# Desktop WiFi **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 19, 2016, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755 "2016-06-19T04:46:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/21 "2016-06-20T01:18:03Z")
> [@Jrubas](#): > > Sigh. Just my luck. Anyway, thanks for all the help. I really appreciate it. Wish me luck. You shouldn’t have to go through all of that. I’m also a Mac guy but my partner runs Windows and she hasn’t had problems getting a WiFi adapter to work. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/22 "2016-06-20T02:28:24Z")
> [@Jrubas](#): > > I live in an apartment over someone’s house. They let me use their WiFi. The router is downstairs, not in my apt. I am connected to the Wi-Fi on my cell right now. Can my desktop access the Wi-Fi just as easily? Unsolicited advice: If you have a Paypal account and the landlord has one, and either of you gets in trouble… you could both get shut down on Paypal. If you both try selling stuff on Amazon at the same time… one of you could get shut down. The same concerns extend to other tenants, or roommates, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/23 "2016-06-20T02:45:01Z")
> [@Mr.Slant](#): > > Unsolicited advice: > > If you have a Paypal account and the landlord has one, and either of you gets in trouble… you could both get shut down on Paypal. > > If you both try selling stuff on Amazon at the same time… one of you could get shut down. > > The same concerns extend to other tenants, or roommates, etc. Why? Because they’ll have the same IP address? Surely that’s common enough that places like Amazon and Paypal don’t make a habit of just shutting down an IP address. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/24 "2016-06-20T02:50:57Z")
```php ``` > [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > Why? Because they’ll have the same IP address? Surely that’s common enough that places like Amazon and Paypal don’t make a habit of just shutting down an IP address. You’d think so, but I could wallpaper my apartment with stories like this: [http://complaints.paypalsucks.com/my-account-frozen-because-my-roommates-account-got-suspended/](http://complaints.paypalsucks.com/my-account-frozen-because-my-roommates-account-got-suspended/) Similar, though less numerous, stories exist about Amazon. If OP makes a living selling online, I’d worry about this. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/25 "2016-06-20T03:42:31Z")
That would suck. The same must happen to be people who habitually use library internet services. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/26 "2016-06-20T03:52:20Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > That would suck. The same must happen to be people who habitually use library internet services. Coffee shop / restaurant wifi, too. I’m an ecommerce guy. If I’m going on my Amazon/Ebay/Paypal accounts, I pop on my phone’s hotspot feature before I open the browser, even if I had access to someone else’s wifi. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/27 "2016-06-20T04:29:04Z")
If you make your living doing e-commerce, i can see that would be a concern. Personally, i use PayPal mostly because it’s convenient and means i dint have to worry about whether yet another merchant will have a data breach and lose my credit card number. But if PayPal froze my account, it would be an annoying nuisance, not a risk to my livelihood. I’d share wifi with someone unless i had some reason to suspect they were sketchy. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/28 "2016-06-20T10:08:21Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > The device you get should come with a CD/DVD with the drivers on it. > If they’ve done a good job, there should be an installer which will do everything for you. > > I’m a Mac guy, and I’m aghast at what Windows users have to go through sometimes. I am often aghast at what Mac users have to go through to do something simple. Anyway - a wifi adaptor may or may not come with a disc, but the chances are, so long as the OP’s system is up to date, that it will be plug and play. the disc, if any, is just a backup for those with old systems. I used to have a PC with a built in wifi card and my problem was that it kept wanting to use that instead of the much faster wired connection to the router. My newer PC has no such problem. ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/29 "2016-06-20T10:45:38Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > I’m a Mac guy, and I’m aghast at what Windows users have to go through sometimes. Try installing a WiFi dongle without internet on a Mac for which it hasn’t the driver build in from the CD in your none existing CD drive - this works so what better, right? :smack: Or making a USB cable incompatible after upgrading IOS - that’s Apple for ya! ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2016, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/30 "2016-06-20T10:52:01Z")
> [@Jrubas](#): > > What would that entail? I have Windows and fully expect to have to download some type of software (a lot of the things I’ve seen say a disc comes with the adapter). I’m not too tech savvy but I can reasonably figure something out if I know what to look for. Depending on your Operating System and the WiFi adapter that you got, you may not need the CD. If you do need the CD to install the device, only install the Driver and without the additional software, since most of the time the software provided is not as good or more confusing as the build in wireless connection utility/manager that come with Windows itself. Depending on how the driver is put onto the CD, you need to run the installer or you just point the Driver windows to point to the CD and it’ll pull it directly from there. ---
