Wireless Home Networking - Index of

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Part IV: Using a Wireless Network
If your current router isn’t on this list, don’t despair. Check the router manufacturer’s
Web site. Often, it has specific steps, such as installing a firmware
update (updating the router’s software), that make the router work just fine.
Some routers work just as they are, but they simply haven’t been certified
for some reason.
Playing online with PlayStation Network
Sony’s previous game console, the PlayStation 2 (PS2), was the most
successful console ever, with over 120 million (say that really slowly in a
Dr. Evil voice for full effect) consoles sold by 2007. This older console, as we
mentioned, had some networking capabilities, and indeed over 200 networkcapable
games have been released over the years, with millions of users
taking advantage of them. But Sony never put together an integrated competitor
to Microsoft’s Xbox Live with the PS2 — essentially the gaming software
companies themselves set up online portals for their individual games.
With the new PS3 console, however, Sony has pulled out all the stops and
launched the PlayStation Network. The PlayStation Network, a free service for
PS3 and PSP (PlayStation Portable) owners, provides the following services:
� PlayStation Store: You can shop online for downloadable games (they
get stored on your PS3’s hard drive), demos of new games, and highdefinition
trailers of new games and movies.
� Online game play: Registered users can participate in free online headto-head
gaming. PlayStation Network also supports online gaming for
some specific titles that require additional subscriptions (typically
directly with the game software company itself) — so while the Play-
Station service is free, you may have to pay a subscription fee for
certain games.
� Online community: As is the case with Xbox Live, when you register
with PlayStation Network, you can establish an online identity and participate
in message boards and live text or voice chats with your gaming
buddies over your wireless network.
� Web browsing: Not actually part of the PlayStation Network (in other
words, you don’t need to register to do this) but neat nonetheless. The
PS3 has a built-in Web browser so you can surf the Web on your bigscreen
TV.
You can find more information about PlayStation Network online gaming at
the Sony site (www.us.playstation.com/PS3/Network).
Wii? No, wheeeeeee!
The best selling of the three new-generation gaming consoles is Nintendo’s
Wii — fueled by a lower price and especially by the absolutely cool Wiimote,
which uses motion control instead of buttons to control game action. The Wii