Netgear PE102 Ethernet/PNA Network Bridge
Netgear's PE102 Network bridge is a deceptively simple device. Basically it's designed to allow you to connect an existing Ethernet network, into your phone wiring, and "bridge" that new network, into your existing Ethernet framework. The bridge simply forwards information based on MAC addresses. A lot simpler than a router, there's no software to install, nor is there any required. It's just "plug it in and go".
Along the front of the bridge, you'll find wall/phone
jacks for (duh) connecting a phone line (included, along with a run of Ethernet
cable) to a wall outlet, and for connecting a phone, if one has been displaced
by the installation of the bridge. To the right side are the Ethernet port, and
the Normal/Uplink switch. If this were being connected directly to a Cable/DSL
modem or a router, you would most likely need this set to UPLINK, unless it's
connected with a crossover cable. Status indicator lights show TX/RX
send/receive activity and a COL light for packet collisions.
This is one of those classes of devices, that you just
plug in, and let it do it's job. Not a whole lot of exciting things to say about
it. I used it in two different ways, which I will bring up later in the article,
and suffice it to say, that it did it's job as advertised.
Netgear PA101 USB/PNA adaptor
The PA101 USB PNA adaptor is designed for the ultimate
in simplicity. Simply install the software provided, then plug in the adaptor.
It will then be detected, and will install as a standard network adaptor.
Upon forced reboot, the included FirstGear software will then install, which includes a step-by-step wizard for selecting drives and printers to share (over the automatically installed NetBEUI protocol), as well as allowing you to choose whether the PC it's installed on is your Internet Gateway machine (note: for internet sharing, one and only one machine on the network needs to be configured as the gateway. This machine should be the first one to set up, on your particular network). As a USB device, what you gain in simplicity, you sacrifice in speed. For internet downloads, my measured speeds were equal to the average speeds I get over Ethernet (4Mbps downstream cable modem). File sharing, via NetBEUI, I saw speeds in the 2.5-3Mbps range, which is about 1/2 of what can get with either Ethernet, or a PCI based phone line product. Still, for many this is adequate, and if you have a laptop to connect to the network, this may be your only option.