Re:Ordered so far:
D-link 713P
Linksys Cable Modem
2 D-link DWL-650 (~$35 each, will test one and return one or both if performance isn't adequate)
1 Orinoco Gold USB Client
Cost so far:
$435 ($385 after dlink rebate)
Re:Naturally, your mileage will vary, but fwiw I've got an SMC Barricade WiFi setup. It's in the worst possible place: basement, in a corner, hardwired to my main machine. But, I can wander with my laptops over the whole (reasonably large) house and get a signal, and even from a little bit outside. I use the SMC laptop cards, but the wisdom around here leans to the Orinoco gold cards.
I ran cable to other rooms in the house but never use them. 
My 2Â￠.
Re:After taking a better look at the house, my current thought is to:
- Take the cable (At&t) up from the garage to the Office.
- connect the cable modem to the D-link 713P (can be had for ~$100 this week)
- run 2 cables to the machines up there (can use pre-made cables)
- Buy a USB Wireless NIC for the downstairs desktop
- Buy 2 Wireless NIC PC-Cards for the 2 laptops.
The entry hall seems like the ideal place for an external antenna, given that the foyer/entry way is the full height of the house (2 floors) and very open.
Re:Ok, on my way over there in a few minutes to take a look at things. Thanks for the recommendation, I'll try to get an idea on pricing.
Re:In this situation, I think wireless would be the best setup. It's easy, fairly inexpensive, and very convenient, since they have laptops. The only concern with wireless is the lower bandwitdh transfers. It they want to transfer a lot of data through the network, you might want to consider a hybrid wired/wireless network. But if that isn't a concern, I would definitely just go for a pure wireless setup. A good choice for a router would be the D-Link 713P. This unit received the practically networked recommended award. In addition, D-Link also revamped this router so that you can add external higher gain antennas. This is also a good just in case for some reason they cannot get a signal all throughout the house (big house, metal in walls, etc). Hope this helps.
Ryan
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