http://pjmorgan.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] pjmorgan.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] davis_square2009-11-07 03:29 pm
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2 Modems

Is there an internet service provider serving Somerville that will allow me to have 2 cable modems without charging extra (or at a nominal extra charge)?    I prefer to plug directly into the cable modem rather than rely on the slower and less reliable wireless signal.  I believe Comcast wanted 25/month or something.  I don't understand why I can have a TV in every room that plugs into cable but not internet in every room

I guess I could try to fish cat ethernet wires, but I've found that to be difficult if your walls aren't already open. 
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Re: For the "what's wrong with wifi" commenters

[identity profile] perspicuity.livejournal.com 2009-11-08 06:33 pm (UTC)(link)
some people also prefer to not have extra radiation in their lives...

and for some it might be considered a security issue.

the overall impressions of speed might be correct (latency?) but realistically, some people have older wireless cards and can't or won't upgrade.

depending on your wifi, your overall quality might go down if someone is ALSO using your access point (1:1 vs 5:1) AND as a special bonus, don't access points tend to negotiate downwards to the lowest common protocol being used? don't know if that's [still] true. get one old gadgets still using a/b and your nice fast G is gone. sure, you can forge G typically, but see above: they might actually have older stuff in use and can't upgrade.

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Re: For the "what's wrong with wifi" commenters

[identity profile] wavilyem.livejournal.com 2009-11-08 07:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Regarding security, a wireless router configured with adequate security measures (i.e. using WPA2-PSK with AES encryption and strong/hard-to-guess passwords) is for most purposes just as secure as wired ethernet. The security issues come from bad practices such as not changing default passwords, using the thoroughly-broken WEP protocol instead of WPA, etc.

And you're right that many older routers and wireless cards don't support 802.11a/n and that upgrading may be cost-prohibitive. However, the one-time cost of buying new wifi equipment will probably pay for itself in just a few months compared to Comcast price of $25/month for a second cable modem.