Can desktop act as "wireless" router?

[me]

Rather than buying a stand alone wireless router....can
a person just configure his desktop with wireless card
to ACT as a wireless "router" and save some desk space
if short on space?

 

[me]

Hardly seems worth the effort when you can get a small wireless router
for $25 that need not sit on top of your desk in order to do the job.

Live in a one room apartment.... very cramped for
space!

 

[me]

Do you have a drop ceiling? Put it up there, or on top of a bookshelf,
or under the desk?

I live in a VERY small one room efficiency apartment
and trying to keep clutter down (extra wires, devices,
etc). I am graduate student as well so cost is issue
too

I don't have a desktop at the moment but thinking of
buying one and using it as a wireless router for my
laptop as well....

so the desktop would have a direct WIRED connection
from the cable company INTO the unit.... and the relay
wireless signals to/fro my laptop via the wireless card
IN the desktop....yes?

The desktop would be leaved ON all the time and act as
an "entertainment" center for me.... music, iTunes,
netflix ....as well as having more horsepower for some
of the app's that don't run well on my laptop

I just didn't want to buy a stand alone router if not
needed...just more clutter for me

but I may be missing something.... is using a desktop
in this manner just as good as any stand alone wireless
router... or do the routers have some advantage I'm not
seeing given my example above?

 

[VanguardLH]

Rather than buying a stand alone wireless router....can
a person just configure his desktop with wireless card
to ACT as a wireless "router" and save some desk space
if short on space?

Are we to guess what operating system you intend to use on your desktop
(which you don't have yet despite claiming to be a poor student)?

What are your qualifications for consuming space for a desktop when your
only need is wifi access for your laptop?

You could use your desktop and its unidentified OS to run as a gateway
but you'll need 2 NICS: one for your intranet and one to the Internet.
Of course, now you'll up the cost of getting 2 NICs (one wifi and one
connected to your unidentified Internet service type) along with the
entire cost of a desktop when a wifi router would have been so much
cheaper.

Why are you getting the desktop (which you don't have yet)? Since it
will occupy space, why not get a wifi router that sits right atop the
desktop's case? If you have room for the desktop then it's likely you
have room for a router. If you're that tight, put the router under your
bed (but make sure it has breathing room to ventilate away the heated
air since routers don't have fans for cooling and rely on convection).
If you have a desk (on which the desktop will sit atop or underneath),
just get some self-stick velcro strips and stick the router on the side
of your desk or underneath on the privacy panel (in front of your feet).

 

[me]

You can buy a cable modem that will also broadcast WIFI from the cable
company.

That might be a solution..

 

[me]

At a minimum, having a standalone router would eliminate the need for
the desktop to be always up, making heat and noise, just for your net
connection. I see that you intend run that PC 24-7 anyhow, but having a
small, dedicated device seems to be very efficient.

Also, I'm not sure how many connections you can have through a single
wireless card on the PC. The router can have many connections as you
would ever need. If you want a third device on the network, you'll have
to do more setup to make that happen, if it's even possible.

well I did NOT say it was a good idea.... only hat it
was something I wanted to "consider"

It now sounds like a good wireless router makes better
sense

given that... WHICH wireless router to buy for
streaming Netflix and such?

 

[Mike Easter]

Rather than buying a stand alone wireless router....can
a person just configure his desktop with wireless card
to ACT as a wireless "router" and save some desk space
if short on space?

I understand your current resources to consist of -1- cable modem
presumably with ethernet connectivity -2- laptop with ethernet and
wireless capability both -3- a small living area as well as little
desktop space

You are considering adding a desktop to the mix and so you need a local
network which you would like to be wireless and wired.

'Everyone' does that by acquiring a wired/wireless router to connect
that to the cable modem's ethernet. Doing it some other way is not
sensible/practical.

Depending on how things are laid out, the location of the cable modem is
typically close to where the cable comes into the residence, and the
location of the router is often close to the cable modem, but it doesn't
have to be that way. You can have lots of cable distance and sufficient
ethernet distance to position things how you like.

The benefits of the small little router are that it is an economical way
to have a lot of different functionality in a single unit which doesn't
use much juice and is typically left on all the time.

 

[me]

You can buy a cable modem that will also broadcast WIFI from the cable
company

Are these combo "cable modems" and "routers a good
idea?

Or still best to have separate units?

 

[John Doe]

Are these combo "cable modems" and "routers a good idea?

My 2-Wire HomePortal 1000 has worked well for many years, as a DSL
modem and home WiFi in one. Unless you see lots of negativity, I
would assume the combination works well. Read reviews. And
especially if you are easily confused, the combo might be less of
a hassle.

If I were still confused, I would ask in a cable modem group,
either on UseNet or on the web. Typical cable modem users would be
the most knowledgeable about which equipment works well.

Good luck and have fun.
--

Or still best to have separate units?

Path: news.astraweb.com!border6.newsrouter.astraweb.com! news.glorb.com!news2.glorb.com!fu-berlin.de!uni-berlin.de!
individual.net!not-for-mail
From: me privacy.net
Newsgroups: alt.comp.hardware.pc-homebuilt
Subject: Re: Can desktop act as "wireless" router?
Date: Tue, 08 Feb 2011 13:54:00 -0600
Lines: 9
Message-ID: <sp73l6h1sh4u3oajc8j9akgg6icj73eeiq 4ax.com>
References: <bno0l619ulhkonvi3u540dhnukjsp8g4pa 4ax.com>

<jLmdnZurW5SR9s3QnZ2dnUVZ_uednZ2d mchsi.com>
<kdt0l6lqb8vr08jvk0jcch6anbeg92el6a 4ax.com>
<E82dnRPB47Q45s3QnZ2dnUVZ_jydnZ2d mchsi.com>

 

[Krypsis]

Are these combo "cable modems" and "routers a good
idea?

Or still best to have separate units?

I prefer to have separate units. Until recently, my cable company
supplied modem was doing a reasonable job and had been for something in
the order of 10 years. They recently did some cable network upgrades and
sent me a new modem gratis. So, in a dozen years, I've had 2 modems and
6 routers. 4 of the routers have been wireless, the first couple were not.
Had I opted for the modem router combo, my upgrades would have entailed
ditching the lot each time. I am soon to upgrade to a new router and it
will need to be wireless N capable and have Gigabit as well. The modem
will remain undisturbed during this upgrade and will probably be in my
service 10 years hence.

Krypsis

 

[Krypsis]

Outside of the technical aspects, I don't like modem/router combos. I
prefer to have my home network established and just plug the appropriate
modem into it for my provider. For example:

You work in the opposite manner to me. I prefer to leave the cable side
of things undisturbed and twiddle with the home network.

I'm currently shopping for a DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem to get ready for
IPv6. Motorola makes one that looks good, the SB6121, and it retails for
about $100. For an extra $35, I can get a unit that combines a DOCSIS
3.0 modem with a Wireless-N/Gigabit router. Even though I already have a
Wireless-N/Gigabit router in place, it's attractive to be able to
simplify my network some with that combo unit.

The downside, however, is that if I were to go to a different provider,
like DSL from my telephone company, I would not be able to use that
combo unit as a gateway router.

That was one of my concerns early in the piece but, since I have
remained with the same provider for a dozen years, my concerns were
unfounded. As an aside, my provider charges $100 to register a modem not
provided by them but nothing if they supply it!

Maybe if I could get a unit that was DOCSIS 3.0 + whatever the
current/next DSL standard is + Wireless-N + Gigabit, I would consider
it, but it just seems easier to work out a local area network with the
capabilities I want, and a single, simple, ethernet connection to the
appropriate provider-approved modem.

Krypsis