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The only thing a person may be concerned about is whether their Broadband ISP will allow multiple IP addresses. Mine allows up to 3. I understand that some want more money and may only offer one unless you pay for more. You might look into this. (Responding to originator)

I just checked and it says that AT&T will allow up to 3 additional IP addresses for $9.95 a month.

Now if I get the Linksys router that everybody here is touting, do I need to get a second NIC for my main PC? Or can I just plug the cable modem into the router and plug my second PC into the router?

Also, if I get the second NIC card for my main computer and set up a network independent of the cable modem, can I share the connection or do I still need to fork over the $9.95? If so, I might as well do it right and get the Linksys router. My wife's going to kill me when she finds out I have to spend even MORE money!

I just checked and it says that AT&T will allow up to 3 additional IP addresses for $9.95 a month.

No, no, no! You only need ONE IP address when using the Linksys router. Connect up to 253 computers to it if you wish. You still only pay for ONE IP number.

http://www.computers4sure.com/linksys/store/att_wired.asp

Here is the link to buy the router for 43 bucks

To add to what many have already said; get the linksys router with 4 ports, you can then add up to 253 computers to your network by using hubs, which is exactly what you are trying to do; build a home network. The built in firewall is big plus as long as you use a good anti-virus program and keep it updated. (Do I get extra credit for using long sentences and lots of comma’s?)

The ISP doesn’t care how many computers are on your home network all they care about is how many IP addresses you have.

Of course the more people using your network the slower things can get if more than one person is downloading files, graphics, etc.

Plus, it isn’t as easy as it sounds; you will need to configure all of the computers on your network to what you want. This in itself can be a bit perplexing to the uninitiated, at least at first. You can run twisted pair cable (RJ-45) up to 385 feet to serve your needs within your network. Home Depot sells everything you need at a reasonable cost or you can hire someone to run the cable and attach the RJ-45 connectors for you. Will you want full file sharing? Printer sharing? Well, you get the idea.

Then of course you need to configure your hardware, ie: the router and each PC. Do you want to let the router do its thing or do you want to set it manually? For your situation I’d let the router handle the MAC and IP addresses and set your NIC’s to 10Mb rather than 10/100.

I guess that’s about it except that you may want to take a look at http://www.wown.com/j_helmig/Contact.htm and read the Linksys manual for a whole lot of info before you dive in. In short, it really is easy after you’ve done it once. When I did it a couple of months ago I didn’t think that it would be so involved but I’m very glad that I did it.

Best of luck,

Boomer

>>...I just checked and it says that AT&T will allow up to 3 additional IP addresses for $9.95 a month...<<

Get a cable router that uses Network Address Translation. All your internal addresses will be translated to one external IP address. No need to pay the cable company for extra PC's.

Also, a cable router can use DHCP to dynamically assign IP addresses to all your PC's. No need to configure a static IP for each one. (at least my Netgear RT314 does)

Your router will be the only IP address your ISP sees. Your machines will be will get their address from the router.

I have had as many as 4 computers hooked to my router.

The Linksys is the way to go, I have had friends make one of their machines the server, and while it works, they were much more pleased with the router.

You may have to register your Router MAC address with your ISP. They keep up with you by your NIC card MAC address and modem serial number.