Here is information to help you install your own CD or DVD drive, and also network two or more computers.

Why would I need to install at CD or DVD writer?

Almost all new computers today have a combination CD/DVD writer installed at the factory.

However, if you have an older computer that contains only a CD-ROM drive, you will NOT have the ability to copy information onto a CD or DVD – for backup, for sharing with others, or for using on other devices.

If you are happy with your older computer but you would like to have a more advanced CD or DVD drive, then you can buy a drive that is a “writer” drive – which means it has the ability to “write” information onto CDs and DVDs, and also move information from CDs and DVDs to your computer.

You can pay a technician at an electronics store to install this new drive. Or, of you are adventurous, you can install it yourself by following these instructions. Go directly to instructions on installing a CD/DVD writer.

Why would I want to network two or more computers?

Networking is a very useful tool that makes it easy to share files between two or more computers. Instead of using a floppy disk, flash drive, CD, or DVD disk to move programs and files from one computer to another, just left-click and hold and drag items from one computer to the other using the mouse.

Networking is also handy if, for example, you have a laptop computer for home or travel use, and a standard desktop computer at the office. Networking makes it possible to share programs and files between the two computers – your desktop and your laptop, for example.

Another good use for networking is the sharing of a single Internet connection. If you have a high-speed Internet connection, such as DSL or cable, then by using a network you can hook up more than one computer and you can use both computers to surf the Internet at the same time. Go directly to instructions on networking two or more computers.

Instructions about CD/DVD writer are first, followed by instructions for those of you who want to hook up two or more computers and create your own little network at home or at the office.

INSTALLING A CD WRITER OR A DVD WRITER

This installation involves hardware, in the form of the drive itself, and software in the form of a program that will run the CD or DVD writer. The program, in the form of a CD, should be included with any new drive that you buy.

You can install just a CD writer, or your can install a DVD writer, which allows you to use CDs, too. We would advise you to install the DVD writer, since that will give you the most versatility and computer options. You will be able to burn both CDs and DVDs with a DVD writer.

For the rest of this section, we will refer to the new piece of equipment you are installing as a CD/DVD writer.

You can purchase a CD/DVD writer (also called CD/DVD drive) at any electronics store, local or chain. You can also purchase one through the mail or even over the Internet. You will need a screwdriver and about 45 minutes to get the job done. The first thing to do is make sure you look over the instructions that came with your new drive so you’ll get a general idea about how you’ll be doing the installation.

We’ll go over the basics in this section, but you might need to change or adapt some of the techniques mentioned here depending on the way your computer is set up.

IMPORTANT: Always unplug your computer from the power outlet before you work on it. You can damage your computer if you touch the wrong element before you detach it from its power source. There’s also some possibility of getting shocked or hurt yourself if the computer is turned on while you are working on it.

The first thing you will do is remove the screws on the back of the case in order to open it up and gain access to the inside of your computer. One of the worst things you can do to the inside of a computer is to give it a small static electric spark from your fingers as you work on it. To prevent giving this little static charge, always touch a metal part of the case or frame before you touch any of the computer components inside the computer. Doing this will ground you and discharge any static electric charge you may have built up in your fingers. Do this even if you don’t think there is a risk of static spark. You cannot be too cautious about this.

Take a look at the inside of your computer and locate the CD drive that is already installed on your system. The drive is usually screwed into a metal box called a drive bay, with the front end of the drive sticking out of the front of your computer. If you have trouble locating your drive, look at the front of your computer and take note of where the front of the CD drive is. Then look directly above or below it. Some computers have room to add more than one drive. If your computer has such room, it is typically just below the already installed CD drive. However, it could also be above the already installed drive.

If you are not removing an old CD drive and simply installing your new CD/DVD drive into an empty bay, you will probably need to remove a plastic cover on the front of the computer. Removing this plastic cover exposes the empty drive bay and will give you access to the drive from the front of your computer. We’ve found that the easiest way to remove the plastic cover is to reach inside the computer and push it out. It snaps out. But you can also pry it off with a screwdriver or knife from the outside if you can’t get your hand far enough inside the computer. The plastic cover actually pops out. You can discard the cover once the installation is complete, or keep it in case you might need to remove the drive at some later point.

Now, if you do not have an empty drive bay, you’ll need to remove the old CD drive and replace it with your new CD/DVD drive. You will see that there are two or three cables/wires attached to the back of the present CD drive in your computer. The wide flat cable is called a ribbon cable, and it might run from the back of the CD directly to the motherboard. Or it may run from the back of the CD drive to another drive, such as a hard disk, before it finally ends up connected to the motherboard.

