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I recently started hanging out on some of the question and answer sites, such as Yahoo and Mahalo Answers. On Yahoo I answered a question about wireless routers that was eventually chosen as the best answer so I thought I would post my response here. So if you are looking for a wireless router, here are some basic guidelines to keep in mind. While my answer veered a bit from using a router to just adding in a wireless access point, the information is still relevant to people choosing both solutions and is just something more to consider when purchasing your hardware. We emailed back and forth a bit about the topic as well, so this post will jump back and forth to give you the full rundown of the situation. Hope this helps someone out there pick out your wireless equipment.

The original question:

Recently we need to upgrade our existing (Wired) connection to Wifi. We have a small office space, which is two stories building and the main office is on the ground floor. Can anyone help me to find out which is the best router for us? WHY? and your experience with that router. Thanks!

And my answer:
There is no definitive answer for the “best” router, but my recommendation would be to not use a router (from your description I get the impression the rest of the network is working well and you just want to add wireless capabilities). My recommendation would be to add a wireless access point (like the Linksys WAP54G (link below for reference). This would enable you to plug in the wireless adapter to your existing network thus enabling wireless devices to communicate without having to completely restructure your existing network.
You also mentioned that it was a 2 story building, if you were to go with the Linksys product I mentioned you could get a 2nd WAP54G, plug it into a connection upstairs (or even use it as the bridge to the downstairs connection to make the upstairs connected if you don’t have physical cabling in place) and spread your network further. I realize that statement wasn’t completely clear, and if you would like me to explain it in more detail you can let me know on my website (listed below). I don’t want to fill this response up with a bunch of data you may not require.

Source(s):
Linksys WAP54G

They then emailed me:
Thanks Tekamba for answering my question on Y! Answers. As you know, the answer weren’t completely clear. Perhaps I should clarify the situation first, See we live in a two stories building for which we use the ground floor as an Office. The office is connected with Ethernet (LAN)and it is working fine, but we like to extended our connection through Wireless to the 2nd floor of the building. So that we can connect to internet, printers and other peripheral devices. So what do you suggest the Router.
Thanks!

And my reply:
You have a couple options, if you are the only tenants in the building you can use a powerline ethernet adapter. This would be a bit more expensive as you would need to put one of these adapters in each area you would want to make wired. The benefit would be security as people wouldn’t be able to get onto your wireless network. You can see an example of these devices at this link: Ethernet over power. Please note that I don’t have any direct hands-on experience with these devices, but have heard that they work quite well.

If you wanted to go with the wireless solution I still suggest getting a Linksys WAP54G and plugging it into your network downstairs. You might need to do some experimenting with the best location of it to get a strong signal to the proper locations upstairs as going through floors can sometimes be a bit tougher due to the methods of construction being so much more higher (thus denser materials) than for walls. But you should be able to get an adequate signal by placing the device in the most central location to where you would like to use it upstairs.

Should that signal not be strong enough there is the option of getting a second Linksys device (and I’d need to do a bit more research but I believe the WAP54G would do it so you would need to purchase 2 of them) or you could purchase what is known as a wireless range expander like this one. The idea here is that you would plug in the wireless access point (WAP54G) downstairs, then place the Wireless G Range Expander upstairs where it gets at least a little of the signal from the WAP downstairs. It then bounces that signal out stronger so you will get much better coverage upstairs. The nice part here would be that you could install the WAP54G first, and if you are not getting a solid signal you could add the expander later.

One thing I HIGHLY recommend is to make sure you have security enabled on your wireless network. Especially if it is tied into systems used in an office where people might be able to get onto your network and cause some serious problems when they get sensitive data from your systems. Good luck with your project, feel free to contact me back if you would like more information.

And a final round:
Hi Greg, Thanks for your valuable information. But I have some question regarding the hardware. I was wondering why do I have to use wireless access point instead of Wireless router? I mean Wireless routers actually contain a wireless access point as part of their overall package. Or is there any specific advantage of WAP over wireless Router for our Home-cum-Office network? (actually I don’t even know the differences between these two)
For an easy administration and maintenance, I would prefer only one device for the network (wireless) instead of adding other like G range expender. Moreover I think the network performance of devices connected through a range extender will generally be lower than if they were connected directly to the primary base station.
For better understanding our needs, I am giving you out our Networking hardware’s specifics:
Modem: HUGHES Model: HN7000S
D-Link 24-Port Switch Model: DES1024D

As I’m new to Wireless networking, I kindly request you to suggest me one (please be specific) and help me through out the process.

