What are the wireless networking benefits?

Wireless networking benefits include a lot of conveniences, the possibilities are almost endless! Discover some strange and amazing ideas!

Store Files in Your Car

By putting a wireless-enabled hard drive in your auto and using it as a mobile file server, you can avoid having to sending files on the Internet or burning them to a CD. This can be really useful if you move larger files around a lot. For instance, if you're at home, you can upload the files to the car-server, and download them again once you are at work.

Other uses include the sending music files from your PC to your car to listen to during your trip, without the need to physically move anything.

Build a Real 'Network Neighbourhood'

In addition, with the help of directional antennas and repeaters, you can extend your wireless network far and wide. As a result, if your neighbours placed repeaters in their houses, any networks in the range can actually be extended to cover a much larger area.

Finally, if your neighbours work collaboratively, you could make your street a wireless hotspot: you could all end up sharing a fast Internet connection, called 'freenet' or 'community net', costing less than what a significantly slower one would. People who have tried it find that it connects people, bringing social ties within the local community that had been lost a long time ago.

Keep in mind, however, that you're essentially running your own ISP if you decide to do this involving all the support issues we've mentioned before. So, ask your ISP's permission first if you don't want them to get upset about you sharing your connection so freely. To find out more about this topic, you may read some the books that have been written about it, such as Rob Flickenger's 'Building Wireless Community Networks'. If you live in a big city, you might even find that one of your neighbours has already started developing this in your area.

Make Cheap Phone Calls

With a Bluetooth-enabled headset, use your wirelessly networked computer to make less expensive (even free) phone calls.

With voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) software like Skype you can easily call anyone in the world, and with a headset it much more convenient than using a telephone - easily multitask while you talk.

Most VoIP software is restricted to calls to other VoIP phones, which is then free. With Skype, and similar services, though, you can call real phone numbers too.

The call is made in whatever country the number is in and then directed over the Internet to the receiving caller. Therefore, you can make international calls for about the same as a local call. Just think about it! You could chat to one of your friends far away for an hour and knowing it only cost you 50 cents. Isn't that fun and budget-wise?

Watch Media on Your TV

There is a new series of wireless media devices you can connect to your TV like a cable box or a DVD player, enabling your TV to play shared media files from your wireless network.

To watch videos from your computer on your TV is easy if you use an operating system like Windows Media Center Edition or something similar, plus you even get a remote control. Above all, you can even record shows from your TV, TiVo-style, and then share them over your wireless network.

If you want to view things you digitally record on one TV on all your TVs, you should simply get two wireless-enabled digital recorders to create a network of their own.

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