how to set up internet in a 100 years old house?

Question

I have lived with friends my whole life and never had to worry about setting up internet. Now, I find myself about to move into an old apartment (100 years old). I have an IBM labtop (built 2001). I will be living in a studio in Baltimore. I want affordable but fast connection.

1. What do I need to buy to set up this internet service?
2. Can you recommend companies that I can call to set this up?
3. When I talk to the landlord, what does the apartment need to have in order to ensure a successful setup?
4. How much am I looking at per month?

Please give as detailed info as possible.

Thank you!

Answer 1

the internet will be set up through a phone or cable line, so the age of the house has no bearing on the connection quality. Just find a local service provider that offers the best rates and give them a call.

Answer 2

If you want hi speed then you have to have DSL via the landline telephone or Cable Internet via the Cable company. I think the DSL requirement is obvious. The cable hookup - faster than DSL means you have to have Cable TV service available. Not that you have to subscribe - just that it has to be available in your area and apartment.

Either one will cost from $30 - $60 per month depending on the service you choose.

You can also get an Internet card for your laptop. This is not a Wi-fi card - that requires access to a Wi-fi hot spot. An Internet card can be with Cingular, Sprint and maybe others in your area. They are nice to have - portable and fairly expensive. $60 - $80 per month.

Answer 3

The internet company will worry about all of that. They should have a technician come out and hook you up.

I live in a similar style apartment. The cable internet wasnt an issue. Plugs are an issue though in old apartments as you may not have many with grounds. Most plug ins in old apts will just be the 2 prongers.

Answer 4

What you need to do is call your ISP(Internet service provider) Most phone company's offer it.. also most cable company's offer it. most do free install with some sort of service contract. To find out prices and speeds you should call several company's I recommend a minimum of a 512 download speed. I recommend that you ask the landlord if he minds if you install Internet before going thru all of the hassle of calling ISP's They will usually need to drill a couple of hole to run cable into the house. its not too invasive. Prices depend on what speed you want, the faster it goes the more expensive it is..

Answer 5

First and foremost, you need is a phone line that works.

Here are some providers in the B'more area.
- comcast
- verizon
- AOL

You will have to do some reading for prices and speed links.

Even if you choose a link speed of 512kbps then you'll be able to surf at a reasonable pace, only thing is, you won't be able to download alot, it'll take a long time.

So, depending on your budget will dictate what service you'll get.

Answer 6

You will need an internet service and usually the phone company and cable tv company provide this. Check your availability.

Either will bring service into the building and end it there with a modem. From the modem you will need to connect to your pc. An old house can be a nightmare when it comes to running wires for this; it can also be a nightmare for wireless as well. See if there is anything already set up.

If DSL from phone company is available, you may find that for one pc you can avoid wiring for data if the phone wiring is already in place. This may be the easiest.

To enable more than one user to access the internet simultaneously you need a router.

The modem's wan port plugs into the router WAN port. Because you have a dynamic IP from your ISP, the router wan port must be configured for a dynamic ip and most come preconfigured for that.

The router has at least 1 LAN port. Many have up to 4. If you have more LAN devices that you wish to connect via wired connection than you have LAN ports in the router, you will also need a network switch. With a network switch, you connect router LAN port to network switch along with LAN devices.

For wired LAN devices, all connections are made via CAT5 cable. Many people either don't know how to run the cable or don't want to do so and they prefer a wireles router.

A wireless router actually is a hybrid wired and wireless device in that it has wired LAN ports as well as wireless ability.

While wireless appears easier to install, you have to concern yourself with security and must install all the security the router can provide or hackers will get in. Configuring security is time consuming and frustrating so many just don't do it. At some time they reget their failure to install security.

Now for the particulars

Wired Connections - You need a network adapter on each pc you wish to connect. Most come with these built in; older pcs require a pci card added to achieve this. You should configure the connection to accept a dynamic IP address.

Wireless Connection - You need a wireless network adapter on each pc you wish to connect. Some notebooks come with a built in wireless adapter, some to not. Desk tops usually do not come with wireless built in. As with wired, yoiu should configure the connection to accept a dynamic IP address.

Router LAN configuration - you should configure the router to provide LAN IP addresses via DHCP. This gives LAN IP addresses to the LAN pcs.

Router Wireless configuration - you should, in addition of all the LAN config above, turn on the wireless capability, assign a new ssid, change the router password and user name if user can be altered, and invoke all security. I prefer WPA and a preshared key that is long and a mix of upper and lower case letters and numbers. Enable MAC address filtering and enter the MAC address of all wireless network adapters you want on your pc and all should work.

Whenever addressing your router, always use a wired port.

I suggest you first get the wired ports up and working; then address the wireless ones.

Finally, there are several household units made by Linksys, Netgear, Belkin, D Link,etc that are inexpensive. Many like them and report decent performance. For home use where no VPN is needed to reside on the router (which is your case) I prefer 3Com and not their bottom of the line models because they are more stable, more reliable, and more hacker resistant than the low end models.

Manuals for routers, like manuals for anything else are fair but not great. Be patient, do one thing at a time, and you most likely can persevere through this.

Whether wired is better than wireless is something only you can determine

Answer 7

If you go through a local cable company, they should be able to give you a decent quote after a field study (if no existing service).

Other alternatives include local telephone companies...

Answer 8

Yes, it's possible

Answer 9

Thankyou for all the answers.

Answer 10

wireless internet!