hey all.

I've just installed Mandrake 9.1 on my system, and I'm thinking
of getting a router and network card.

I have a broadband connection, and my parents want to share the connection on their pc downstairs, which runs win98. First of all is this possible?

if it is, can i have some advice on choosing the right router and network cards.I'm keen on getting the best quality that i can, for an average price...

Any advice will be greatly valued by this ver confused and frustrated super newb.

=)

I'd have to suggest Linksys for router. Best quality over all the others in most cases that I've seen. I've tried several myself and they just don't amount to Linksys when buying a lower but better router.

Any type of network cards will work. Linksys are supported, most 3coms are.

And yes, you can run a Win98 machine on the same network and router as a Mandrake machine as the router is the access point to share the internet connection.

The first place I would (and did) go is here. It's a UK site, but a lot of the kit is available wherever you are.

After reading a few reviews, I decided on a SAR110. The one I got was the single port version (I've only got the one computer).

Now I have to say, that at the time, my only experience was how to put the disc in the drive under windows and plug in the Alcatel Speedtouch USB adsl modem. And as my entire knowledge of adsl modem could have been written on the back of a very small postage stamp, it turned out that my choice was ABSOLUTELY INSPIRED.

It has a graphic interface browser. It is both a modem and a router. The instructions are very concise. If you need help, then they run there own forum here. When I had some snags, I just called their technical department and they talked me through the config, and I had it up and running in 5 minutes, and that's for both windows and mandrake.

If you read the solwise forums, you will see that some people have had problems, but I haven't had any snags at all. It's been brilliant.

The network card that I bought came from PC World. It is a netgear FA311 pci card. Again, cheap (about £12).

As for whether it's possible to network them, then yes. No problem. If for example, you went for the SAR110, then you just plug it all up as per the instructions, then with a browser just log in with it's internal IP address. You get the routers config page and just follow the instructions. Once the modem/router is configured then it doesn't matter what you use to connect, because, if you think logically, for the different systems to be compatible, then the OS must talk to the server in the same way.

TCP/IP is the standard, hence it doesnt matter what rubbish you ISP tell you, they just support windows. i.e. if you get any snags using windows, ring them up and they will only give you advice about windows - "because they only support windows"

It means that you come here to LQ to seek advice/suggestions.

Oh, and as I run a single PC as a triple boot system, it doesn't matter which OS I'm using - the connection is always on, the router doesn't care, the computer is talking to the ethernet card, and that's telling it what to do, so my system is the same as running 3 systems into the connection.

The only possible stopping point I would say is that you should check the ISP terms and conditions - some of them say no connection sharing - bollocks to that. It could just as well be someone using different operating systems. But as I say - it doesn't matter.

Go for it!

regards

John D.

Thanks guys, you dont know how much I appreciate your advice. Cheers again.

I recently installed Mandrake 9.1 as a multiboot with Win 98 and Win 2000, sharing a Linksys BEFSR41 router and cable modem with two other PCs, one running Win 98 only, the other Win 2000 only. Mandrake detected the network card, router, internet connection etc without blinking and shares very happily with the other two PCs. No manual input required by me at all. Have to endorse trickykid's recommendation of the Linksys router.

I just got a Netgear FR114P. It is a four-port router and firewall which has been tested and certified by ICSA http://www.icsalabs.com/html/communi...ar/netgear.pdf so you get a firewall that's the real deal. ICSA recommends disabling the print server and DHCP which is fine by me.