Wireless networks: jargon-buster

• 802.11b/g/n: Different types of WiFi wireless networks. 802.11b is the slowest, followed by 802.11g, while 802.11n is the fastest.
• Channel: Wireless routers can use one of a dozen different frequencies or channels. That way it's possible to have many different wireless networks operating close together without interfering with each other.
• Encryption: Most wireless networks use encryption to protect data from eavesdroppers. If your wireless network is encrypted this means it can only be used by people who know the security key or password.
• Open network: A wireless network that uses no encryption. It's usually unwise to use an open network, as a hacker could intercept your email password.
• SSID: The technical term for the name of a wireless network as it appears on your computer when you search for one to connect to. Some wireless networks have a hidden SSID, which makes it hard to connect to it unless you know its name in advance.
• WEP: Short for wired equivalent privacy, a very weak form of encryption that was used by early wireless networks. Hackers have been known to defeat WEP encryption in as little as two minutes.
• WiFi: The name for the standard type of wireless network used in homes and businesses and at Internet cafés and hotspots.
• WiFi adapter: A card or USB stick containing an aerial that you can plug in to a laptop (or desktop) computer, enabling it to connect to a wireless network.
• Wireless router: The box of electronics that creates a wireless network by sending out radio signals to computers in the vicinity, allowing them to connect to it wirelessly.
• WPA: Short for WiFi Protected Access, this is a very secure form of encryption which can protect your wireless network from even the most determined hacker. If you choose a good passphrase it has been calculated that it would take over a billion years to break in to a wireless network that uses WPA.

Wireless network tip:
If you have a wireless network in your house, make sure that it is set to run on a different channel to any of your neighbours' networks to prevent connection problems.