I am moving to Goleta CA and am going to order high speed internet from Cox. However, the price is high and together with the installation and the cable modem from Cox, i have to pay $200 for the first month. Can i buy a cable modem elsewhere myself? If so, which one should i get?
Also, me and my roommates have 3 computers in total, which means i need to get a router. Which one would you recommend and does it matter if my laptop has window vista and my roommates' have xp?
im a total dummy for computer.
2007-06-24 11:48:59 · 7 answers · asked by unsplendid_1 2 in Computers & Internet ➔ Computer Networking
It is best to use a modem provided by the CATV company. If lightening hits the cable and burns out the modem, the CATV company pays for the replacement. If you use your own, you need to pay for the replacement. You need to coordinate the modem install with the CATV company.
Most household grade routers will do a fair job. Common ones are Linksys, Netgear, D Link, and 3Com. In terms of quality, 3 Com is better but it costs more.
You can network pcs which have different operating systems (e.g. Win 2000 and XP and Vista and Win 98 and ME, etc)
2007-06-24 11:56:38 · answer #1 · answered by GTB 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
a modem is a modem. as long as it's for cable internet you can use it. They're about a hundred bucks usually... Motorola makes a good product. D-Link, Netgear, Linksys, Motorola... they're all good quality.
A good router? I got a cheap wireless router from NewEgg.. a TrendNet. They're not expensive but most of them are solid and their customer service is great. I had a problem installing the software and they were extremely helpful. That modem comes with 128 bit WEP encryption (very important if you live in an apartment or something) and lots of other cool stuff.
The Vista vs XP is irrelevant. I'm running XP and my brother in law came over running 98 and it still worked.
2007-06-24 11:59:00 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can purchase your own cable modem, but you will need to contact cox communications or visit their website to find out which modems are compatiable with their service.
You will need a router to hook the 3 computers up. You do not need anything fancy. I use a netgear dsl/cable router and it cost me $40 about 3 years ago from bestbuy. It shouldn't matter if you run vista and they run xp when hooking to the router.
2007-06-24 11:52:39 · answer #3 · answered by perk2u_wi 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I would get a Motorola Surfboard modem which works through cox & get a Netgear router which has three ethernet ports and has wireless for laptops or desktops with wireless card, It is about the best & does'nt need to be activated through Cox, My Home PC has XP & my laptop has Vista & both work great with this system setup.
2007-06-24 11:52:18 · answer #4 · answered by otr_daddy 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I would suggest that you purchase a wireless router so that you can have more than one computer connected to your network or the Internet for free. If you buy a wireless router, all you need to do is plug your modem into it and then if your computer has a wireless card, you should be able to access the Internet. If your computer doesn't have a wireless card, however, you can either purchase one for it (There are also USB adapters, I believe.) or you can plug your computer into your router with an Ethernet cable. Good luck and I hope I helped you!
2016-05-19 15:49:24 · answer #5 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
just get the one that they supply
2007-06-24 11:51:35 · answer #6 · answered by simplemiss71 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you can get them from sam's club wal-mart
2007-06-24 11:51:59 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