why the hell do laptops have a wireless switch?

[ZevGun]

seriously, all the thing does is disable the wireless, which takes about 30 seconds to do manually.

I understand having it when it's a button near the monitor, or some kind of function+f# combo
but why do they put switches on the front of a laptop that kills the internet?

i was sitting back in a chair with one knee on a arm rest with the laptop against my torso.
I was looking at my download not moving, and then went to load another page
then bam
page not found
:1:

stupid stomach wasting my time -_-

ranting aside, anyone else have experience with accidentally killing their connection?

[daniel2]

Dude its so you cant walk past an "unsecured" wireless network and suddenly your computer ends up dead the next time you turn it on.

Wireless networks or wireless anything are the most unsecured devices in the world.
Even with SSLID's as well as multiple encryption algorithms, wireless networks can be hacked in minutes or even seconds. Leaving computers on the network completely vulnerable.

Just because your don't share a folder on your computer doesn't mean that someone else cannot leech the contents from you, or delete it right infront of your eyes.

Computers are some of the most unreliable and unsecured devices on the planet. If not the most. As for wireless, stay away from it and always turn your laptops wireless off when your around town or an internet cafe or anywhere that an unsecured network could be..

Typical story. My school (my old school I don't go to school anymore) upgraded to wireless and the day after they did they got hacked and some complete random with a laptop crushed our whole network and workgroup from a few miles away..
We didn't have computers up for even the internet for the last term... which means it was impossible to study at school for my School Certificate..

THATS why computers have that switch. As for that keep it off your tummy it'll burn you when it gets to hot and your body heat isn't good for it.

P.S You can NEVER disable wireless. You have to take your wireless card out from your computer to disable it. Or you have to use that switch. If you turn it off in the options your computer can still be hacked/pinged/discovered on a network/leeched from or whatever else. Hence the switch.

[krnxknight]

seriously, all the thing does is disable the wireless, which takes about 30 seconds to do manually.

I understand having it when it's a button near the monitor, or some kind of function+f# combo
but why do they put switches on the front of a laptop that kills the internet?

ranting aside, anyone else have experience with accidentally killing their connection?

Not all of them are in the front but it's for "ease of access". you can thank the occasional tester who has the IQ of a houseplant and couldn't find it when it was on the side or as a function key.

i had great success killing my connection; i went 4 stories underground.

and what the above says is true; keep it off tummy. you'll block vents and help it overheat

[ZevGun]

Dude its so you cant walk past an "unsecured" wireless network and suddenly your computer ends up dead the next time you turn it on.

Wireless networks or wireless anything are the most unsecured devices in the world.
Even with SSLID's as well as multiple encryption algorithms, wireless networks can be hacked in minutes or even seconds. Leaving computers on the network completely vulnerable.


that makes a lot of sense, i guess I never thought about that, because normally i leave my laptop off when i'm moving

Not all of them are in the front but it's for "ease of access". you can thank the occasional tester who has the IQ of a houseplant and couldn't find it when it was on the side or as a function key.


stupid houseplants >_>

[ElderKain]

Also another reason, is that if u go off a cable ethernet connection on the laptop, u can't have the wireless and the cable ethernet connection active at the same time or u'll have connection conflicts.

:monk: :monk: :monk: :monk: :monk:

[calyesseism]

What? A while ago I had both wireless and wired connection running at the same time on my desktop computer and it didn't complain.

About wireless connections in my neighbourhood:
When I was still using a wireless connection on my desktop, the network manager actually found the networks from the neighbours and funny enough, they were unsecured. (I never bothered to connect to them)

Personally, I had quite a lot of trouble with wireless connections. It would suddenly stop for 1 second and then continue again, which was a pain when I was downloading demo's and other things. At one point I decided to go back to wired.

[ZevGun]

yeah, wireless at home sucks, at points i've lost it sitting next to the box

i only like to use it when i'm at school

[syforce]

Also it allows ease to turn it off when going on a plane or you're in an airport.

[daniel2]

Also another reason, is that if u go off a cable ethernet connection on the laptop, u can't have the wireless and the cable ethernet connection active at the same time or u'll have connection conflicts.

:monk: :monk: :monk: :monk: :monk:

Not if the I.P addresses are the same. Usually the first initalised connection is the default one to prevent conflicts.

[Epacs]

well

some might say for the kind of people that... access other peoples computers from there own... if there getting traced can always cut them of at the flick of a button

[gameas]

well, i think of it as: of the wireless is off, there's virtually no way to hack into someone's computer remotely through there wireless. ^^

[BreakTheChains]

The switch is just there to be more convenient. It's not there for security or any other reason other than convenience and turning the wireless card off. Nobody feels like writing software that turns off the card from your OS so they just hardwire a switch for it. Convenience.

[ZERO_ice]

Um, actually the switch is there so you save power, wireless eats up a lot of electricity. As for cracking into a laptop, it’s impossible to crack into a laptop with wireless on if it isn’t connected anywhere. The same goes for mobile phones with Bluetooth. You just cant get past the net card. The signal is completely ignored unless you allow it to connect. Just like plugging a network cable into you’re PC but not configuring the network you just cant connect to the internet because the computer won’t let you, the PC acknowledges the connection but doesn’t do anything about it. The same goes for wireless the PC will ask you to accept or block the connection. The computer can be crack in if it’s connected to a wireless network but the same goes for a wired connection although it’s much harder sneaking in a cable. The PC isn’t the problem the router is. But watch out for free access internet where anyone can connect to the wireless router if you connect to there you can be hacked. Usually routers nowadays use pretty good protection, not unbreakable mind you, but pretty good, usually by using a certificate (a file with the necessary into to get accepted by a router). If someone gets a certificate he has free access to a certain network like schools, cafes …