wireless router questions

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jesseu2

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My parents have a NETGEAR WGT624 router and have 2 laptop's that have wireless. I am usually good with setting up wireless stuff but i'm having some issues here.

One laptop is plugged into the modem directly. Other uses the wireless without any problems.

One problem: only one laptop can use the wireless at a time. My sister comes home once in awhile and brings her macbook and we both cannot use the internet at the same time because one or both our connections times out and have to restart the router for 15 min or so of usage before it times out AGAIN!

Another problem: I have tried for hours to set up the printer so that we can print wirelessly. I see the printer but CAN'T print to it. Could it be that the printer is hooked up to a Windows ME machine?

We are moving the router and printer upstairs tomorrow because we aren't using DSL after this week, switching over to cable. There is a XP computer upstairs that we will be connecting the router/printer to.

This router is 6 years old an i think its a piece of crap.

Should I just get a linksys (i like linksys brand better than netgear) or does anyone know how to fix these problems?

2 laptops have VISTA
1 macbook laptop

I will be getting a Windows 7 laptop in the next couple of months also.

Can anyone help me please?

thanks!
 
Is the router setup for DHCP?

I have an older, cheap router and it has been used for Macs, Windows XP, Windows Vista, and now Windows 7. Doesn't have the greatest range but we have a tiny place.
 
That printer problem can be the cause of windows ME. I've had that shit for years and it wasn't compatible with ANYTHING. :crack:
Try connecting the printer to one of the other pcs and then try to print via the network and see if that works?
 
That printer problem can be the cause of windows ME. I've had that shit for years and it wasn't compatible with ANYTHING. :crack:
Try connecting the printer to one of the other pcs and then try to print via the network and see if that works?

Okay, will try that. Thanks.

Am going to be moving router and printer upstairs soon and will let you know if that fixes it..
 
I am beyond freaking irritated with my router or connection. Not sure where the problem is.

I successfully hooked up my Linksys WRT160N right away when I got my computer. It wasn't working at first, then accidentally did something that made it work fine. For about two days. Then I started having connectivity issues, but was usually able to fix it one way or the other.

Now I can't connect to the internet without being directly connected between my laptop and the router via ethernet cable. If I unplug the cable, I'll have a signal for about a minute, and then the connection disappears.

The laptop is right next to the router at the moment. I uninstalled it, reset the modem to factory settings, and reinstalled. I got a message that I had succesfully installed it.

Why can I not wirelessly connect? I tried going online for troubleshooting, but the information I find is either completely unhelpful or completely over my head. When I had the cable modem hooked up to my desktop, I would occasionally need to power down the modem and let it reset, but never had issues about connecting unless Comcast was having issues, so I'm pretty sure it's not the modem, even though it's about 5 years old.

This is really pissing me off.

Help?
 
Has the router been configured for the WAN? If it was reset, it probably needs to be configured for the Comcast connection to the Internet.

If it was the modem, you'd probably notice with the lights. My Comcast modem went bad, the data light stopped flashing. A tech had to come out and give me a new one (after several phone calls of me convincing them it was their damn hardware that was the problem...sure enough it took the tech about 30 seconds to agree).
 
I'm assuming it's configured for the WAN? It went through all the setup stuff after I reset the modem, and told me "congratuations, etc etc."

Even just now, I was able to connect wirelessly ... for a minute or two, and then it dropped again.

I'm on hold with the fine folks at Dell - I didn't pay for the "on call" service for nothing, so maybe they can help see if I'm set up correctly.
 
Guess who just spent FOUR HOURS on the phone with Dell support in India, and still can't connect wirelessly?

:happy: :|

I am so freaking frustrated right now. Most of this stuff is completely over my head so I can't even begin to speculate as to what the problem is. My new best friend Leonard is going to call me tomorrow morning to pick up where we left off, as I have to go meet a friend for dinner.

I don't think I'd be so frustrated if it hadn't been working perfectly fine when I first set it up (I mean obviously, I didn't set it up right, but it just makes it more frustrating).

Next person who tells me wireless is easy to connect gets kicked in the shin.
 
I would help but I don't think I've had to reset mine in 3 years! I'd have to dig up my Comcast account info/password before I dare reset it... I do remember when I initially set it up, first I connected my laptop directly to the modem and made sure that was up to snuff, then In connected the router to the modem and connected my laptop directly to the router to set it up for DCHP and whatever type of connection it uses with Comcast (PPPoE? Or was that my SBC DSL...?). I'm pretty sure I cloned a MAC address somewhere in the process.
 
