If you're just starting to look at the world of wireless networking, you have to master a bunch of seemingly cryptic lingo. Here's a basic primer:

WiFi: Short for "Wireless Fidelity, " WiFi is often used interchangeably with 802.11x but refers specifically to an adherence to a set of standards for those two wireless protocols, designed to allow wireless networking devices to work seamlessly with each other.

802.11a/b/g: "802.11" refers to the IEEE classification for wireless networking, and the letters at the end denote the flavour. 802.11b was the first out of the gate, and featured 11 Megabits (Mbps) per second data transmission speed. The 802.11a standard followed shortly thereafter, offering data speeds up to 54 Mbps, but its different radio spectrum (5GHz as compared to the 2.4GHz) meant the two standards weren't interoperable, and thus it's not widely used. The 802.11g wireless standard uses the same spectrum as 11b to facilitate interoperabilty, but bumps the speed up to 54Mbps. With any of these standards, transmission speeds get slower the further away you go from the router.

Channel: Wireless networking data is transmitted on channels numbered 1 to 11 (in North America). This is to ensure your wireless router and computers are only listening for data intended for them in areas where more than one wireless network is set up. The default channel is 6 or 11 in many routers. You can change this on the router's configuration Web page.

SSID: Service Set Identifier; this is the name for your router or network. The SSID allows users to identify different wireless networks that may be used for different things and different departments. These SSIDs can be changed by the router administrator for easy custom identification or to obscure easy identification... your choice.

WEP/WPA encryption: By default, wireless networking signals are sent over the airwaves without any protection... anyone that could listen in on the data stream could reconstruct it. Encryption creates a secure encoded channel between the wireless router and a wireless-enabled computer. The first standard, Wireless Encryption Protocol (WEP, is available in 64- and 128-bit strengths and requires a predetermined hexadecimal 'key" to be set up at both ends. WiFi Protected Access IWPA) is a newer, more secure encryption protocol.

• broadband router with 802.11g or 11b wireless network

• computers with Ethernet ports or wireless adapters

• Ethernet cables long enough to reach your computers, if applicable

• Broadband Internet connection (DSL, cable or even satellite)

• Make sure you change your router's default password.

• Change the default SSID to something more personally relevant.

• Enable wireless encryption and choose the strongest encryption method

available at both ends.

* Use non-obvious passwords, preferably 8-10 characters or more, with

both numbers and letters.

Don't write your passwords down and leave them in an obvious place!