Part four: Connecting your Xbox or Playstation 2 games console to the Internet
Welcome back to the wireless networked home, if you’ve been following the series of articles so far, you should have your broadband up and running with a home full of wireless network activity. So in short you’ve got your broadband connection, a wireless router, plus all the wireless and wired clients you need. Last month we got a media player up and working on that wireless network, allowing you to stream audio/visual joy to anywhere in your abode. This month we’re going to hook up your game console so you can frag someone over the Net.
We’re going to look at the two most popular consoles out there and how to get them online. Both have dynamic online communities ready to shoot you in the back at the drop of a hat. Before we begin in earnest a quick note regarding the Playstation 2, it needs the optional PS2 network adaptor kit which provides an Ethernet port; the Xbox already has an Ethernet port as standard.
Connect them
You will also need a wireless bridge if you do not wish to have an Ethernet cable snaking across the floor to your router. The wireless bridge, sometimes called a console or game console adapter, is connected via a short Ethernet cable to the game consoles Ethernet port and allows it onto your wireless network. For best results it’s a good idea to get a wireless bridge from the same manufacturer/product family as the rest of your wireless kit to ensure maximum compatibility. There are a number of options including console manufacturer models, a quick search for “wireless adapter for Playstation 2” or “wireless adapter for Xbox” on Google will give you a few options. In this case we used a Linksys WGA54G mainly due to the added bonus of being able to use it with an Xbox, Playstation 2 and GameCube. A subscription to Xbox Live and the Xbox Live Starter Kit will also be necessary if you are connecting an Xbox.
Spot check
So you’ve got all the parts how does it all fit together. Firstly make sure your Internet connection is up and running, we know this sounds rather basic but it will save you a lot of bother troubleshooting if this simple check is done first. Try opening a web page on your computer to check connectivity.
The Playstation 2 owners out there should install the optional Network Adapter we mentioned above, detailed instructions on how to do this can be found included in its packaging and are quite straight forward.
Both console users should follow the instructions for your particular wireless bridge hardware. For example in our particular case with the Linksys hardware you would first connect your PC to the wireless bridge using a provided Ethernet cable and power up the bridge hardware. Then insert the installation CD provided by the manufacturer in the drive. A setup should start or you may be required to run it yourself. Setup generally comprises a set of various questions regarding the network you’re trying to connect to, it security settings etc. Things like the SSID and channel of your wireless network will have to be set; these can be copied from your existing wireless network settings.
If you have DHCP enabled on your network then an IP address will be provided by your wireless router automatically, if not you will need to set these manually, The IP address must be unique but the subnet and gateway settings will be the same as your router, i.e. if your router is 10.0.0.1 then the console can be given any free address 10.0.0.x where x can be between 2 and 254, omitting any already used by other devices on your network. Security settings will also need to be set identically to your existing wireless network settings, the WEP or WPA details as they exist on your wireless router.
Once all of these settings have been taken care of you should have some form of confirmation/congratulations message on screen telling you all is right with the world. If not go over the steps once more checking all the settings you’ve provided to the setup program. Once everything is confirmed to be working as per your manufacturer instructions plug the Ethernet bridge into your console and set your console up for multiplayer gaming as per the consoles instructions.
At this point you should be fragging others with no thought to the consequences so we’ll leave at that this month.
NEXT MONTH
We create a network of IP-based surveillance cameras for security for your home.
Subscribers 0
Fans 0
Followers 0
Followers