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**dchip** · 2 August 2000, 19:17

You bet it's informative! I've shifted my focus for the time being to getting cable modem connection going and getting rid of the second phone line. Couple of questions, Doc, if you dont mind.

1.Did you purchase your own cable modem independently, or buy or lease it from your cable provider, and why did you make that choice?

2.Did you do your own installation of all hardware or was your cable provider involved?

3.Did you establish your cable modem connection and Linksys setup at the same time or add the Linksys hardware after connecting?

4.Other than blazing speed, is everything else the same about your internet access? Is it still IE or Netscape or does it require a proprietary package from cable provider to use cable connection?

5.I have added quite a bit of cable in my home to get the connection where my computer is. Do you know of any way I might check that connection to be sure it will support cable modem?

Like most cable companies mine loves to make MONEY and I know they would relish coming in and doing the whole job. Plus, I would not put it past them to tell me I need a new wall outlet installed at considerable cost. I want to do as much of this work myself as I can. Of course the connection is theirs so I will eventually have to contact them.

Sorry to ask such elaborate questions, but, once again, you're out front by some distance on experience with this. Thanks!

**cjyo~** · 2 August 2000, 19:50

As for me...

I got a cable modem connection from Mediaone/Road Runner in late 98 (I think).

1. They loan/lease the modem to me, "included" in the monthly charge ($39.95 for Cable TV subscribers). I have a friend in a different city who also has a Mediaone cable connection and his modem looks totally different from mine. They haven't ever upgraded mine, but it works just fine. (Actually, once they remotely flashed the rom.)

2. I already had a standard ethernet card in my computer, but they had to bring in a new cable and they did plug it in and make sure it was running, but it is extremely easy to setup (maybe easier than a regular modem). With my cable company, their remote settings are keyed to my Ethernet card serial number, so when I switched cards, I had to call them and have them put the new NIC (Ethernet card) number into their computer - otherwise I couldn't connect. When I first signed up, they had a 50% off installation promotion. The day after my installation I received an ad for FREE installation, so I called them back and the gave a full credit for the installion charge.

3. I don't have a Linksys, but I have been looking at it. I use a Windows PC as a 24hr webserver, firewall, NAT to share the connection. It used to be running Linux to do the same thing, which also worked fine with the cable modem.

4. Everything is the same. You can use all the same browsers, etc. BE WARNED: Once you have a cable modem or DSL, you will never be able to go back to a regular modem. The speed is addictive.

5. I'm not sure. I think the cable in my apartment is separate from the cable TV line. They ran all new cable when they installed my connection. (Maybe it is just split off in the wall?) The cable is the same standard Coaxial like cable tv though, so you can always buy more to move the modem to a different room.

------------------
Please visit http://spincycle.n3.net - My System: Celeron 300a(@450/2v),Abit BH6, 128mb RAM, Win98SE, Marvel G200TV, Diamond MX300, Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 20g system drive, DiamondMax Plus 40 capture drive, IBM 8g Deskstar program drive, Adaptec 2940UW SCSI, 9gb Barracuda UWSCSI video drive, Hitachi GD-2500 DVD-Rom, UltraPlex CD-Rom, Plexwriter CD-recorder, Viewsonic PT775, Soundworks 4.1 speakers

**dchip** · 2 August 2000, 20:39

Thanks cyjo~ -- That helps a lot. I would love for my cable service to come out and hook everything up for free but no way. They want $39.95 a month which includes modem rental. Installation is $149.95 if they install network card, $119.95 for modem only. It's likely they will be running some specials like you describe in a few months but I won't count on it. I'll just pay like I always end up doing.

I think I did a pretty decent job running the cable to where I need it. Used decent quality cable and placed it inside plastic Wiremold on-wall wiring track. Looks nice and seemingly works good, but it is a good distance from where the cable comes into house, so signal degradation is a possibility. Back when I ran that cable, the cable company actually wanted a nice chunk of change to come in and put in a seperate jack.

ps -- hope your short played well in NY last month.

**Dr Mordrid** · 3 August 2000, 00:07

I also have a leased cable modem by way of RoadRunner. The service and modem cost $39.95 a month. The modem my provider uses are Toshiba PCX1000's and they work great.

