How WiFi Works and What Is WiFi, Anyway?

Note: This Hub has been written in response to a request that asks how WiFi works. Copyright 01/02/10, all rights reserved.

What is WiFi (and, by the way, what's the difference between WiFi and Blue Tooth)?

The name, "WiFi", is short for "Wireless Fidelity" (which has its roots in the older name, "Hi-Fi", short for "High Fidelity").  (The technically correct way to write the term is "Wi-Fi"; but, as with many terms, its widespread use in the general population has led this somewhat heterogeneous, technical, term to commonly (although technically-incorrectly) be used in its further shortened form, "WiFi".  

When a product is built with WiFi it means the product has been certified (by the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance, which tests products to assure they meet industry standards for wireless networking); and it means a device will allow wireless access to the Internet or a private network within a certain limited geographic range.

When WiFi is built into a device it will allow you to access the Internet or a private network (such as a company's own network or a network set up within a home). A private network is a local area network (LAN). WiFi works when radio signals are sent back and forth. With wireless devices there is both WiFi and BlueTooth, both of which are the names associated with networking standards. The difference between the two is that WiFi is primarily used for getting a high-speed connection to the Internet and/or local area networks, while Blue Tooth is generally used to eliminate the need for cables when transmitting within a shorter range of distance (generally about 30 feet), between two Blue Tooth-enabled devices.

WiFi means a device has the ability (or adapter) to send data by turning it into a radio signal (which is what a computer's wireless adapter does) and receive data when the wireless router receives the radio signal, translates it, and sends it to the computer's wireless adapter.

When a device doesn't have WiFi built into it a WiFi adapter can be used.

How Does WiFi Work?

A WiFi device needs to be within range (300 to 600 feet) of a wireless network (such as one you would set up in your home with a wireless router) or an Internet hot spot (an area around something like a public library, a restaurant, or an airport) where wireless access to the Internet is available. Whether it's your own home or a restaurant, a building will have its own Internet access (which could be either wireless (as with satellite) or wired, as in the case of DSL or fiber optics).

If a building has wireless access to the Internet it will have its own, private, hot spot (private because security measures prevent access to anyone not specifically set up for wireless access in or around the home). When Internet access comes over wires the wireless router, which, connects to a transceiver* ( and which pulls in signals either over a cable or wirelessly) will make it possible to have wireless transmission of data to and from wireless devices.

*Transceiver: An electronic device or circuit that transmits and receives analog or digital signals. It comes in many forms; for example, a transponder on a satellite, a network adapter in the computer or the circuits in a cellphone" PCmag.com

There are also downloadable tools (in some cases free) that will let your laptop find access.

http://lifehacker.com/5340435/the-definitive-guide-to-finding-free-wi+fi

Short of planning or scanning, a less efficient and definitely hit-or-miss approach is to simply guess about hot spots and see what happens when you try to use your laptop. (In a moderate-sized, suburban, town near me a car dealer's parking lot happens to be a hot spot. That, of course, wouldn't make it an appropriate place to do hours' worth of work, but it does offer a handy place for a quick e.mail check.)