Basics of Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity)

Wi-Fi is an IEEE 802.11 standard family of wireless network.

A wireless network uses radio waves, just like cell phones, televisions and radios do. A computer's or mobile’s wireless adapter translates data into a radio signal and communicates it using an antenna.

A wireless router receives the signal and decodes it. The router sends the information to the Internet using a physical, wired Ethernet connection.

The process also works in reverse, with the router receiving information from the Internet, translating it into a radio signal and sending it to the computer's wireless adapter.

The radios used for Wi-Fi communication are very like to the radios used for walkie-talkies, cell phones and other devices. They can transmit and receive radio waves, and they can convert 1s and 0s into radio waves and convert the radio waves back into 1s and 0s.

Wi-Fi Signal transmits at frequencies of 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz.

They use 802.11 networking standards, which come in several forms:

802.11a

802.11b

802.11g

802.11n

802.11ac

Wi-Fi Hot Spot

A Wi-Fi hotspot is basically an area with an accessible wireless network. The term is most often used to state that wireless networks in public areas like airports, railway stations, bus stops, shopping malls.

You can turn your mobile to a Wi-Fi Hotspot by enabling the hotspot option. So that other mobile users can connect with you through Wi-Fi to use internet.

Security is a major concern of a Wi-Fi hot spot. If you set your router to create an open hotspot, anyone who will be able to use your signal by using own Wi-Fi.

To connect to a Wi-Fi network, a user typically needs the network name (the SSID-Service Set Identifier) and a password. The password is used to encrypt Wi-Fi packets. Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) is intended to protect information moving across Wi-Fi networks.

-DR