We also have cable phone service and it beats the heck out of Ma Bell with two full service lines costing $54. Ma Bell (Ameritech) wanted over $80 for the same service.

I installed my NIC (Linksys Etherfast 100TX full duplex replacing a Linksys PCI LAN II), disabled Internet Connection Sharing in Win98SE (I was using an 8 port hub) and ran the cable line well before the installer got there. He just plugged in the cable modem, connected the cable to the NIC and it was off and running. The connection didn't need any tuning at all. As far as cost goes since I got it installed when the service was first offered they waived the $100 installation fee.

When I got the Linksys router a couple of weeks later I just installed it between the cable modem and computer, entered it's internal setup "web page" to get its MAC number, called this in to the RoadRunner tech support line and within 10 minutes I was online with the router and firewall active. The defaults worked just fine. Some folks might have to set up auto DNS on their networked systems if it isn't already set up that way as the Linksys is set by default to be the DNS server. You can also set fixe DNS's if you want.

If you're using RJ6 or RJ6U cable you're probably fine. The really proper way to make the run is to put a 1000mhz splitter in the cable line where it comes into the house. From there run two RJ6 or RJ6U lines:

one for the TV connections and....

one dedicated line IN ONE PIECE to the computer for the internet connection. This will assure the strongest possible signal.

Radio Shak has both the RJ6 cable and the 1000mhz splitters. The cable runs about $20 for 50 feet while the splitter runs under $5.

As far as what browser I use RoadRunner recommends IE 5. Since this is what I was using anyhow no changes were necessary other than changing my email setups to the MediaOne servers. We got 4 email addresses as part of the package. For FTPing I use WSFTP.

For a nominal fee of 5 cents a transimitted page (incoming faxes are free) MediaOne also provides an internet fax service, FaxRunner. FaxRunner gives you a real fax phone number for folks to send your faxes to, but your faxes come in your email.

To send a fax you just print a file to the FaxRunner "printer driver" and it's sent over the internet to the destination phone line. This can be done using anything from Notepad for text to Photoshop for scanned pages.

cjyo~ is 200% correct. Once you get a cable modem service like RoadRunner it's VERY ADDICTIVE. Connecting with a modem makes everything look like it's in slow motion.

To give you an idea how fast: I can download both the display driver and video tools for the Marvel in just a couple of minutes, tops.

Dr. Mordrid

[This message has been edited by Dr Mordrid (edited 03 August 2000).]

**Elie** · 3 August 2000, 00:11

I ordered a unit, can't wait to see what it can do

Cheers,
Elie

**dchip** · 3 August 2000, 20:20

I used a cheap 2 way splitter that is supposed to be 5-900MHz. I might just purchase new wire and splitter and rewire the whole thing this weekend. Hope the 1000MHz splitter comes in a 3-way. I need to run one cable to big TV not far from where cable comes in, then run two more cables some distance to the planned cable modem and to my current G200TV's BOB. I'll probably retire the BOB when I get IEEE-1394 to capture DV, but the extra cable will still come in handy for a small cable-ready TV I keep near the computer. Technology and the need for it does not relent!

**Dr Mordrid** · 3 August 2000, 20:40

All the Radio Shacks in my area (SE Michigan, USA) carry them with 4 ports so you shouldn't have much of a problem. Even some of the larger department stores in our area (Meijers, SuperK etc.) have them.

As far as retiring the BOB goes, don't.

I use video overlays and bluescreening quite a bit and the 4:2:2 colorspace of YUY2, RGB and (to a lesser degree) MJPeg captures is a huge advantage. The lower quality 4:1:1 colorspace of DV gives inferior results with these kinds of effects.

If the need for this kind of thing ever comes up you'll need that BOB.

Besides, how else will you watch TV?

Dr. Mordrid

[This message has been edited by Dr Mordrid (edited 04 August 2000).]

**dchip** · 3 August 2000, 21:22

Severe budget strain may force me to go with Canopus EZDV which has a really nice software bundle but does not do overlay. I figure since the Elura has analog-out, I could use that little TV to look at the video. I don't really understand how overlay works. I hope not having it on the capture card won't turn my editing into a cumbersome, unpleasant task. The other sad thing I learned today is that my 17" monitor (top quality though) might also make editing a chore. My energy sunk on hearing that. A monitor upgrade is not in the cards (not the proverbial ones and certainly not the ones with magnetic stripes on them) until maybe Christmas.

