*However*, wirless ethernet, which is what you bought, is not the samew thing as ethernet, which is what you were being told would give you a faster, more secure connection. Wireless ethernet and ethernet are different. One is wireless (like a cordless phone) and the other uses a cat5 cable to plug devices together.
To use the wireless ethernet you will need to buy an access point. The access point will have a regular "wired" ethernet port on it that you will need to plug into the DSL modem. The wireless card that you bought will then talk to the access point.
Assuming it is, it should have a single ethernet port on it, which you could run a category 5 cable from to your ethernet card on the PC. This also has a wireless access point built in (and routing/NAT functionality to boot).
Please excuse me for being stupid. I have a dsl connection 1.5 and its connected to my usb port but I was told I could get a faster and more secure connection if I used eternet. So here's what I did: I bought a ethernet pc card (Actiontec 54 Mbps Wireless PC Card is what it says) I found out it plugs into a laptop not desktop! So my question is can I purchase an adapter to use this card for my desktop? I don't want to go to the trouble of sending it back if I don't have to. Thanks In Advance:)
I have a Actiontec 54Mbps Wireless Gateway. If I were to start all over again to hook it to ethernet what would I need? Thanks In Advance Your Advice is Deeply Appreciated
Considering this option and asking the question was not stupid. If you continue to pursue it then you are! ;-)
Whoever told you that was exagerating the facts. For most folks, a USB connection for DSL is just fine. It "runs" about 10X faster than the fastest DSL available. So much for the speed issue. A WIRED connection would be somewhat more secure than a wireless one (be it either directly to a NIC card or to USB) but I doubt you want to change out ALL of your equipment so there goes the security issue.
If you continue your "project", you will gain nothing......except possibly a little knowledge. I suggest you leave it alone. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
You'd need a PCMCIA card adapater for your PC. There are ones available that will fit in a PCI slot and either connect the card to the front of the PC (via a drive bay) or out the back of the slot. The hassle of using them, however, may not be worth the effort/cost.
It would be a lot cheaper/easier/secure to just get a home router box ($50 from most stores) and a PCI ethernet card for your PC. One advantage of the wired router is that it stays running 24/7 and doesn't require your PC do anything to use the network. No PPPoE dialing software. Another advantage is security. The boxes are /generally/ more secure than how most folks will take the time to secure their PCs. The box acts as a simplified firewall and will block a great majority of unwanted traffic. It's always possible to misconfigure a router so please spare me arguments about it. Finally, the home router boxes also usually have extra ethernet ports for other PCs or even wireless. Thus you get all your machines or multiple rooms all connected via one simple box for a pretty low price.
The downsides to USB is usually drivers and speed. That and the hassles of misconnecting/unplugging the USB while attaching cameras, storage keychains, keyboards, etc. It's also possible that if you've got drives attached to the USB bus you'll slow it down enough to also slow the networking. Some PCs have multiple USB busses on them that can help avoid this problem but most people won't know how to use this.
Personally, I'd return the actiontec card and get a regular PCI ethernet card and a home router box. Linksys, Dlink, Netgear and others make a number of nice units.
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