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Creating a Wi-Fi Connection

By Catherine Roseberry, About.com

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Wi-Fi Preparation - What You Need to Connect

Wireless Network Screen

Wireless Network Screen

Photo Credit: ©Catherine Roseberry
Mobile workers must know how to set up their mobile gear to connect to Wi-Fi locations. Using WinXP in this tutorial, we'll go through the steps for setting up a laptop to access a Wi-Fi network. Some Wi-Fi cards can be set to automatically detect and connect to Wi-Fi networks. It is still important to know how to manually set up your Wi-Fi card to connect to a Wi-Fi network.
  1. Before you attempt to use any Wi-Fi network, find out what the SSID, Channel, Mode and WEP key are. Some Wi-Fi locations do not require a WEP key. Many Wi-Fi providers have this information on their web site or when you purchase access you will be provided the information.
  2. Ensure you have a firewall program installed and running. This will protect your data.
  3. Start up your laptop and once booted, look for the Wi-Fi network icon in the bottom right of the screen.
  4. Click on the Wifi Connection icon on bottom right of screen and you should see a window that indicates connection, strength and duration. Click on the Properties tab.

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