As for the BOB, thanks for that advice, I won't let it go, and you're right about watching TV too. I assume this means my G200TV can stay as well. When I get DV capture and editing up and running I hope this card can handle some of the 3-D objects etc that the Softxplode package will throw at it. My G200 has 8MB. I might check on the price of a memory upgrade for it as well.

Oh, cable modem was sorta the topic of this post. All I can say is I can't wait to see the look on the cable guys face when he finds my clear strong signal 35 feet away from the coveted entry point of the main cable. No new outlets needed here bubba.

**mynx** · 4 August 2000, 13:44

dchip: call the cable company and make sure they'll use your cableing. I my old apt. it was all on the same cable, at my new place the cables for the cable modem and the tv are different at the pole. Two seperate cables run to the apt. The cable modem one doesn't have any tv signal on it. Both apts. are in the same town, with AT&T cable & @home service.
Buy.com has the Linksys router for about $103 US.

**Dr Mordrid** · 4 August 2000, 19:23

You have to watch out when comparing prices as there are TWO models of the Linksys Cable/DSL router:

1. the BEFSR41 @ ~$150 USD, which has 4 switched ports.

This one can replace a conventional hub with the superior switched environment OR can be used for for uplinking multiple switched hubs to the router. This is the one I use.

2. the BEFSR11 @ ~$100 USD, which has just 1 switched port.

This is better for those whose network is already on a switched hub and just need to uplink to the router for internet access.

Just make sure you pick the right one for your needs.

Dr. Mordrid

**dchip** · 4 August 2000, 20:34

I have no idea which one is right for my needs. I want whichever one will let me connect to the WEB fast and clean and still keep cybercrooks from stealing into my computer and downloading my life while I'm basking in all that high bandwidth.

Four times as many ports for half again the price sounds like a wise buy, but even with as little as I know about networks, it does seem to me that you could run a medium sized city with that thing. I might save the $50 and go 1 port. That seems to be the one that is selling like hotcakes and I'm not going public anytime soon.

I can't tell you how overwhelmed I am getting with all of this. Not just the cash output, but so many new and unfamiliar technologies. If ever there was a learn by doing situation, this is it.

**Dr Mordrid** · 4 August 2000, 22:28

defs;

Hub: box that connects several networked computers together. Slightly cheaper than a Switch, but slower. This is especially true for file transfers on the local network.

Switch: like a hub but much faster and more efficient for local network transfers. The way to go.

Switches & hubs can be had with as few as a 3-4 ports and as many as you can afford.

Uplink: a single cable linking hubs or switches so lots of systems can be added to the network.

Ex: two 8 port switches can be connected by a cable to give 14 free ports, with 1 on each box being used for the uplink cable.

Use the 1 port Linksys Cable/DSL model if:

1. you have 1 computer to connect to a cable modem and want the hardware firewall protection.

2. you already have a network and only need 1 port to uplink its hub or switch to the router in order to share a cable modem or DSL connection.

Use the 4 port model if:

1. you have a network with 2-4 systems that uses a hub and want to get the performance gain a Switch gives you while sharing a cable modem or DSL connection.

2. you have 1 computer now, but think someday you will want to share a cable modem or DSL connection with more than 1 computer. It will give you firewall protection now and expandability later.

3. you have a network with multiple switches and want to uplink them (or groups of them) to the router separately. This would usually be a fairly large network. This is how my setup works as I have 2 switches (upstairs & downstairs) feeding into my router on separate ports.

Either box can connect up to 253 networked computers to the internet by using uplinked switches or hubs. Not bad for a class of gadget that cost $1000 or more just a few months ago and had fewer features.

Dr. Mordrid

[This message has been edited by Dr Mordrid (edited 05 August 2000).]

