I'm about to get a laptop and I've been told that "wireless" is the way to go. Another person tells me that "wireles" setups enable people to steal your signal and this can cause security issues.

Does anyone have some solid advice/pros/cons?

Thanks in advance.

We have a wireless laptop and there are security measures you take the same as you would with your regular computer. They both as as effective as they can be against the average hacker. For the truly determined, even the Pentagon is fair game.

Sagus loves his laptop, uses it alot and does take it all over the place at college and many businesses that provide wireless access (such as coffee shoppes, etc).

The big issue is that many batteries are not very long lasting and you need to determine what you are needing, wanting and capable of affording.

Sagus' Acer laptop has top revues, runs excellently BUT has a really sucky battery life. Sagus doesn't use it much without it being plugged in, but CAN use it for an hour or so on the battery.

Acer was one of the first manufacturers of laptops way back when and does a really good product for quite a bit less than those big brand name companies.

He spent about $600 after rebates and Circuit City has them on sale now for about that price.

BUT the battery life DOES suck. All of the other features are really good.

Thanks a bunch, Sher. That was really helpful.

I'm still in a tizzy about it, but at least my brain is pointed in the right direction!

Oh by the way... being relatively new to laptops -- can I use rechargable batteries? I can't see why not. Would that help?

I don't think that there is an inexpensive option for rechargable batteries. I think each battery is several hundred dollars if not more. You would need to speak to the sales person about it however I am sure it is a VERY complicated process to change batteries.. taking apart the case, etc. I don't think it can be done within a warantee.

Ask Dwight about this. I am sure that he can tell you more.

How do you plan to use your new wireless laptop computer? Is it mostly for use when you're away from your home or office Desktop computer?

If the answer to that is "yes" then a wireless is by far the best choice.

If you intend to use the computer mostly at your home or office and seldom or never travel with it, then a hard wire connection may be most useful.

If you will travel some and use it at home some, you might consider both options. Use a hard wired setup at home or office, then have the wireless card for use when traveling.

You will want to ensure that you use a firewall, like Zone Alarm for instance (Zone Labs Home Page). If your want it for home use, you can download the "Trials and Free" Zone Alarm. If it is for office use, download the pro version. I suggest you not take the Anti-Spyware option from ZoneAlarm, but rather use the Ad-Adware / Spybots / SpywareBlaster combination (SpywareBlaster is the most valuable, in my opinion). You can download these three from my site at http://dwightblackburn.com#spyware

Secure your wireless network (if applicable) Kim Komando

Batteries: your new laptop will come with one rechargeable battery. It recharges when ever it is plugged into an AC outlet. You may have seen the news stories about laptop batteries catching fire. There is a list of batteries that have been recalled, and of course you will want to ensure that you don't buy a system that uses one of these batteries. See the list at this Google search result page.

Where are you buying your new laptop? If at a store, ask about the batteries. If you're buying it online from one of the makers, like Dell or Gateway, ask the person to verify the batteries are not affected by the recall. If you're buying it online from a retail store, you will need to check the specifications list and verify for yourself that the batteries are not affected by the recall.

By the way, if you expect to use your laptop "on the road" a lot, I suggest that you buy a backup battery for the computer when you purchase the computer. Then should the system run down, you can pop in the spare (shut down the computer, replace battery and continue your work).

These types of batteries are intended to be easy to replace, so you will not need any tools, just unlock the battery compartment to remove and replace the battery.

I hope this helps!

Dwight

I don't really intend to used it while travelling. I plan to use it in my new kitchen - which is alomst like my entertainment centre these days!

Thank you for your usual fabulous advice, Dwight!

Wireless is great. Most computers come with a firewall installed already - just make sure you keep it on. You can find many places now that provide free wireless access like coffee shops.

As for your wireless connection at home - make sure you put security on it or neighbors like me will try to mooch it. It's not necessarily that you'll have people trying to do harm to your computer or you... just that an unprotected wireless signal means that the moocher doesn't have to pay a monthly bill.

quote:

Most computers come with a firewall installed already

Usually a new computer will come with a trial of either Norton (Symantec) or McAfee Anti-Virus/Firewall/Anti-Spyware/Content Adviser/and Pop-up blocker.

That means that 5-or more separate applications are being done by one program...which is fine so long as it works correctly. But when problems develop, as they almost certainly will, the entire system is adversely affected.

In my opinion, it is better to handle these necessary but separate functions using separate utility software programs. This provides a "layer" of protection that, should one portion develop problems, the whole system doesn't suffer. The one element that is at fault can often be fixed easily, while not exposing the whole system to risk.

When I purchase a new computer for a client, one of the first things I do with it is to strip out all of the pre-installed software that the client doesn't need. That means the AOL, Symantec or McAfee utility suites are removed, as well as the Quicken or Microsoft Money programs that the client has indicated that they do not want. I then add back utility programs that have proved themselves to me to be reliable over several years and hundreds of installations. I know that they can be trusted to do their jobs.

If you look at my Website that I linked above, you will see my recommendations. I am a firm believer in the "hosts" file as offered by Randy Knobloch. One of my main concerns is attempting to prevent problems in the first place, not fixing them after the fact (which is why I push the SpywareBlaster program and hosts file so hard).

Which, frankly is stupid of me because I get paid to repair computer systems, and have never been paid for preventing problems!

Windows XP does have a built in firewall, which is a big improvement over earlier Windows versions. But, like a hardware router, these firewalls are both "one-way". They will block an outside intrusion attempt, but do not block access from inside the system. In a clean system, this isn't that important, but if the system should become compromised, it can become another server spewing forth infected files and spyware over the Internet.

Again, this is why I prefer the "layers" of protection. Yes, use the Windows firewall, but add a software firewall, too. Yes, use Anti-Virus software, but don't have the same program provide all the other protection utilities, too.

Dwight

Dwight, you make perfect sense.... and send me the bill!

Perhaps, I should just mooch it like Ami does!

wireless is great i use it all over the house no cords to drag with it except the power cord.
in mine the battery life is about an hour but i just plug it into the wall outlet and im on.
i would say wire less for everything that way there are no wires to mess with. we keep a recepie type folder in the laptop and use it in the kicten too. i keep garage stuff in the garage folder and take it with me to the garage.
so its really useful around here.

Sagus and I use our wireless all over the place too. We plug it in much of the time for power, but it is VERY nice versitility to be able to just pick it up and carry it where we want to go with it. Often the hubby will drag it downstairs to show me something when I am working on the main computer.

We really do enjoy the flexibility of our unit.