>I would greatly appreciate guidance on this before I turn a simple, >straightforward, quick-and-dirty, cheap-a55 fit of networking into the most >needless piece of overengineering since the Air Force decided it was more >important that toilets survive impacts rather than, say, passengers.
You can safely buy the cheapest you can find (for the most part, use some common sense, when you see the guy on the street selling crappy looking cables for 50 cents for 10 feet, you might want to pass.... but I regularly buy from a guy at a local computer fair that sells 10 and 15 foot cables for $2.00 each). If you plan to have lots of cables of different lengths, you may want to look into making your own. The first two or three you might screw up, but once you get the hang of it, it is fast, easy, and dirt cheap (although if you can find 10 footers for $2.00, that may be cheaper... at least once I factor in my time and effort, I buy those rather than make my own of that length... longer ones I make my own). All in all, as long as they are cat 5 you should be good to go (if you never plan to go above 10 Mb, then cat 3, 2 pair wire will work just as well, and that stuff can be had for next to nothing... 1000 foot rolls run about $20 around here... but then I can get 1000 foot rolls of cat 5e for $50). I would not pay extra for anything that someone is pushing on some non understood rating in the ends. If you want to pay extra because of the ends, pay extra for tri-point connectors (the pins in the RJ-45 have three points, instead of 2, that helps them grip solid conductor cable better then the cheaper 2 point style... I can explain more if you actually care). -chris <http://www.mythtech.net> -- MacNetwork is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... XRouter Pro | Share your DSL or cable modem between multiple computers! Dr. Bott | Only $199 <http://www.drbott.com/prod/MIH130.html> Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> MacNetwork list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/macnet.html> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; end list messages to: <mailto:macnetwork@mail.maclaunch.com> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/macnetwork%40mail.maclaunch.com/> iPod Accessories for Less at 1-800-iPOD.COM Fast Delivery, Low Price, Good Deal www.1800ipod.com
