| If you've got a wireless network for your computers | | | | pre-installed, you should probably use a USB to |
| already, well, you might get a bit excited about what | | | | Bluetooth adapter, although internal Bluetooth devices |
| I'm going to say next. How would you feel if your PDA, | | | | to install in your computer are available. If you have a |
| your mobile phone, your mp3 player and almost | | | | laptop and a spare PCMCIA slot, you can get |
| everything else you connect to your computer could | | | | Bluetooth cards for that too.What Can You Do With |
| be wireless too? You'd like that? Well, it's already a | | | | Bluetooth?Mobile phones with Bluetooth are very |
| reality and has been for some time now.Bluetooth is | | | | popular, and so are PDAs -- the instant synchronisation |
| wireless and automatic, and has a number of | | | | of addresses and calendars to a computer is a useful |
| interesting features that can simplify our daily lives. | | | | feature. Other than that, almost anything that would |
| Bluetooth is a standard developed by a group of | | | | usually use USB can be done using Bluetooth, including |
| electronics manufacturers that allows any sort of | | | | digital cameras, mp3 players, printers, and even mice |
| electronic equipment -- from computers and cell | | | | and keyboards. If you take a look through the |
| phones to keyboards and headphones -- to make its | | | | comprehensive list of Bluetooth 'profiles' (kinds of |
| own connections, without wires, cables or any direct | | | | devices that could, in theory, be Bluetooth enabled), it |
| action from a user. Read on...Personal Area | | | | includes cordless phones, faxes, headsets, and even |
| Network.Using wireless networking with your personal | | | | video.Basically, more than anything, Bluetooth is a |
| gadgets is often called PAN, which stands for | | | | replacement for USB: some say that while 802.11 |
| Personal Area Network. The idea is that, in the future, | | | | wireless networking is wireless Ethernet, Bluetooth is |
| we'll all have laptop computers with their batteries | | | | wireless USB.Not Just for Computers.Part of the |
| charged and no more need to connect any wires to | | | | power of Bluetooth is that it isn't just used to connect |
| them at all -- you just place your Bluetooth device near | | | | things to computers -- it can be used to connect |
| the computer, and the computer sees it and can use it | | | | almost anything to anything else, if both things are |
| straightaway.Bluetooth has been around and in-use | | | | Bluetooth-enabled and recognise each other.Mobile |
| since 1999, and it's only getting more popular. It was | | | | phones, in particular, take advantage of this. |
| designed to be secure, low cost, and easy to use from | | | | Hands-free headsets often use Bluetooth to |
| day one.There are two classes of Bluetooth that are | | | | communicate with the phone. Some cars, for example, |
| in popular use: class 1 and class 2. Class 2 is the most | | | | now have on-board computers that will connect with a |
| common and cheaper standard, allowing you to use a | | | | Bluetooth phone and allow you to make hands-free |
| device that is up to 10 metres (32 feet) away. Class 1 | | | | calls, regardless of where the phone is in the car (even |
| is rarer, but you can still find devices that use it easily | | | | if you've left it in your bag in the trunk!)On top of that, |
| enough, and it has ten times the range: 100 metres or | | | | of course, Bluetooth devices can communicate with |
| 320 feet.How Does It Work?Bluetooth is more flexible | | | | each other. This has led to some people sending |
| than 802.11 wireless networking, in exchange for the | | | | messages from their Bluetooth PDAs to others in |
| shorter range. Essentially, a Bluetooth-enabled | | | | close range -- not an especially useful feature, but |
| computer has one Bluetooth receiver installed in it, and | | | | quite fun. This is called 'bluejacking', and the first |
| this receiver can then be used with up to 7 nearby | | | | recorded instance of it was a man who sent a |
| Bluetooth devices. On the other end, wireless devices | | | | Bluetooth message to another man's Nokia phone |
| do not need to have Bluetooth installed if they support | | | | while they were in a bank together. What did the |
| it -- it is already integrated.Like 802.11, Bluetooth works | | | | message say? 'Buy Ericsson'.Since then, it has |
| by using radio signals to create bandwidth. It is not, | | | | become possible to send images by bluejacking, and it |
| though, the same thing as an old-style wireless mouse | | | | is widely believed to be the newest advertising |
| or keyboard, which required a receiver to be plugged | | | | medium -- yes, it lets billboards send messages to your |
| into one of your computers' ports, and didn't have | | | | phone, a practice known as 'bluecasting'. Whether you |
| range or stability anywhere near that of | | | | think that's cool or annoying, of course, is your |
| Bluetooth.Many computers now come with built in | | | | choice.Written by Jason Keno of Private Investigation |
| Bluetooth, especially Apple Macs. If you want to add | | | | and PC Security Software. |
| Bluetooth to a computer that doesn't come with it | | | | |