**Author:** ![Jrubas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/278dde/32.png) [@Jrubas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jrubas)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2016, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/31 "2016-06-21T16:31:20Z")
Do I need the same brand adapter as my computer? ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2016, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/32 "2016-06-21T17:07:40Z")
> [@Jrubas](#): > > Do I need the same brand adapter as my computer? A wireless USB dongle should be trivially easy to get working though you may need to download and install a driver (or not, if Windows already has one for it). Brand matters not. All that matters is compatibility with the particular wireless standard he is using, which is probably Wireless-N on 2.4 Ghz, and anyway, any “N” adapter will also be backwards compatible with the old “G” standard. It’s very unlikely that your landlord is running on the 5 Ghz band, but if so, you’d need a dual-band adapter. The long and short of it is that almost anything you get will probably work fine, and wireless dongles are dirt cheap. I’ve said this before, but my preferred solution for one of my desktops that isn’t in a location that can be easily wired is to use a wireless bridge. A bridge looks like a router (often the same hardware, just different firmware) and lets you connect a computer or other device right into one of its Ethernet ports. It “bridges” a connection between the local wired devices and the remote router over a wireless link. I like it because (a) you don’t need drivers for it – anything plugged into it thinks it’s on a wired Ethernet connection, (b) in my experience a bridge often provides a faster connection than a dongle because it has bigger send and receive antennas. I get much faster performance from the bridge way down in the basement than from my laptop’s internal adapter even though it’s closer to the router. ---
**Author:** ![pidgeon92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/50afbb/32.png) [@pidgeon92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pidgeon92)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2016, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/33 "2016-06-21T18:09:08Z")
> [@Doughbag](#): > > Try installing a WiFi dongle without internet on a Mac for which it hasn’t the driver build in from the CD in your none existing CD drive - this works so what better, right? :smack: Is the wi-fi dongle without internet, or the Mac? Either way, an external optical drive is cheap. Do peripherals even come with CDs anymore? > [@Doughbag](#): > > Or making a USB cable incompatible after upgrading IOS - that’s Apple for ya! I’ve not come across this phenomenon. Can you provide more details? ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2016, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/34 "2016-06-22T11:10:33Z")
> [@pidgeon92](#): > > Is the wi-fi dongle without internet, or the Mac? Either way, an external optical drive is cheap. Do peripherals even come with CDs anymore? A USB WiFi adapter is a device that connects you to a wireless access point to access the internet - it doesn’t have it’s own internet unlike a USB Modem with a sim-card, however it may look the same or similar. > [@pidgeon92](#): > > I’ve not come across this phenomenon. Can you provide more details? Of cos you haven’t heard of that, you must have only bought original Apple cables, let me enlighten you with this [cite](http://www.cultofmac.com/246236/ios-7-killed-off-unlicensed-lightning-cables-but-heres-a-fix-that-might-work-for-you/) or this one [here](https://discussions.apple.com/thread/7222010?start=0&tstart=0) or [here](http://osxdaily.com/2015/02/12/cable-is-not-certified-error-message-iphone-ipad/). The issue is with 3rd party cables that worked before the update, not original Apple cables. It’s a certification issue and sure some really cheap cables maybe of poor standard. ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2016, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/35 "2016-06-22T11:14:18Z")
> [@Jrubas](#): > > Do I need the same brand adapter as my computer? No, you can use any brand as such, irrelevant of the brand of your PC. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2016, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/36 "2016-06-22T12:18:17Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > I’m a Mac guy, and I’m aghast at what Windows users have to go through sometimes. I’m a PC guy, and I am aghast that Mac users think Windows hasn’t changed since Windows 98. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2016, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/37 "2016-06-22T14:08:10Z")
> [@Doughbag](#): > > The issue is with 3rd party cables that worked before the update, not original Apple cables. It’s a certification issue and sure some really cheap cables maybe of poor standard. It’s a licensing issue. The lightning is a proprietary cable. I can’t muster much animosity to a company for protecting its assets. You don’t even have to buy from Apple, just make sure you get a licensed product. It’s not USB either, sure the other end _might_ be USB but it is the lightning end that they’re being tight with. ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2016, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755/38 "2016-06-24T14:15:11Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > It’s a licensing issue. The lightning is a proprietary cable. I can’t muster much animosity to a company for protecting its assets. You don’t even have to buy from Apple, just make sure you get a licensed product. It’s not USB either, sure the other end _might_ be USB but it is the lightning end that they’re being tight with. Certification is a license. You can’t be certified without the license. The issue is with the chip on the lightning end: Apple vs hacked chip in the cable or no chip altogether in the cable. The other end certainly is a USB connector, after all it’s build explicitly for the USB port. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/desktop-wifi/757755.md?page=1)