Home Network Road Test

Home Office Computing, Sept, 1999 by Dave Johnson

Transfer Files From an Old PC to a New One

You just got a new PC and it's time to move your data to it. Since you'll be getting rid of the old PC afterwards, you don't need a full-time network.

For a temporary connection, get a data transfer cable from the local computer store and use the Direct Cable Connection wizard in Windows 95 or 98 to link the PCs. Be sure to connect the PCs with a parallel cable, which is significantly faster than a serial cable. And make sure the Direct Cable Connection software is installed on your system by selecting it from the Control Panel and looking for Add/Remove Programs/Windows Setup tab. If one of your PCs is running Windows 3.1, you'll need to buy a package like LapLink.

Publish an Intranet

Gadzooks, no intranet? A private Web site can be handy for publishing a family calendar or a to-do list for your office assistant. But because most home networks use a different protocol from the Internet (IPX instead of TCP/IP), you can't access files in a local network using URLs in a Web browser. On the other hand, you can publish this kind of data to a Web site, or simply store the files in a common folder on your network. Another option is to use Outlook 2000, part of Microsoft Office 2000 Professional ($349; 800-426-9400, www.microsoft.com), which lets you publish calendar information to your personal Web site.

RELATED ARTICLE: Making the Perfect Match

Because home networking products are built on a variety of technologies, how well each handles specific tasks may vary considerably. Our chart makes it easy to find the products best suited to your needs.

THE TASK          THE TECHNOLOGY   SAMPLE TOOLS

Sharing files     USB              * USBnet ($80; Entrega,
between two                          949-859-8866,
computers in                         www.entrega.com)
the same room
                                   * USB Direct Connect adapter
                                     ($90; Belkin, 800-223-5546,
                                     www.belkin.com)

                                   * EZ-Link ($90 for first two
                                     PCs and each networked PC
                                     thereafter; Anchor Chips,
                                     619-613-7907,
                                     www.anchorchips.com)

Sharing files     Ethernet         Network in a Box
between           (using           ($69; Linksys, 949-261-1288,
computers         ISA-based        www.linksys.com)
running Windows   network
95/98 and         interface
Windows 3.x       cards)

Sharing files     * AC power       * PassPort Network Starter
between a                            Kit ($200 for two PCs, $80
computer in a     * Phone line       for additional PCs;
basement                             Intelogis, 801-571-4000,
office and a                         www.intelogis.com)
computer on the
top floor                          * ActionLink Home Networking
                                     Kit ($104 for two PCs;
                                     Actiontec, 408-752-7700,
                                     www.actiontec.com)

                                   * HomeFree Phoneline Network
                                     ($100 for two PCs; Diamond
                                     Multimedia, 800-468-5846,
                                     www.diamondmm.com)

Accessing         Radio            * Symphony ($149 for ISA
another           frequency          cards and $199 for PC
computer's                           Cards; Proxim,
files using a                        800-229-1630,
notebook                             www.proxim.com)
computer in
your backyard                      * Wireless PC Connection
                                     ($149 for two PCs; Acer,
                                     800-368-2237,
                                     www.acer.com)

Sharing a         Any              All
printer with
several
computers

Sharing a         Any, plus a      All; Astra 1220P scanner
scanner with      network-         ($99; Umax, 510-651-4000,
several PCs       compatible       www.umax.com)
                  scanner

Sharing the       Ethernet         10Mbps Network Starter Kit
files on a PC                      ($149; NetGear,
with a                             netgear.baynetworks.com)
Macintosh
computer

Sharing a         Modem sharing    WinGate 3.0 ($40 for three to
single Internet   software         six PCs; Deerfield.com,
connection                         517-732-8856, www.wingate.com)
among two or
more systems

Playing network   * USB            * USBnet ($80; Entrega,
computer games                       949-859-8866,
                  * Ethernet         www.entrega.com)

                                   * USB Direct Connect adapter
                                     ($90; Belkin, 800-223-5546,
                                     www.belkin.com)

                                   * 10Mbps Network Starter Kit
                                     ($149; NetGear,
                                     netgear.baynetworks.com)

Transferring      Direct cable     Microsoft Windows 95 or 98;
files from an     connection       serial or parallel cable
old PC to a
new computer