How to create a Bluetooth Personal Area Network ?

This is the first in the series of blogs that will tell you -- how you can use the wireless to simplify your life. Bluetooth is a piconet access technology. Its works in a free licensed band of 2.4 Ghz (ISM), which means that it can radiate to a relatively short distance. Typcial range of a bluetooth device is 10 meters (Class II device), but I have also seen one that can radiate upto 100 meters (Class1 device). Its in your phone, in your computer, laptops and car stereos. Everyone must have used it to transfer mp3, video and calls (using headset) between various devices.


Today I am going to tell you- how you can share internet over bluetooth devices. It all started when I needed to share my internet connection among my peers . We were all poor people ( we did have laptops though :) ), and we could not afford to buy a wifi wireless router. But we all had the bluetooth modem within our computers, and thats where it stuck me to use it for net sharing. Bluetooth can be an ideal replacement of wifi, if
1.) You live in a small house (not greater than 100 meters in width :P )
2.) Have computers or any device with bluetooth modem
3.) You prefer spending money on Beer and Pizza's instead of wifi router

So, lets start. First, you need a computer that can act as master. Your Lan (Ethernet) cable would be connected to the master computer. The other computers will act as slaves. Now, pair all the slaves with this master using a passkey (you know how to pair right?) . Enable the internet sharing (this is important!) by selecting the "Allow internet other network ....." under the advance tab of local area connection in the networks settings. Now go to a slave's computer bluetooth control panel and click on "connect to PAN area network". Thats it! you are now connected. It is as simple as this. Open the browser and start surfing.

Remember one thing - as more and more slaves gets connected, surfing speed will get reduced, as the bandwidth will be shared. Bluetooth PAN is not suitable for internet speed over 1 Mpbs (I would say upto 500 Kbps) due to limited bandwidth. Nevertheless, it gives a fairly good mobility, and its short range gives you the freedom from the sleepless nights of eavesdroping and misusing of internet by hackers. So make you own pan right now and experiance the freedom of being wireless!