Another cable you will see coming from the old CD will have four wires, usually in this configuration: one red, one yellow and two black. This is the power cord. Finally, there may be a set of smaller wires going from the back of the present CD drive to the sound card in your computer, or these wires might go from the present CD directly to the motherboard.

If you’re removing the old drive, you will need to unplug all these connections so you can attach them to the new CD/DVD drive. Gently pull on them and they should come loose. Sometimes you may need to pull moderately hard. Now, if the connections don’t unplug even with a hard pull, stop and look closely for a little lever, tab or something that you may need to squeeze or push to release the plug. Once you remove these connections, you next need to remove the CD drive itself. Look along the side of the CD drive and you will see screws that secure it to the drive bay inside the computer – usually there are four screws, two along each side of the CD drive. (You may only have two screws.) Use a screwdriver to carefully remove these screws and then slide the CD drive out of the computer. Usually the CD drive slides out the front of the computer, but if it will not go out the front, simply pull it out the back.

At this point, you should have an empty bay for your new CD/DVD drive – either because your computer had an empty bay above or below your present CD drive (which you discovered when you removed the case and looked inside your computer), or because you just removed the present CD drive to give you an empty bay in which to install your new CD/DVD writer.

If you removed your old CD, you simply need to slide the new CD/DVD drive into its place. If you removed the old CD by pulling it out the front, put the new CD/DVD drive in through the front. Likewise, if you removed the old CD by pulling it out the back, go in through the back with your new CD/DVD drive. Secure the new CD/DVD drive in the bay with the screws you removed from the old CD drive, or with the screws that came in the package with your new CD/DVD drive. Now, re-attach the cables and wires that you unplugged, as described above. Follow any additional directions on the install sheet included with your new CD/DVD writer.

If you had an empty bay and did not remove your old CD, simply slide the new CD/DVD drive into the empty bay and then use the new wires and cables included in the box with your new CD/DVD writer. Connect them to your new CD/DVD writer as explained on the instructions with your new CD/DVD writer, and then connect the other end of them to your computer as explained in the instructions that will come with your new CD/DVD drive.

When you have made all the connections, close up your computer by re-attaching the case and tightening the screws. Now turn on the computer and install the software that came with your new CD/DVD drive. You will do this by inserting the software CD into the new CD/DVD drive, and following the instructions that should automatically start running when you insert the disc. If, for some reason, the software does not start running when you insert the disc, then left-click once on the Start button, and then left-click once on the Computer/My Computer option. Find the CD/DVD drive for the new CD/DVD you just installed, and double-left-click on it. The CD/DVD will open a window, and you can then double-left-click on the software for the new drive.

NETWORKING TWO OR MORE COMPUTERS

Computer networks once cost thousands of dollars to set up, but today they are quite affordable. You can buy a basic network card for about $25 each. Hubs are $40 each, or less and routers are more expensive, around $100. Network cables are about $1 a foot or less if you buy in larger quantities.

Setting up a network can be a challenging project, but it’s not without rewards. The first thing you’ll need in order to network two or more computers are network cards. You can purchase them in retail electronic departments or electronic stores. Network cards plug into your computer, and you’ll need one for each computer. The installation is not that difficult. If you buy current network cards that work with the version of Windows you’re running on your computer, installing the network cards should be easy. You will need to open your computer (see the section above on “Installing A CD Writer Or A DVD Writer”). Once you do this, follow the instructions that come with the network card you purchase.

However, it is very likely that you’ll not need to worry about installing a network card into your computer. Networking is so common these days that it’s very likely that you already have a network card built into your computer. You can check for sure by looking at the back of your computer for a network port, or socket. These ports, or sockets, look like wide telephone plugs. To make sure you have the right one, it is a good idea to have a network cable on hand. Just look for a socket in the back of your computer that the network cable properly fits into. While you are checking the sockets in the back of your computer, be careful not to force any of the cables into the various sockets in the back of your computer or you may damage them. Trying to put a larger Registered Jack type plug into a standard telephone socket will damage the socket, and probably the plug, too.

If you plan to hook up only two computers to the network, then you’ll need a special network cable called a “twisted pair network cable” or a “null modem cable” that you plug into each computer’s network card. You can buy these cables at electronics/computer stores, or online, and at some general retailers with well-stocked electronics departments.

If you plan to hook more than two computers together, you’ll need a special device called a hub or a router as well as some network cables for plugging your computer into the hub or router.

Hubs and routers are special pieces of hardware that let you connect two or more computers together into a network. If you are only going to connect the computers in your house together you can use a hub. If, on the other hand, you want to hook all your computers together and let them all use your high-speed Internet connection, you’ll need to buy a router.

