Two quick Airport Express questions

[brightlights]

Hi, Ive searched for this on the forum but haven't really found any answers. I've got two questions..

Firstly,

My situation now is that I've got a desktop PC and an Apple Powerbook with an airport extreme card. Currently my laptop has no internet access and my PC is connected through a USB adsl modem.

Would I be able to use airport express for internet access on my laptop if I had a cable from a NIC in my desktop going into airport express?

Secondly,

In a few months I'm going to uni where they have a university ethernet network going to all the rooms on campus for high speed internet access. Would I be able to use this connection with Airport Express?

I appreciate any help, thanks.

 

[varmit]

Firstly,

My situation now is that I've got a desktop PC and an Apple Powerbook with an airport extreme card. Currently my laptop has no internet access and my PC is connected through a USB adsl modem.

Would I be able to use airport express for internet access on my laptop if I had a cable from a NIC in my desktop going into airport express?

I think it would work that way. Since one way they state that it works is for hotel rooms that are wired, and you use the express to make them wireless. So you can do it by connecting the express to the PC or to the Modem directly. If connected to the PC, you have to share it connection, and the PC has to be on when you want to get on with the PB.

Secondly,

In a few months I'm going to uni where they have a university ethernet network going to all the rooms on campus for high speed internet access. Would I be able to use this connection with Airport Express?

This is the hotel room thing again. Making a wired network become a wireless one.

Suggestion, if you don't need a mobile base station, get a regular wireless router. Then you can plug the DSL into it and get wired and wireless out of it.

 

[fistful]

1) the APExpress unlike the APExtreme has only a WAN port. so from what I understand no you cannot connect your pc to it via your NIC, though you can install a 802.11b/g wifi card into your pc.

2) I don't see why not.

 

[varmit]

1) the APExpress unlike the APExtreme has only a WAN port. so from what I understand no you cannot connect your pc to it via your NIC, though you can install a 802.11b/g wifi card into your pc.

I think you can though. The PC is sharing its connection, acting like it doesn't exist other than passing information along. It would be like just plugging it into the DSL modem, or a hotel port, or his schools network. Just an extra link along the way.

 

[brightlights]

Yeah this is my problem.

Apple haven't really described well enough exactly what will work on airport. On first reading I assumed it wouldn't work in either scenario but then their indication about 'hotel rooms' sort of suggests otherwise.

I would really rather get the express version than the base station due to price and airtunes.

 

[fistful]

I think you can though. The PC is sharing its connection, acting like it doesn't exist other than passing information along. It would be like just plugging it into the DSL modem, or a hotel port, or his schools network. Just an extra link along the way.

yeah I'm not so sure...I think APExpress is meant to be used with laptops via wifi, the WAN port is used to connect to the internet through your cable/DSL modem...having no LAN port I just don't see how it's possible. I think that possibly you could connect to it via NIC to jump on an existing wifi network to use the internet that way, but not on it's own in this respect, if any of this makes any sense? I could be wrong but I'm almost positive I'm not.

 

[crees!]

Yeah this is my problem.

Apple haven't really described well enough exactly what will work on airport. On first reading I assumed it wouldn't work in either scenario but then their indication about 'hotel rooms' sort of suggests otherwise.

I would really rather get the express version than the base station due to price and airtunes.

Exactly, Apple stated you can created a wireless network if your hotel room is wired. So it seems you should be able to plug in an internet connection and get wireless from it. Can wait for this puppy to hit the shelves and see how it's working for everyone.

 

[kewpid]

From what I can understand Internet Connection Sharing on windows creates a sort of software router when an internet connection is shared, so plugging in the ethernet cable would be like plugging in a modem in to the Airport Express. I have this same dilemma, so hopefully it works!

 

[brightlights]

**bump**

can anyone answer my questions for definite now that the beast has shipped?