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SubjectRE: Cheap network for two hosts ?
Hi all.

>> The main reason that I use UTP over coax in my home network is
>> accessibility. By that I mean, most people who have Ethernet cards
>> in their computer have a UTP port, but not everyone has coax. I
>> know this would be no issue if you were buying all of the machines
>> yourself. Let me give you an example of a scenario were the comes
>> into play. One of the main uses for my network is multiplayer
>> games. I like to invite my friends to come over to play (LAN
>> parties) things like Quake2 and starcraft. Many of the computers
>> that they bring (and my machine also) have 10/100meg cards. I have
>> yet to see a 10/100 card with a coax port. I would recommend using
>> coax if I knew I was only going to ever want to use my own
>> machines. If you have even a small felling that you would want to
>> host a lan party I would use UTP.....

If you have a 10/100 card, you normally won't see a coax port since
100 Mbps ethernet doesnae work over coax. However, 10 Mbps only cards
can usually be found with both coax and RJ45 connectors...

> When I buy cards, I get combo cards. My home network is coax, but
> I'll pick up a hub sometime. Locally, I have 2 machines connected
> almost always, and sometimes 3 - of my own. Also, quite often, some
> people bring a box over for multiplayer games, or to surf the web
> in tandem and do research - so I often have at least 1 to 2
> machines here that are not mine that are left here at any given
> point in time. Most people I know also have combo cards. Anyone
> buying a single card, I tell to get a combo card so that they can
> connect to any network easily - also because mine is the one
> they'll most likely be connected to.

Note that combo cards are normally (but not always) 10 Mbps only...

> I have enough coax to handle 5 machines here, and if necessary, I'd
> get more. Usually if someone is bringing a bunch of machines over
> for a "lan party" as you describe (we call it a Quake-fest - even
> if we're not playing Quake) someone allready *HAS* a hub, and they
> bring it over. I've got tonnes of CAT5 cable, and We usually end up
> with an 8 or 16 port brought over so there is no problem. I've got
> enough coax for 5 machines, and I've got at least 5 10base2 cards
> to go around if we needed to swap.

> I'd love to get a hub, and likely will soon, but can't afford it
> right now. Coax is cheap, works good for *me*. I've not had any
> trouble with the coax yet. If someone CAN afford a hub for their
> network, then I say get it, and don't bother with coax. I still see
> coax as a very cheap home network solution though.

I see it as much more than that...

I spent Summer 1998 installing a network in one of the Secondary
Schools in Lincolnshire, England. They had asked various "Consultants"
to recommend how to do so, and the best "Value for Money" was one
offering to get FIVE computers set up to access the Internet for
£17,500, well above the school's budget.

By the time I'd finished, they had FORTY computers online, all
connected to the Internet, with an ISDN-2 link that included
channel-bunching to give them 128 Kbps when needed, a caching web
proxy used by all of the systems, and a firewall to keep undesirables
out, and they still had change out of £5,000 (the budget I was given).

That was ONLY possible because of the availability of low-cost 10 Mbps
ethercards with BNC coax connectors to go round the various rooms,
with the CAT-5 reserved for the bridging network that connected the
various rooms together (one run of which is nearly 750 metres in
length)...

Basic summary:

ISDN-2 line
|
|
+----------+ +--------+
| Internet | | File |
| Gateway | | Server |
+----------+ +--------+
| |
+---------------------+-----------------------+
| | |
+---------+ +---------+ +---------+
| Room C6 | | Library | | Room F9 |
| Gateway | | Gateway | | Gateway |
+---------+ +---------+ +---------+
| | |
| | |
Room C6 Library Room F9
Segment Segment Segment

The segments are mapped as follows:

Inter-Gateway segment (CAT-5) 192.168.254.*
Room C6 (Coax) 192.168.6.*
Room F9 (Coax) 192.168.9.*
Library (Coax) 192.168.71.*

Since then, the system has crashed precicely TWICE - once because of a
power failure that took the whole school down, together with most of
the neighbouring houses, the second time because a cleaner unplugged
the file server from the mains...

Best wishes from Riley.

---
* ftp://ftp.MemAlpha.cx/pub/rhw/Linux
* http://www.MemAlpha.cx/~rhw/kernel.versions.html


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