VM-Mac-PC laptop combo - How? Advice please

mcarora · 25-05-2009, 12:38

Hey there

Apologies if I have this in the wrong section.

I am trying to help my neighbours with their new intended wireless setup. Currently they have an old Mac with VM. Due to the age of the Mac, it is connected to the (originally Telewest) modem via USB as opposed to Ethernet. They now intend to purchase a Dell Laptop and would like to connect to the internet wirelessly. They also have a printer which I think has both USB and ethernet connections and are also looking to be able to print from the laptop (i.e. anywhere in the house).

Unfortunately, my knowledge of routers is limited to the fact that you can only get ethernet ports on them and therefore can only connect via one type of connection. If my assumption is correct, I think the best way to setup their system would be as follows:

Cable modem -> Wireless router (obviously this would be connected via ethernet)

Wireless router -> printer (if my current assumptions are correct, then this should be connnected via ethernet, making it possible to print from either machine)

Wireless router -> Ethernet to USB converter -> Mac (the converter is something that I was told by a friend sometime ago, but he wasn't sure if I could just pick up a generic one from a store like Maplins or if I would need a special one from the Apple Store because it was to be connected to a rather old Mac machine)

Wireless router -> Dell Laptop (this of course would be connected wirelessly)

My main cause for concern would be the connection of the wireless router to the Mac. Can anyone confirm if my proposed setup would work without any problems? If it does pose any problems can anyone suggest any further advice? I am trying to avoid the installation of a network card in the Mac as it is rather old and also because I am not that confident in doing any kind of upgrades to a Mac, as I personally have only worked on PCs.

Kymmy · 25-05-2009, 12:43

Some wifi usb dongles don't like Macs, best to ask instore if it works and has drivers for a MAC

mcarora · 25-05-2009, 13:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kymmy

Some wifi usb dongles don't like Macs, best to ask instore if it works and has drivers for a MAC

Thanks for that, but I was actually looking to connect the Mac to the router in a wired manner as opposed to wireless, so I am trying to work out if the ethernet to USB converter to work?

Kymmy · 25-05-2009, 13:10

Whether the dongle is Wifi or wired it should still be a case of if it has MAC drivers then it should work..

Stuart · 25-05-2009, 15:23

How old is the Mac? I've been supporting Macs since about 1996 and they've had Ethernet ports since then.

**Chris** · 25-05-2009, 18:08

Was going to ask exactly that question... they have all had ethernet for donkey's years. iMac launched with ethernet in 1998.

mcarora · 26-05-2009, 12:15

Well I had a quick look on the back of the machine and couldn't see an ethernet port. It did have what I recall as being a modem port. I will try and have another look, but if it is an ethernet port (i.e. I got it wrong) then can I buy any wireless router e.g. a Netgear one (suggested that as that is what I use) and connect that as normal?

I am not entirely sure how old the machine is and because I am not very clued up on Macs I don't know the model or anything. If it helps I know that is a tower and is greenish in colour. Come to think of it, that probably won't help, but I am pretty sure that it does not have an ethernet port, otherwise why would the installer connect the cable modem to the machine via USB if there was an ethernet port available?

Anyways, I will double check again tonight and in the meantime, if anyone can offer any advice, i would greatly appreciate it.

**Chris** · 26-05-2009, 12:47

One of these?

These all shipped with ethernet, but the modem was optional. If it is one of these, and only has one modem-like port, then it's most likely actually an ethernet port. It's an easy enough mistake to make when you don't have both there to compare sizes. The install tech could have made that error. But the definitive way to check is to see what you can plug in to it.

Any Mac with ethernet should wire to any modern router without any problems so far as I'm aware.

Stuart · 26-05-2009, 12:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcarora

Well I had a quick look on the back of the machine and couldn't see an ethernet port. It did have what I recall as being a modem port. I will try and have another look, but if it is an ethernet port (i.e. I got it wrong) then can I buy any wireless router e.g. a Netgear one (suggested that as that is what I use) and connect that as normal?

