Explorer and it took me right to the "Wireless Philadelphia" page. From there it was easy to sign up for an account and voila! I had internet. Now I just want to know how I can continue to have wireless internet.
posted by Danila at 7:50 PM on May 17, 2008

Looks like Verizon and Comcast both offer broadband internet in Philadelphia. I would recommend choosing whichever service you can get the best deal on. You can usually get deals if you have an existing cable television or phone subscription.

If you want wireless internet service set up in your house, you'll have to buy yourself a router. If you are confused, just talk to the costumer support of either service provider, i'm sure they deal with newbies like you all the time.
posted by wigglin at 7:58 PM on May 17, 2008

If you want to have wireless everywhere you go, then you need a data plan through a cell phone company. For example. You will need a broadband access-capable PC card (sorry, using verizon as an example 'cause that's my carrier).

If you just want wireless in your house, then you need a DSL or cable connection (i.e., Comcast or TimeWarner or Verizon FIOS - whatever is available in your area). The company you choose provides the modem. You will also need a wireless router. This will only provide you with wireless access within your house (and maybe your yard). Outside your house, you can go to Starbucks or your local library or anywhere else that offers wireless access (usually for a one-time fee, but sometimes free). You do not need a special card, because your laptop apparently has an internal wireless antenna (otherwise you would have needed a card to access Earthlink's wireless).

I'm sure someone geekier than I can provide details, but those are the basics.
posted by desjardins at 7:59 PM on May 17, 2008

The real answer seems to be .... there is no true replacement for what you have now. You will either need to resign yourself to a cell based connection, or a "landline" based connection (cable/DSL).
posted by SirStan at 8:01 PM on May 17, 2008

Danila
You will need to get some kind of internet connection into your house, usually either DSl or Cable. Ironically you can probably get that from Earthlink. Verizon (since you are in Philly) offers DSL for about 22 dollars a month after taxes, you can get a dsl modem from them if you have a land line phone connection and they will throw in a wireless modem/router for free, which would let you have your own wireless (wifi) connection to the net. Call them and ask. Basically you need to contract for an internet connection (broadband is what you want) and attach a wireless router to that connection, which most companies are happy to offer you and walk you through.
posted by Divine_Wino at 8:02 PM on May 17, 2008

First off, it looks like the City of Philadelphia is trying hard to prevent the cutoff on 12 June, replacing Earthlink with an alternative provider -- see http://www.wirelessphiladelphia.org/
If they don't succeed in preventing the cutoff, you will need to subscribe to an internet service provider (ISP). If you just followed instructions to set up your laptop, it sounds like you already have a built-in wireless card in the laptop, so you would just need to buy/rent a cable or DSL wireless router to connect. Your ISP may rent the equipment you need, although you may have to splash out about $45 for a wireless router if they just provide a modem. If you are in center city, you can see a list of ISPs in Philly. Not all of them operate everywhere in the city -- you'll have to call around to see who operates in your area -- if you already have cable TV, it looks like Comcast may be your best bet, or Verizon probably supply FIOS to your area. Failing that, look for a DSL provider. It depends on what you are prepared to spend - all of these will run you at least $40/month for service. The least expensive (but also painfully slow) alternative is to use dial-up access, which you can get for $10-15/month. You won't need a wireless card or router for that - just a built-in modem, which your laptop probably has already.
posted by Susurration at 8:02 PM on May 17, 2008

Locations for free wifi in Pennsylvania. You would not need additional equipment if you went to one of these establishments. (However they probably require some food/beverage purchase.)
posted by desjardins at 8:03 PM on May 17, 2008

Okay, I think I'm starting to understand. I already have Comcast broadband for my PC. I have a cable modem. Is that helpful somehow? So I could just get a wireless router and use that same internet service? Really?? I don't have to pay an extra monthly fee? Or is that a separate service that I would need?

I don't want to make this more complex. I noticed that I already have a router because I have voip phone service (but not with Comcast). But that has nothing to do with my laptop. I'm afraid it may complicate things though.
posted by Danila at 8:38 PM on May 17, 2008

Yes, you just need a wireless router, which connects to the Comcast cable modem that you use for your broadband connection. If you need help, MeMail me. I'm pretty local, so I could give you a hand.
posted by Susurration at 9:06 PM on May 17, 2008

PS - a wireless router is not the same as your VOIP router. If you are already connecting the VOIP router to the Comcast modem, it may complicate things. A router is a box that splits the connection between multiple PCs/boxes and makes sure that the right messages go to the right PC/box. You will probably to connect the wireless router to the modem, then connect the VOIP router to one of the wired connections on the wireless router. These are called "wireless" routers, but they also have wired (as in Ethernet cable) connections as well. Most wireless routers will give you 4 wired and 4 wireless connections. You should also check with your VOIP provider that your VOIP router will work if connected via another router.
posted by Susurration at 9:14 PM on May 17, 2008

Danila, all you need is a wireless router, but you'll probably want someone to help you set it up so that your wireless connection is secure (unless you want all your neighbors to be able to use it!). At our house we have two desktop computers (a Mac and a Dell PC) and two laptops (a Macbook and a Sony Vaio) all sharing the same Comcast broadband connection. The desktops are wired to the broadband modem and the laptops use the wireless. We don't pay a cent more than if we had only one computer.
posted by Joleta at 9:14 PM on May 17, 2008

A wireless router has "bunny ears" - i.e. antennas. Your VOIP router almost certainly does not.

Also, we have a similar setup to Joleta. I'm typing on my laptop from the bedroom right now, whilst the desktop is in the office and the router is downstairs. There is actually no computer directly hooked to the modem.
posted by desjardins at 9:17 PM on May 17, 2008

To be perfectly clear: getting WiFi in your house (tapped from your Comcast internet connection) will not give you internet access all around Philly. It will only work in your house.

To get the all-over access, you'll need to get a cell-phone based solution as people have pointed out above.
posted by Netzapper at 8:03 AM on May 18, 2008

You could just plug your laptop into the router with a standard ethernet cable, assuming it has multiple ports.

If you want wireless access around your house, you need to buy one of these or something similar. Read the manual if you go this route.

If you want wireless access everywhere, you'll have to call cingular or verizon to lease a cell modem, and they run around $60 a month. There is extra hardware involved, but they give it to you. These cards are FAST.

I really wish the program they currently have running wouldn't collapse, but this is Philly after all. Things tend to do that here.

If you get too confused with all of this, the path of least resistance for you might be to mefimail a few of us locals, offer to buy beer, and then you'll be set.
posted by onedarkride at 8:28 AM on May 18, 2008

Thank you all, I understand. I need a router, I need it set up and I need to secure the connection.

For access outside of my home, I need a cell modem or I need to go to places that offer free wifi.

I'm happy about not having to pay a monthly fee anymore.
posted by Danila at 12:04 PM on May 18, 2008

Ok, thank you so much everyone. I got the connection set up and everything is working fine: phone, laptop, pc, and it's secured. I actually had to connect the wireless router to the VOIP router, and the VOIP router to the modem in order to get everything to work, the other way wasn't working. Yay Metafilter!
posted by Danila at 3:02 PM on May 18, 2008