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Windows Vista, Wireless Networking and Revision

A couple of weeks ago, I downloaded Windows Vista Business through the Academic Alliance. Apart from the fact that my desktop is jam-packed with geriatric hardware (even though it is powered by an AMD Athlon64 3200+ Venice chip) and won't run the shiny new Aero interface, I quite like it. I have had to wrestle with some drivers to make them work, mainly for my ABit UL8 M1689 motherboard, but my new Epson DX4000 All-In-One Printer/Scanner/Copier installed without too much hassle. I just installed the drivers using the Windows Found New Hardware Wizard, and then installed everything else using Epson's own installer utility.

I bought a USB Belkin Wi-fi adapter for my desktop computer so that I could set up a wireless network in the student accommodation so that we can all share files easily and so that I can access files from my desktop computer from my laptop in the kitchen, where I seem to work better. For £24.99 I thought it was a good price for what it can do. OK, so it won't do 802.11n, but neither will anything else (I don't think, anyway) in this house. It will, however support the a, b and g standards, which is good enough. It was really easy to set up, with the Belkin utility taking care of everything. Within minutes I had a wireless network running. Unfortunately, twenty-four hours later, everything died. It didn't really matter until about three o' clock on Saturday Morning when everybody fancied some music. Picture this, here I am, a bit worse for wear, at three in the morning with a broken wireless. I decided to try and set the thing up under Vista, which surprisingly I did well. Once I had made the driver installation utility think it was running under Windows XP SP2, it installed without any problem. I then went to Start > Connect To, and Windows Vista then made a secure Ad Hoc Wireless network for me in seconds, after a few mishaps, I was running a wireless network again. Windows Vista takes out all the unnecessary complications out of setting up a wireless network, so that even drunk people can do it. I had internet connection sharing enabled as well so that I could surf the web in the kitchen. In fact, I am writing this post on my laptop while listening to music stored on my desktop computer.

Oh yes and the revision. Well, I have limited desk space so I don't have room to swing a textbook that's too large for my Daylight Double Flexi-Clamp, so I have to come and work in the kitchen, and I like to have my laptop for things such as writing notes down or accessing materials on the Internet, so there IS an academic reason I have wireless. Also, sometimes I have to use my OPTi Verso Camera to enlarge text onto my laptop's screen, and there is no room for that in my bedroom, so again I have to use the kitchen table, and yes, it is useful for me to be able to access wireless.