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Consumers Need Amish Guide to Home Nets

Reuters tells a story of Anne McNamara who needs a wireless Internet network in her Germantown, Maryland, home. It's a good thing her son knows how to set one up.

"If Kevin wasn't here, I probably wouldn't attempt it at all," said McNamara, 49, who describes her computer knowledge skills as "Amish." With six children and two adults across three floors of the McNamara household, someone is always online. Having a wireless network makes it easier for them to be connected at the same time, and more American homes are discovering the joys of Internet surfing from anywhere in the house.

Like scores of other people, the McNamaras have discovered that successful installation can be a headache, especially for the less technologically inclined. For those without a friend or relative steeped in the technology arts or access to a professional, returning the gear may be the only option.

Dena Andre, 57, returned her NetGear router to the friend who gave it to her last January after she failed to get it to work. When she tried a Linksys router, it took multiple customer service calls, both her daughters, her piano teacher and her friend to figure out why she couldn't get her two Dell computers on the network.

They all failed.

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