broadband on a laptop

[joko]

Hi

if i wanted to add broadband to my lap top, what would i have to do?

in detail please, because i will only get muddled

i am on aol and telewest

thanks

[Ethel]

Hi.

I'm confused as to why you pay for expensive and nasty AOL when you can have telewest blueyonder.

Anyway - what sort of laptop do you have? Is it wi-fi enabled?

Do you want to connect wirelessly, or directly to the modem?

What sort of OS do you have?

Sorry for the questions, but it is impossible to answer without more info.

[joko]

Hi ethel

I have xp

i don't think its wi fi

wirelessly or modem ( i have a modem at the moment, but whatever is cheapest)

i thought blueyonder was only for broadband?

thanks

[Ethel]

Blueyonder supplies both dial up and broadband, but at only �15 a month with free set up for broadband - I strongly recommend it.

http://www.telewest.co.uk/websales/product.do?id=227

Right, I am on telewest broadband. I have my desktop pc wired to the broadband modem.

I bought a Linksys router and followed the very simple instructions to hook it up to the broadband router. My laptop is wi-fi enabled so that was all I needed.

I then installed the blueyonder software on to the laptop and that was it.

If your laptop is not wi-fi you should buy a router with a laptop card as a package - that way they will communicate with other without problem.

At this stage it is pointless going into too much detail, but it is easier than you probably think.

[joko]

how can i see if its laptop enabled?

[Ethel]

What is the make/model of your laptop?

How old is it?

[joko]

dell latitude C810

I bought it second hand so thats why i don't fully know what its got

i can't remember seeing anything that says wifi when looking through the system - is there a way to search for it?

thanks

[Ethel]

Start - my computer - view system information - device manager - network adaptor

If it says wireless adaptor of some sort you are wi-fi enabled.

I tried quickly googling for your particular laptop but there seems to be different specs.

[joko]

it says - 1394 net adapter

and

3com 10/100 mini PCI ethernet adapter

???

modem is a 3com 56K V.90 mini PCI modem

I guess that means no wifi - so could you give me an idea of what i need to buy to get broadband?

will any router do or does it need a specific speed or type? special leads, plugs etc ?

I have a high speed us/us modem lead - don't know if that means anything

thanks so much for this

[Hammer]

Most ISPs will give you a free broadband modem when you sign up, including Telewest if you go that route

All you need to do is

1. Choose a provider and sign up on their website

2. Plug in the modem they send you and follow their instructions to set it up

3. Job done.

[Ethel]

Joko

Are you sorted now?

[joko]

hi ethel,

not really. i have just been searching through ways to do it.

aol, telewest, ntl???? just working out pricing and simplicity etc

as its a laptop i am not sure why an engineer would have to call though??

but thanks for all your help

[joko]

thanks to hammer also