"Just one important point that no shop will ever mention. If you wear reading glasses you must get a camera with a proper viewfinder. Without it you will find that composing your image with the screen on the back is next to impossible. The viewfinder is going out of fashion with the new p&s cameras - but it's a retrograde step for all us with reading specs."


Yup,I do use reading specs.........my present digi Cam,was free via Which magazine (and that was a free trial too !) it only has a "viewfinder" ie you look thru a hole,and most of the time,I found you had to aim about 30 % to the left of what you really wanted to shoot to get anywhere near what you were aiming at.Hope that makes sense ! This Woolies thing (Premier DS-3090s)has a 1and half inch screen for composing.I've been busy today re-laying a stair carpet so havent had the chance to get anywhere nr woolies,so they may have all gone now anyway. My local woolies (maybe nationwide? ) are in such a mess,they are flogging stuff off dirt cheap,"new" DVDs,like Back to the Future Pt 1 3quid, 2001 (digitally remastered )a fiver and this "cheap" camera,reduced from 30 quid,then 25 quid and yesterday 20.

sorry duplicated post

It seems to be working better now since i did this, cheers.

Clear Internet Explorer Cache and Set Cache Size
This One-Click Fix clears your Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) cache and sets its size limit to 128MB. This may help to optimise your browsing experience

right, here is where I am going to show myself up

I connected a d link wireless router this morning, to the laptop that I use as my main computer. The connection is ok and I see a green cloud.

can I disconnect the blue cable now so that I can move my laptop to another room

and another thing. I used to get a speed of about 4 MB and it is now saying 400.0 Mbps by the double screen icon and the green cloud says 56

Is this really so much faster

Snip, if your laptop really is connected wirelessly then yes, you can disconnect the blue ethernet cable. If it doesn't connect then it won't work! Just make sure wireless is enabled on the laptop. Wireless is always slower though.

Snip

Make sure that you have enabled WPA-PSK security (if your laptop supports it), use a strong encryption key and change the admin password on the wireless router.

Oh I have done it. Thanks optimist. I unplugged the blue cable and I am on the net. This is great. I`ll be able to watch the charts while I`m cooking tea. It`s really fast

I used to be good with computers but everything has overtaken my knowledge. Thanks folks. I am made up

I`ll be able to watch the charts while I`m cooking tea.

Oh Snip, you're lapsing into your old ways... :-)

I love it sc!! It`s great being wireless. Food cooking, telly on and candlesticking all at the same time in the kitchen

I have orderd a laptop like mine for my husband`s 60th. Now how can I get this new laptop to go wireless with my d link router. It has a card etc I want to get him sorted with cycling.tv (lol and I`ll be able to share watch in peace!!)

and

his old pc conked out the other day and we have ordered a stonking new one, ready for his photo business expansion in his retirement. How do I connect the pc to go wireless as well

"I have orderd a laptop like mine for my husband`s 60th"

Best move and the one I always recommend when someone asks me what computer, camera or whatever to buy. Buy one like a chum's and you have a permanent help desk.

"How do I connect the pc to go wireless as well"

I'll let someone else take this one on for you. But in the meantime I'll point you to
http://www.broadbandbuyer.co.uk/default.asp as a great source of goodies and, when you need it, advice. Their help desk is e:mail rather than phone, but they sorted out a lot of my confusion a year, or so, ago.

TP

Snip

To set the new laptop up for wireless, is the same as for your existing one.

It's best to connect with a cable first, as that is easier to get the WPA key accross.

For a PC, you will most likely need to buy a USB wireless adapter but if possible, you are better off using a wired network. They are always faster and more reliable. Also, the wireless bandwidth would be shared between the three computers.

Snip,

Following on from Opt's advice on wire you might like to look at these.

http://www.broadbandbuyer.co.uk/default_ShopGroup.asp?ShopGroupID=61

They are easy to use and they enable you to have your 'network' straddled round your home.

TP

Snip / TP

I'm sure that they work but they are expensive.

The other way is to find a tame BT engineer or alarm fitter and get them to run the cables round your house. The only thing to watch out for is that network cables must not be bent as tightly as telephone cables.

Be careful with the mains power outlet networks. They are just as vunerable as wireless. You still need the best security and passwords. When we had young children, we used baby alarms which worked through the ring main with the sending unit in the kids bedroon and the receiver in the lounge (these units were not radio alarms). We found that the sounds of crying coming from the receiver were in fact from our neighbours who had a similar system. This means that your ring main is not necessarily isolated from other properties.

Haystack,

"This means that your ring main is not necessarily isolated from other properties. "

Not the only problem associated with these devices.

We had some friends from Suffolk to stay at Christmas and recommended these to get a broadband feed from the socket near the kitchen door to a newly created study in the loft.

They told us this weekend that it took about a month of 'expert' friends to track down a failure to connect. The reason is that it is an old farm house with two ring mains. Not an obvious one to put in the FAQ.

But, yes you are right to mention security. Both I, and our Suffolk friends, also have WiFi in the equation. On the other hand the Devolo does have a bit of software that you need to activate to identify which plugs can be seen by the others - so I'd doubt if a neighbour would be able to break in to the loop.

TP

Thank you all for your help. I`m just back from the shops now so will read and digest

A good point Haystack

It is possible to put a filter on your mains input that would stop the signal going beyond your house, but I understand that these are expensive and not really practical. Also bear in mind that because of the way many streets are wired, the neighbours with the best signal from your network will most likely be three doors away.

I had a quick look at some of those devices, and although they seem to support encryption of the data, I'm not sure how easy it will be to setup or how secure it will be.

I'm not going to offer any comments about the security of these home plug devices, but I do challenge that they are expensive.

It depends on how you value your own time. The beauty of these things (security apart) is that you can set them up in less than ten minutes (as long as your house does not have two ring mains!!).

I run a business from Monday to Friday so my evenings and weekend are precious. I cringe when I look back on the hours I spent a couple of weekend ago trying to get the recalcitant software to work when I was transferring some of my wife's old 45's to CD. I am just not smart enough to diagnose the problems, so anything that reduces them is money well spent to me. Plus it stops my wife getting ratty about me 'playing with my computer all the time'.

Home networking for many of the guys around here is probably something you can do in your sleep. For the rest of us something that plugs in and works first time for under a hundred quid is cheap. Just my opinion, of course!!!!!
TP

TP

I understand exactly what you mean and plead guilty to spending far too much time on my computer.

However, the reason that I recommend a fully wired network is in order to save that time. Once the network wiring is in place then a small network is (almost) bomb proof and the setup is easier than with the other alternatives.

I also use WiFi which has obvious advantages because of it's portability but in my experience it never provides the same reliability or browsing experience.