By installing a home wireless network you can have fun and gain convenience of mobility around the home for your laptops and mobile devices. No more ugly LAN cables to trip over or try and hide. Now wireless devices are everywhere and there are plenty of compact, high performance, and affordable devices to choose from.
Disadvantages include possible interference from other networks or devices, vulnerability to hacking, difficulty with configuration, and range of coverage.
Most laptops will include a built-in wireless adapter whereas a PC will not. So the PC will need to be connected to a router. The router will provide the wireless access point for all devices on the network and often 4 LAN (Local Area Network) ports and 1 WAN (Wide Area Network) port. The WAN connection connects to your Internet Service provider's box. Your PC will connect via a short LAN cable to any one of the router's LAN ports.
To set up the router, use a web browser to access the control panel which is often at web address: http://192.168.0.1 Here you will be able to adjust the settings such as the data encryption method, wireless access password, network name and channel.
In Windows, it's easy to connect the computers to the Internet by running the Internet connection wizard.
When choosing a wireless router you have the option of choosing wireless-N or wireless-G. The preferred choice is the latest wireless-N with more potential range and faster data transfer.
For maximum range and less vulnerability to interference, a pure wireless-N network is recommended. This is because the radio band that wireless-G uses (2.4GB), is congested with other signals such as other networks and microwave ovens. By adjusting the channel and position of the router, you can experiment to improve the performance of your home wireless network.
For best network security it is recommended to configure your router to use WPA encryption.
In summary, home wireless network setup entails connecting your PC via a LAN cable to a router which in turn connects to your Internet access box. Then the router is set up via a control panel with the encryption and password etc. Then the Internet connection wizard is run on each PC and laptop in the network.
Find a low cost router at the wireless networking store, then read Troy Williams's tutorial wireless network tutorial.