**dchip** · 5 August 2000, 18:12

Thanks for the primer Doc. Helps me understand the terminology and make hardware decision. I do think the 1-port Linksys will be fine. I learned from the cable company that for my installation fee I will get a new outlet so I will let them do the labor. Doc, they were impressed when I mentioned wanting only a 1,000Mhz splitter!

The cable provider won't include installation of my Linksys in the deal, so I will let them get me up and running on cable and then put in my own Linksys, thereby putting to the test the reputation the box and related software has for being very easy to install and configure. Before this month is out I should be burning along the info superhighway at those "addictive" speeds. I'm ready.

**Dr Mordrid** · 5 August 2000, 19:10

Don't forget that the choice of a NIC can be VERY important to how well it installs and works. Often the difference between working and not working is the chipset used on the NIC.

NIC's that should work:

3COM ISA ELNK3
3COM 3C589D (PCMCIA)
3COM 905B-Tx
D-Link DEF-530TX+ PCI
Dlink DE-660 (PCMCIA)
DLink 220PCT (ISA)
Intel Pro/100+
Intel 10/100 Pro+
Linksys LNE100TX (Version 2.0 with WakeOnLAN)
Linksys EtherPCI LAN II (RJ-45 only)
Linksys NC100 v2.0
NETGEAR FA310TX Fast Ethernet Adapter Rev C
NETGEAR FA310TX Fast Ethernet Adapter Rev D1
Netgear FA410TX (PCMCIA)
Olicom OC-2326
RealTek 8139a
Ruby Tech/Danpex/Alloy (and others) FE-1430TX 10/100 (Intel 21143 based)
SMC 9432TX
SMC EZNET-10/100 Rev C
UMAXLink- 50CT (PCMCIA)
Xircom REM56G-100 RealPort 10/100 + 56K modem

NIC's that use the 82c115 or 82c169 chipsets are also likely to work.

NIC's to avoid:

Intel 21040 Based PCI Ethernet Adapter
Intel 21041 Based PCI Ethernet Adapter
Intel 21140 Based PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Intel Pro 100+ Management adapter
Intel EtherExpress Pro/100+ PCI Adapter
Cabletron DE500A PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Cabletron DE500B PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Accton Cheetah PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Accton EN1207-TX PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
AcctonCardbus Fast Ethernet Adapter
AcerLan ALN-315
Addtron AEF-380TXD PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Allied Telesyn AT-2800Tx Fast Ethernet Adapter
Compex FreedomLINE PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
D-Link DE-530+ PCI Ethernet Adapter
D-Link DFE-500TX PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter (Rev B/C)
D-Link DFE-500TX PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter (Rev D)
D-Link DFE-500TX PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter (Rev E)
Eagle by Microdyne PCI Fast EtherMAX
Kingston EtheRx KNE100TX PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Linksys EtherFast 10/100 CardBus PC Card (PCMPC200)
Linksys HomeLink Phoneline + 10/100 Network Adapter (USB100H1)
Linksys HomeLink Phoneline + 10/100 Network PC Card (PCM100H1)
NCR 21140 PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
NEC PC-9821NR-B06
NETGEAR FA310TX Fast Ethernet Adapter Rev D2
Racore Cardbus Fast Ethernet Adapter
Realtek RTL8010 PnP
SMC 8432BTA
SMC 9332BDT EtherPower 10/100
SMC 9332BVT EtherPower T4 10/100
SMC 9334BDT EtherPower 10/100 (one port)
SMC 9332DST
SMC Extreme Cardbus Fast Ethernet Adapter
SMC EZ CardBus 10/100 Fast Ethernet Adapter (SMC8034)
TDK Netflyer Cardbus Fast Ethernet Adapter
Toshiba Fast Ethernet PCI LAN Card
Toshiba Fast Ethernet Cardbus LAN Card
Xircom CardBus Ethernet 10/100

The Digital 21140/21143 or Lite-ON PNIC 82c168 chipsets seem to be particularly problematic and should be presumed not to work.

I myself have used the Linksys EtherFast 100
TX and SMC EZNET-10/100 Rev C. Both work just fine and are cheap.

Dr. Mordrid

[This message has been edited by Dr Mordrid (edited 06 August 2000).]

Announcement

new Linksys Router/Switch driver & features

new Linksys Router/Switch driver & features

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