The Beginners Guide to Wifi

There are many images of the future, all showing spectacular technologies which will apparently control our lives.  But before we get to grips with these wild and whacky ideas, there is wifi, a technology which is already with us and still seems alien and confusing to many people.  There was a time when wifi was being talked about all the time, in the papers, on the news, but then it was not available to the average internet user.  Now, with the wifi networks popping up all over the place, it seems we are all supposed to understand it, even though many of us are just using it for the first time.  So here are a few tips on wifi for beginners, just for those of us who sometimes feel a little left behind.

So what does wifi mean?  Wifi is a shortening of wireless fidelity.  Wireless fidelity works by allowing the users to log into and use a network by receiving and transmitting signals through radio waves.  If you have just bought your laptop or notebook and are thinking of ‘going wifi’ then the computer will probably already be set up for wireless fidelity.  If, however, you are using an older laptop then you can still buy adapters which will turn your computer wireless.There is one potential problem with relying on adapters, because more and more computers are made wireless then the number of computers needing adapters will reduce and before you know it the manufacturers will stop making them, hence forcing people to buy new hardware if they want to get to grips with wifi. Helpful wifi for beginners advice is to carefully consider the suitability of your computer.

Explaining wifi for beginners also requires explaining hotspots for beginners.  Hotspots are places where you can use your wifi prepared laptop.  Hotspots are usually located in areas where people will go when they are waiting for someone or something, such as airports, cafes, or hotels.  A hotspot is a network which is open and hence will allow anyone to log on.  Most locations which offer these will be hoping that you will be using other facilities while utilizing their hotspot, such as drinking coffee, eating, or buying drinks.

When trying to cover the basic information on wifi for beginners it is important to discuss security.If you're logging onto a public wireless fidelity network then you will be sending information across the airwaves between your computer and the network.  Most people who run hotspots are not concerned about your security, they are more interested in how much money they can get you to spend while you are surfing the net.  Accordingly the majority of public networks have no encryption at all.  There are however, step which the user can take to help ensure their security.  These include the following; ensure that the firewall on your computer is turned on, you should also make sure that any file sharing facilities on your computer are turned off.  The firewall is an important measure as the file wall will try to stop other users from accessing your computer.  The file sharing is a facility which Microsoft offers and if you turn this off and password protect any files which are confidential then you will be taking steps towards a more secure connection.  As you learn more and more about wifi for beginners you will realize that no steps are guaranteed to keep your information private, but all these little adjustments do help.

I hope that this wifi for beginners guide will help you to log on with some degree of confidence.  One important thing to remember is that wifi is addictive, once you discover the freedom of wifi there will be no going back.