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Faster Smarter Home Networking
Want to connect the PCs and peripherals in your home, but don't know where to start? This friendly guide is the faster, smarter way of learning how to build, use, and manage your first home network! FASTER SMARTER HOME NETWORKING teaches just what you need to know, with accurate, how-to information that's easy to absorb and apply. The language is friendly
and down-to-earth, with no jargon or silly chatter. Use the concise explanations, easy numbered steps, and visual examples to understand exactly how to get the job done. Topics include wired vs. wireless; DSL vs. cable; installing network cards; configuring the networking services in Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Millennium Edition (Me), or Windows 98; sharing an Internet connection; employing firewalls and antivirus software; managing shared resources; and performing basic troubleshooting tasks.
* Teaches expert tips and practical how-tos for setting up a home network using Microsoft technologies
* Uses step-by-step instructions and plenty of visual examples to deliver the facts you want - no jargon, no silly chatter
* Covers all the essentials, including wired and wireless technologies, firewalls, virus protection, printer sharing, gaming, and more
contents:
Acknowldegements ix
Introduction xi
CHAPTER 1: An Overview of Home Networking 1
How to Recognize a Network When You See One 2
Components of a Network 3
Network Topologies 6
Put Your Network to Work and Play 9
Share Internet Access 9
Share Files 9
Share Printers 10
Chat 11
Play Multiplayer Games 12
CHAPTER 2: Envisioning Networks 15
Varieties of Home Networks 15
Networks with Wires 16
Networks Without Wires 17
Networks with Both 20
Networks Traversing Other Lines 21
Summarizing Your Networking Options 25
What Your Network Might Look Like 25
A Wireless Network with a Hardware-Based Shared Internet Connection 26
A Wired Network with a Hardware-Based Shared Internet Connection 27
A Mixed Wired and Wireless Network with a Hardware-Based Shared Internet Connection 27
A Wired Network with a Software-Based Shared Internet Connection 29
A Wired Network Without an Internet Connection 30
Working from Home Using a Laptop 31
CHAPTER 3: Preparing Your Computers for Action 33
Ready! You Need a NIC 33
Set! Becoming Network-Capable 34
Installing PC Bus NICs 34
Installing USB Adapters 39
Installing Laptop NICs 42
Ready, Set, Go (Online)! Making the Internet Connection 43
Modem Connections 44
DSL and Cable Modem Connections 49
Microsoft Hardware and a Broadband Connection 51
CHAPTER 4: Making It Real - Putting In Your Home Network 53
Positioning Cables 54
Suggestions for Wheel Inventors 55
Your Home Networking Toolkit 57
Sprucing Things Up 58
Buying Cables or Making Your Own 59
Building Your Own Cables 61
Troubleshooting Cables 62
It's Almost Show Time 63
Scenario 1: Setting Up a Wired Network with a Hardware-Based Shared Internet Connection 63
Scenario 2: Setting Up a Wireless Network with a Hardware-Based Shared Internet Connection 65
Positioning Your Receivers 68
Encrypting a Wireless Network 68
Building a Network with Microsoft Products 70
Scenario 3: Setting Up a Hybrid Network with a Hardware-Based Shared Internet Connection 71
Positioning Your Router 72
Adding a Wireless Access Point 72
Scenario 4: Setting Up a Wired Network with Software-Based Internet Connection Sharing 73
Positioning Your Hub 74
Configuring Internet Connection Sharing in Windows XP 74
Configuring Internet Connection Sharing in Windows Me 77
Configuring Internet Connection Sharing in Windows 98 SE 78
Scenario 5: Setting Up a Wired Network Without an Internet Connection 80
Configuring Networking in Windows XP 81
Configuring Networking in Windows Me 83
Configuring Networking in Windows 98 SE 84
Encouraging Unity: Bridging Networks in Windows XP 84
Adding a Macintosh to Your Network 87
CHAPTER 5: Making Your Network More Secure 91
Know Your Enemies 92
Viruses 92
Worms 94
Trojan Horses 95
A Few Commonsense Rules for Dealing with Strange Files 96
Scanning Software 97
Virus Checking and Microsoft Windows XP 98
Social Engineering, or "Hacking by Talking" 100
Protect Your Privacy 100
What Interesting Information Do You Have on Your Computer? 101
Your Browser History 103
Cookies and Your Web Experience 105
Add a Firewall 111
Routers with Firewalls 111
Windows XP Internet Connection Firewall 111
Other Firewall Software 113
Divide and Conquer with Security Zones 114
CHAPTER 6: Creating User Accounts 117
Creating Accounts in Windows XP Home Edition 117
Types of Accounts 118
Creating an Account 119
Managing User Passwords in Windows XP Home Edition 121
Making a Password Strong 122
Switching Accounts 127
Creating Accounts in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 129
Turning On Multiuser Settings 130
Creating User Accounts in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 132
Managing User Accounts in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 133
New Technology File System (NTFS): A More Powerful File System 136
FAT 136
FAT32 136
NTFS 137
CHAPTER 7: Getting Your Network to Work for You 141
Sharing Your Folders with Others 141
Sharing Folders in Windows XP 142
Sharing Folders in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 143
Sharing Your Music and Pictures in Windows XP 145
Displaying Your Entire Network 146
Displaying Your Network in Windows XP 147
