Quick network kit lacks docs

Home Office Computing, Jan, 1998 by Chris Devoney

Putting heads together can create great ideas. Tying PCs together can save tremendous work. All-in-one starter network kits such as the Bay Networks Netgear SB I04 provide all the gear you need to hook up two PCs for 10Mbps Ethernet at a very attractive price. Unfortunately, Netgear's terse instructions could cloud your interest altogether.

This starter kit contains a pair of PCI-bus-based cards that operate at either 10Mbps (10Base T, which is regular Ethernet speed) or 100Mbps (100Base TX, Fast Ethernet) rates. The card adjusts its speed and data-sending method (either half-or full-duplex) automatically to the connecting network hub.

You also get the necessary device drivers for Novell NetWare, Microsoft NT Server, SCO Unix, and Artisoft's Lantastic. A compact four-port 10Base T hub connects up to four computers. You can buy and chain together more hubs to connect more computers.

The cards and hub install easily, but the documentation for setting up network protocols or configuring PCs to share their files and printers has no illustrations, gives no examples, and leaves too many questions unanswered. No helper software pulls you out of a lurch.

The good news is that Bay Networks offers sevenday-a-week, 24-hour-a-day technical support. The bad news is that the support covers only the basics. When we asked a question about TCP/IP settings, the technician suggested (in a kind way) that we look into hiring a network consultant.

The kit's price is excellent and Bay Networks is promising to revise its documentation and help. But for now buy this kit only if you have two PCs to network, will eventually network fewer than 10 computers, and have a friend or consultant who can help set up the network.