I am not entirely sure how old the machine is and because I am not very clued up on Macs I don't know the model or anything. If it helps I know that is a tower and is greenish in colour. Come to think of it, that probably won't help, but I am pretty sure that it does not have an ethernet port, otherwise why would the installer connect the cable modem to the machine via USB if there was an ethernet port available?

Anyways, I will double check again tonight and in the meantime, if anyone can offer any advice, i would greatly appreciate it.

Does it look like the attached? If so, that is a PowerMac G3, and the Ethernet Port should be on the back, probably on the either the left or right hand side.

**Chris** · 26-05-2009, 12:49

Oh look, there's an echo ... echo ... echo ...

mcarora · 26-05-2009, 15:00

Stuart C/Chris

Thanks for your help in this matter (much appreciated)! Both your pictures appear to be of the same machine, which does indeed look very similar to my neighbours machine! (Although from memory it was more a duller blue/green - maybe that was due to poor lighting in the room) So that is a good start. When I had a look at the back, it appeared to have only one of the ports and based on Chris' response earlier, it is more than likely to be an ethernet port. Because there was only one port (i.e. nothing to compare against) and the fact that the engineer made use of the USB port to connect to the modem I assumed this to be a modem. From my vague memory, the other reason I assumed this to be a modem port was because beside it there appeared to be a symbol of a phone handset - but my memory is not sharp in that area and I could have just imagined that. I think the best thing would be to take my ethernet cable round and see if it fits.

Thanks for your help so far. I will let you know how I got on!

Stuart · 26-05-2009, 15:28

Although it is an iMac, not a PowerMac, the attached is a fairly good indication of the labels Apple use..

Basically, Ethernet is labelled <..> and the Modem is labelled with a standard telephone handset followed by 2 dots. However, from memory (and I could be wrong, haven't seen one in years), the PowerMac G3 did not come with a modem port.

**Chris** · 26-05-2009, 17:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcarora

Stuart C/Chris

Thanks for your help in this matter (much appreciated)! Both your pictures appear to be of the same machine, which does indeed look very similar to my neighbours machine! (Although from memory it was more a duller blue/green - maybe that was due to poor lighting in the room) So that is a good start.

The colour is Bondi Blue, which is the same colour of the original iMac. Despite the name, it is a sort of dull greenish blue and seems to be very difficult to capture accurately in a photo. Most people seem to instinctively call it green having seen it, despite the name.

mcarora · 27-05-2009, 10:13

As promised, here is the update!

After work last night, I took my ethernet cable to my neighbours house and tried to the insert it into the port that I had previously assumed to be the modem. As I suspected it did not fit! Before putting the machine back in its place, I double checked the USB connections. I found that there were two ports and both were in use. One was a white cable, connecting the machine to the keyboard and the second was connected to the printer. This did confuse me, because my nieghbours had on a number of occasions in the past assured me that the cable modem was connected via USB! In any case I went to the cable modem and noticed that it was connected via ethernet. I then traced the ethernet cable back to the machine and found that there was no adapter. In fact there was an ethernet port which the cable was plugged into. This obviously confirms the suspicions that both Chris and Stuart C had and made me feel rather foolish. The other thing which I found quite peculiar was that the ethernet port and the modem port were not close to one another. On PCs I am accustomed to seeing them side by side, so maybe its a MAC thing!

In any case, this pretty much takes out the need for any kind of adapter. I intend to purchase a Belkin 54G wireless router. I will connect both the MAC and printer to the router, both with ethernet cables, and setup their soon-to-be purchased Dell Laptop wirelessly to the router. I think that should take care of everything.

Stuart C/Chris - I assume that this will be possible and should work without any problems?

With regards to the router, I selected the Belkin 54G because it seems reasonably priced and from what I have read elsewhere on the net can cater for both systems. Is anyone aware of any concerns regarding this particular router?

Once again thanks to all for your help! As you can tell, when it comes to Macs, I am rather clueless!!

haydnwalker · 27-05-2009, 15:14

My dad has a Belkin 54G and has worked flawlessly for about 9-12months so far. So the choice should be fine. Just a note though, any wireless router with ethernet ports should accept a wired mac, printer and wireless PC/mac

the specifications are a standard so theres no deviation between mac and PC on that.