Displaying Your Network in Windows Me or Windows 98 SE 147
Opening Folders on Other Computers 148
Opening Folders in Windows XP 149
Opening Folders in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 149
A Name for Everything: The Universal Naming Convention 150
Getting the Lay of the Land: Mapping Drives 151
Map a Drive in Windows XP 152
Map a Drive in Windows Me or Windows 98 SE 153
Disconnecting from a Mapped Drive 154
Too Much of a Good Thing: Restricting Access to a Folder 154
Restricting Access to a Folder in Windows XP 155
Restricting Access to a Folder in Windows Me or Windows 98 SE 155
Letting Others See a Removable Drive 157
Sharing Removable Drives in Windows XP 157
Sharing Removable Drives in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 158
Accessing and Manipulating Files on Other Computers 159
Copying and Moving Remote Files 159
Deleting Remote Files 160
Opening Remote Files 161
Saving Remote Files 161
Resolving Naming Conflicts 162
Turning Off File Sharing 162
CHAPTER 8: You Need Only One Printer 165
Expanding Your Family: Putting a Printer on Your Home Network 165
Location, Location, Location: Placing the Printer 166
Adding a Printer to a Computer 166
Tell the Host: Sharing Is a Virtue 167
Sharing the Printer Wealth in Windows XP 167
Sharing the Printer Wealth in Windows Me and Windows 98 SE 168
Detecting a Network Printer from Windows Me and Windows 98 SE Computers 169
Printing to a Network Printer 170
Making Your Printers Dance and Sing 172
Changing the Default Printer 172
Password-Protecting a Printer 173
Deleting a Printer 174
Turning Printer Sharing Off 175
Making Remote Printing Painless 176
CHAPTER 9: Communicating Across Your Network 179
Outdo E-mail with Instant Messaging 180
Starting to Use Windows Messenger 186
Signing In to Windows Messenger 186
Setting Up a Contacts List 186
Conversing Using Windows Messenger 187
Talking by Typing 187
Talking by Talking (and Typing) 188
Talking Face to Face, Sort Of 190
Sending Files 191
Setting Up a Shared Whiteboard 191
Letting Others Control a Program 193
Displaying the Same Program on Everyone's Computer 193
Letting Other Participants Control a Program on Your Computer 194
Making Windows Messenger Dance and Sing 195
More Backwards Compatibility: MSN Messenger 195
Setting Up MSN Messenger 196
Creating a Contacts List 197
Initiating and Receiving Contacts 198
What to Do Once You're in Contact 198
Starting a Voice Conversation in MSN Messenger 199
Getting Help in Windows XP Through Remote Assistance 200
Asking for (and Getting) Remote Assistance 200
Letting Your Assistant Control Your Computer 202
CHAPTER 10: It's Playtime! Entertainment in a Networked Environment 205
Installing and Running a Game 206
Games You Can Play for Free 209
Troubleshooting Games 210
Update DirectX 210
Install Game Patches 212
Update All Device Drivers 214
Make Your Games Run More Smoothly 218
Change Your Game's Appearance 219
Why Is There an Ethernet Port on the Back of My Xbox? 225
Talk a Lot, Talk a Little More: Chat Rooms 226
Chatting It Up in Windows Messenger 226
Chatting It Up in MSN Messenger 227
Creating Your Own Chat Room 229
Exchanging Ideas in Newsgroups 230
Viewing Microsoft Community Newsgroups 232
Giving 'Em a Piece of Your Mind 233
Reading Usenet Newsgroups in Outlook Express 234
CHAPTER 11: Maintaining Your Home Network 239
Backing Up Your Files with Microsoft Backup 240
Using Backup in Windows 98 SE and Windows Me 240
Using Backup in Windows XP 250
Restoring Files from a Backup 255
Restoring Files from a Backup in Windows 98 SE or Windows Me 255
Restoring Files from a Backup in Windows XP 256
Backing Up to a CD-ROM 257
Reducing the Size of Your Files 259
Saving Your Bacon with System Restore Points 260
Creating a System Restore Point 261
Restoring Your System Using a System Restore Point 262
Uninstalling a Device Driver in Windows XP 263
Updating Virus Signature Files 264
Installing Security Updates from Microsoft Sites 266
How to Recognize a Valid Update File 266
Automate with Windows Update 267
Monitoring Your Security Logs 269
Running ScanDisk 269
Defragmenting Your Drives 271
CHAPTER 12: Troubleshooting Your Home Network 275
Remembering How Your Garden Grew 275
My Computer Doesn't Recognize My Installed Network Hardware or My Connection 276
My Wireless Network Is Sick, Ailing, or Dead 278
My Connection Works Fine Sometimes 278
My Wireless Network Sends Data Very Slowly 278
My Computer Is Close to My Wireless Router, but It Doesn't See the Network 278
My Computer Still Can't Find My Wireless Router 278
My Computer Can't Find My Workgroup 279
I Need to Troubleshoot My BroadbandModem Connection 280
My Printer Presents Pesky Problems 281
My Printer Doesn't Appear in the Printers Section of Control Panelor the Print Dialog Box of Any Program 281
My Printer Appears on My Network but I Still Can't Print 281
A Computer Has Vanished! (from Network Places) 282
File and Printer Sharing in Windows XP Doesn't Work 284
When Network Internet Connectivity Falters: Using Windows XP 286
I Can Log On to the Internet but Can't ReachOther Computers 286
Try a Known Good Server 287
Make Sure That Your Browser Configuration Is Correct 287
Confirm Your IP Address 288
When Routing Conflicts Need Resolution 288
Conflict Resolution: Check the Transfer and Receive Lights 289
Test the Name Resolution 290
APPENDIX 293
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