Lies and GG, any tips on my first problem i mentioned above about having more than one lappy on the wireless at same time? Any settings i should change?
 
If you connect your laptop directly to the modem, can you use Internet without it cutting out?

Yep!

Cori, once it disconnects, does it ever reconnect on its own without you having to do anything?

Nope!

My connection with the laptop plugged directly into the modem works fine, as does the connection if I plug the laptop into the router. It's only when I try to go wireless that I lose the love of my life the internet.

I had dinner with a friend, and she wondered if my previous wireless connectivity was actually me connected to someone else's wireless network. It probably would explain all of this.

I have a hot date with my new bestest friend Leonard tomorrow morning at 9. Here's hoping we're able to consummate our technological relationship, or I will cry. And probably throw something. Possibly the router.

Thanks for the tips you've offered. Based on the setup involved with the router software, it sure looks like it should have been easy.
 
If it's anything like mine, it wasn't easy or intuitive. It did not take long, but I do remember there being several steps involved (connecting directly to the modem and configuring that, cloning a MAC address, connecting directly to the router and configuring that, then connecting each computer and configuring them).
 
Another hour and a half on the phone with India, but I now am connected wirelessly. I have a new bestest friend, his name is Kingsly! He finally told me I could hang up the phone, so I puttered around my apartment while he drove my computer. :lol:

I guess it had something to do with the drivers for the router.

I'd love to know if the set up for this Linksys router was as easy as it led you to believe from the installation - there was very little I had to do, other than plugging cables, as it automatically configured everything else. so it's surprising to hear there was all this other configuration stuff (like you mention above).

But whatever, it's done. I knew this would be my biggest headache with setting things up. So now I can move forward and roam around my apartment with my laptop! Yay!
 
Lies and GG, any tips on my first problem i mentioned above about having more than one lappy on the wireless at same time? Any settings i should change?

Do you have only one port for wireless open? Check the settings of the router for wireless, you should be able to add more connections.

If that doesn't work, get both your laptop's MAC adresses and manually add them to the router's wireless settings so that both are 'allowed' to connect.
 
Do you have only one port for wireless open? Check the settings of the router for wireless, you should be able to add more connections.

If that doesn't work, get both your laptop's MAC adresses and manually add them to the router's wireless settings so that both are 'allowed' to connect.

I do not know how to check how many ports are in there.

ok, sis is coming home tonight, i'll add her MAC address in there..

Under Wireless Settings, Should I change the mode from 'g and b' to 'Auto 108 Mbps' ?
 
This has been the most aggravating computer issue I've ever had. Still having wireless issues - I can only connect wirelessly intermittently. It'll be fine for days, and then one day I just can't connect.

I'll be connected to my network with the ethernet cable plugged in, I'll unplug it and it will be fine for a minute or two ... and then it's gone and won't let me reconnect.

Is that just the way of wireless connections? Do I live in a Twilight Zone of an apartment where it's just the luck of the signal draw? I would suspect that signal shouldn't be an issue when I'm sitting right next to the damned router and modem.

God, this is irritating.

Edit: And of course 10 minutes later, it seems to be working fine again. See? Do you see this sort of bullshittery I am having to put up with?

(Oh, woe to the first world problems of me.)
 
Last week, I put the MAC Addresses of 2 laptops and a itouch into the wireless router and everything works together beautifully!!
 
I had a few friends suggest my wireless issues meant I needed to do something specific within the router configurations (like changing the channel or something?).

A few days later I asked someone at work who suggested I just plug my ethernet cable into another port on the back of the router. Which I did, and lo and behold, a few days later, my wireless has only crapped out on me once in the past 48 hours or so.

Not sure if it's something else, or if it's because I tried the cable in another port (not sure why that would work, since it's only an issue when that cable isn't plugged into my laptop), but I am a happy wireless user once again.

Would sure be nice to understand all this junk so I know where to even start when it doesn't work again, though. :lol:
 
i don't have any suggestions for you, but just wanted to say what they meant by changing the channel. it's just a setting to literally change the channel. the only reason you'd need to do this is if there were problems with interference of the wifi signal. i've personally never had to change this setting.
 
Yeah, that sounds like what they were talking about. It seemed like I was having problems because of a lot of other interfering wifi signals. :)
 
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