I have XP... and I'm going to be really sad when it becomes obsolete... But either way the waiting option is probably best because my USB ports are pretty touch and go at the best of times.
Ah, what a shame... I know people who still use win 98 because of how they are set up, but that's your choice for now.
get a 3G router, thats about your only option. It may even improve your connection speed (if it gets a better signal, USB dongles are pretty crap). http://www.amazon.co.uk/Linksys-WRT54G3G-Wireless-Router-Broadband/dp/B000CDWH2E That one needs a PCMCIA modem it appears, but they're easy enough to get hold of on ebay. Some 3g routers take USB dongles.
But she can't get the lines in the house. No land line+means no normal phone=no internet by wired means (the router is wireless, but it needs a cable from somewhere, she lacks these )
she doesnt need lines, it uses 3g. It CAN use wired as well, but the important thing is the 3g capability. 3g = mobile broadband via the cell phone networks.
...really? But that would mean it's gonna use the same internet as the wireless broadband (mine used 3g and around my area it was crap). And how would one be able to actually connect, you know pay for the internet and ...stuff? [me=hYpNoS]is considering this device[/me]
it has a sim card in it, same as your dongle does, though the router I linked actually needs a separate modem like the one on the right: that goes into a slot on the back of the router, and then the router handles the connection dialing etc.
[me=hYpNoS]is now searching ebay for one of these[/me] Would the reception vary on area like the usb devices?
yes it would, but it should have a better antenna. Check if your laptop has an 'expresscard' slot. If it does, then look for a 'Novatel (Wireless) Merlin XU870'. Thats the card on the left and gets much better signal than the one on the right (and its capable of higher speeds, up to 3.6Mbit). it also has a port for an external antenna.
Any idea what the slot looks like? My laptop has this weird plastic draw part on it, would that be it?
possibly, it depends how wide it is. PCMCIA and expresscard are the same thickness, but expresscard has two widths in one slot and PCMCIA only has one. You could try looking at the specs.