Thanks!

With my reply:
I apologize for the delay in getting this response to you, I had to do a reinstall on my laptop so haven’t been on top of my email much today. I’m almost fully back operational so should be able to respond quicker to future mailings.
Thank you for requesting more information. The reason behind my suggesting getting a wireless access point rather then a wireless router was due to the fact that you had mentioned you already have a wired network in place and functional. In that case then adding a wireless access point prevents possible issues due to having to reconfigure your entire network to work off a completely new router. A second reason behind it is to separate out your hardware. By getting a wireless access point that is not part of your router you wouldn’t lose your complete network in case one or the item fails. You could also unplug the wireless if you ever wanted to eliminate that section of your network. While you can disable wireless from the control panel of the device, unplugging is a much easier way to shut it off.

But all that becomes non-critical when I read your existing hardware. It doesn’t appear you have a router, which make me think that the Hughes modem is actually a router as well. This may create some other issues as you will end up having 2 routers in place. If you are not attempting to do anything special like play games, or create a VPN to another location, then it should be an issue having 2 routers in place. If that is the case you will need to find out how to disable the routing feature in the Hughes modem, or stick with just getting the wireless access point.

As far as picking out a wireless router, I would recommend you get any of the Linksys type of Wireless Routers you can find at many different retailers. Linksys products are now being produced by Cisco who is one of the largest names in networking hardware.

I hope that helps you to decide on some hardware to get and a method to solve your issue. Please keep me informed of how the process is going and I will be happy to supply more information wherever it may be of assistance to you. Good luck.

And finally
So there’s my two cents worth of thoughts on the subject. If you would like to discuss your own needs further with me or would like to know my recommendations based on your existing hardware, please use or Free Tek Support option to send me your request. I’d be happy to help guide you in your technology solutions. If you live in or around the Prescott Valley area of Arizona, then give me a call and we can schedule an in person review of your needs!

Greg Hicks
Tekamba Computers, LLC
(928) 458-5865

In keeping with the theme I started on Gergorian.com “Where…” I thought I would answer another of the “W’s” questions.

Why… did you decide to start a computer business?

I’ve been interested in computers since the mid-80’s when my parents bought a Commodore 64 for my siblings and me. They each had their brief interaction with it, but I took to it immediately. Wasn’t long before I was getting magazines with code in it that I would sit for hours typing into the computer to see what the program did. I’d then try to mess with it to make it do other things.

Upon graduating high school it wasn’t long before I started my family and computers had to take a bit of a backseat as I started a career to support them and myself. Just a few years later a friend had upgraded his system enough to enable me to purchase his old hardware and he taught me how to put together my first PC since he was well aware that with a growing family I would never be able to afford to hire a computer guy of my own. That was all it took. I realized how simple it all was (to me at least) to work on computers and I just “got it”. It wasn’t long after, that I further discovered my knack for explaining tech to other’s in a way that most people were able to understand. Where a good majority of “computer guys” have difficulty explaining technology to non-tech people, I can generally judge whether my point is being understood by my audience, and if not I can make adjustments to my explanation to help them comprehend it.

When I had the opportunity to redirect my career from being a machinist into managing the computer network for a rapidly growing machine shop I embraced the new challenge. As I learned how to tie technology into the daily operations of business, both in the inner workings of the office as well as keeping the production floor humming, I discovered how much I enjoyed making improvements throughout the company. When I combine my ability to explain technology along with my varied experiences in business infrastructures I get a sense of accomplishment that not many people ever get to encounter.

Business owners have a large enough task of just keeping their business operational and profitable. They shouldn’t have to also try to keep on top of the ever changing landscape of technology. I take great pride in learning all I can about my client’s businesses, and recommending technologies that I anticipate to be the most beneficial to their success. I keep on top of emerging technologies and am happy to answer any questions you may have about them as well as the when and where they might be able to resolve an issue or streamline a process your business is addressing. I am fully capable of resolving the problems an existing infrastructure might encounter, as well as taking steps to minimize them. I also learn all I can about the company in the process so I can suggest alternatives methods that can simplify or resolve issues that may be unknown to the people tackling them daily.

Whether you need someone to make a non-functioning computer work again, or are looking for ways to make improvements in your processes, I am here to offer advice and support your implementation of new technology. If your business is located in Prescott Valley, or one of the surrounding areas, we can schedule an appointment to evaluate your needs and make suggestions for improvements.

I look forward to assisting you and your company thrive.

Greg Hicks
Tekamba Computers
(928) 458-5865
greg@tekamba.com