Question for computer buffs

[Boobs McGee]

I was recently given a pc, pretty bare-bones, but it's going to be my project computer. A way for me to learn how to build them, or at least upgrade parts and learn some basic computer knowledge.

So far, I've got two smaller HD's (a 10 gig and a 6 gig), 64k of ram? (the two long skinny circuit boards), basic video and sound cards, cd rw drive......and windows 2000. It works, I can play music, type papers and the like.

Here's my question:

If I buy a wireless internet card (i'm guessing like the ones that you have in your newer laptops), and hook up the signal booster I've got laying around, will I be able to get an internet connection at my house?

Is this illegal?

[orangeatheist]

Um...do you already have internet connection, or are you hoping to tap into your neighbor's wireless network, providing he hasn't locked it down?

[Boobs McGee]

No, I don't have a connection now. Yes, I"m trying to tap in....that's where I'm confused.

My neighbor has a laptop, and whenever she's online, it's through an "unsecured wireless network", whatever that means. Pretty weak connection. I noticed that when we hooked the signal booster up to her laptop, BAM, all of sudden she had, like, 12 networks to choose from.

[Dr. Broncenstein]

You can connect to any unsecured wireless network... its not legal, but neither is speeding. Almost every wireless router comes unsecured out of the box. It takes a good amount of computer savy to enable the encryption without having difficulty maintaining the net connection.

[Rock Chalk]

You can connect to any unsecured wireless network... its not legal, but neither is speeding. Almost every wireless router comes unsecured out of the box. It takes a good amount of computer savy to enable the encryption without having difficulty maintaining the net connection.
I got a funny anecdote about that.

A friend of mine lives in apartments and after work I went to his house to work on some computer stuff with him. He had his desktop but no router. His neighbors however have a wireless router and we attempted to hijack their feed just to work.

Their network was called "I got poopies" and they had it locked down. Apparently, we had previously stolen so much bandwidth that they figured out someone was hijacking.

Illegal? Yes, but its a very grey area. See, if you have an internet connection and you have a wireless card but no wireless router...let's just say you are not savvy enough to realize you are stealing someone else' bandwidth, thinkin it was your own. Happens. Trust me. People are mostly stupid. Well, perhaps stupid is a strong word. Ignorant seems more polite. Uninformed. They made it illegal so people couldnt hijack other networks and download illegally obtained software, games, music and movies.

I have an unsecure wireless network at my house that I can get at both my neighbors houses. My good fortune is that one house is empty and the other is a mullet having camaro on blocks KC Chief fan (I kid you not) named Alvin. Somehow Im thinkin, internet access is beyond his abilities.

[Atwater]

LOL Mullet those faded in the 80's He probaly dont even know what a computer is.

[Boobs McGee]

Too bad I don't have a camaro drivin mullet wearin KC fan on MY block, but...i do have an asshole neighbor that had my car "partially" towed for being two inches in front of his driveway. Maybe HE has some extra bandwith.

anyways, thanks for the info everybody. Makes me feel a little less like a criminal, I'm claiming stupidity :D

[orangeatheist]

I'm claiming stupidity :D

It's been my defense for YEARS.


"What, honey? Oh...that? Well, I don't know. Sometimes I get email spam that'll open random internet pages. I'm pretty sure that's where the pic came from.....Huh? Why did it save to the hard drive? I haven't a clue. You know those Southeast Asian kids..they have nothing better to do than create fancy viruses that send people's PCs to porn sites. You sure you didn't some infected file in your email? You'd better be careful."

[scorpio]

It's been my defense for YEARS.


"What, honey? Oh...that? Well, I don't know. Sometimes I get email spam that'll open random internet pages. I'm pretty sure that's where the pic came from.....Huh? Why did it save to the hard drive? I haven't a clue. You know those Southeast Asian kids..they have nothing better to do than create fancy viruses that send people's PCs to porn sites. You sure you didn't some infected file in your email? You'd better be careful."


Hell, I've used that at work