Here’s a reminder of the difference of a hub and a router:

You will usually place your hub in a central position between the computers and then run a network cable from the hub to each of the computers you want to hook up to the network. Think of the hub as a central operator for the computer network. In order for each computer to talk to the other they need to be plugged into the operator.

If you’re using a router, you’ll want to place it close to your high-speed modem and then run the network cables from the router to each computer.

Networked computers don’t need to be in the same room. In fact, the computers can be anyplace you want when you’re setting up your network – even on different floors. Keep in mind that you will still need to run a cable from each computer back to the hub or router. If you are not experienced at running (“fishing”) wires through walls or under carpets, you might want to have someone else do this for you.

Now that you have the hardware (network cards, routers or hubs, and cables) all connection, the next thing you need to do is program your computer to use the network. Make sure that you’ve installed any software or drivers that came with your network cards. And, if your computer already had a network card installed when you bought it, the software or drivers will already be loaded into your computer.

On a home network, just like the Internet, each computer must have a unique number, called an IP number, which identifies it for the other computers on the network. This resembles the way in which computers are identified for the Internet. You should only use certain IP numbers with home networks. You don’t need to understand all the details; you only need to know the numbers. If you are using a router, you can skip this step since the router will assign the numbers automatically for you. We recommend you use these guidelines for your home network:

1. Give each computer on your network a number between 2 and 200. Each computer must have a different number. Write the numbers on a piece of paper so you can refer to them when you set up the network.
   
2. Then to get the IP address for each machine put “192.168.0.” in front of the number you chose for each computer. For example, if you have two computers you want to put on the network, you can identify one computer with the number “2” and the other with “3.” That makes each computer’s IP address “192.168.0.2” and “192.168.0.3” respectively. Do this for as many computers as you have or want to hook up to your network. Just make sure that each has its only number.
   
3. The other number you’ll need for your home network is called a “Subnet mask” and you can use the following number: “255.255.255.0.” Use this number for all the machines on your network.

At this time each computer whose numbers you wrote down on the paper should have two numbers. One number is the IP address and it is “192.168.0.xxx.” where xxx is the number you chose. (Remember, that number should be between 2 and 200, inclusive.) The second number is the Subnet mask, which is “255.255.255.0” for each computer.

The only exception to this rule appears if you are using a special piece of hardware called a router and if the router supports an option called “DHCP,” and all new routers will support this option. If this is the case, then you can plug each of your computers into the router and have it assign the IP addresses and Subnet mask automatically. Routers cost about $100, and they’re intended for more advanced users that want to share their high-speed Internet connection with all the computers in their house. With very few exceptions setting up a router is very much like setting up a network with a hub. The only difference is that you need to connect your high-speed Internet connection to the router. If you do get a router, follow the directions that came with it to accomplish this.

Now it’s time to start each computer and set Windows up for the network. For Windows XP and Vista do the following:

1. Left-click once on the Start button.
   
2. Left-click once on the Control Panel.
   
3. Left-click once on Network and Internet Connections.
   
4. Left-click once on “Setup or change you home or small office network.”
   
5. Follow the steps in the “Network Setup Wizard.”
   
6. Use the IP address and Subnet mask numbers when Windows asks for them.

You’ll have to do these steps on each computer that’s on the network. This is a very basic explanation of setting up a network. Networks can become very complex very quickly. There are all kinds of things you need to look at if you have trouble setting up your home network. Some of these are listed below.

• Make sure the cables are plugged in and a light is lit on the back of the network card.
  
• Check to see if a light is lit on the hub or router where the network cable is plugged in.
  
• If you’re connecting two computers together, you’ll need a special cable. Make sure you have the special cable or use a hub or router and two cables to connect the computers.
  
• Make sure that your network card is installed properly and that any drivers that came with it are installed and working.

Wireless Networks: You can install a wireless network if you don’t want to bother with running network cables throughout your house. Wireless networks are more expensive to install because the equipment costs more. You’ll almost certainly need to buy special wireless network cards for your computers, too, since your regular wired network card will not work with this type of network.

You set a wireless network up pretty much just like you would a standard wired network, except you don’t need to run the wires. Place your wireless hub in a central location of your home or office so that all the computers can get a good signal.

We recommend getting a USB wireless adapter for each computer. These can be installed on your computer without the need to open the back of your computer. Make sure that you carefully follow the instructions that came with your wireless adapter.

Once set up, a wireless network will work just like a wired network. These networks are also very handy for people who have a laptop computer. They can take their laptop anyplace they want in the house and sometimes even outside, and still use the Internet.

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