Stacey Metulynsky and Sean Moher operate a wine events business, playfully named Groovy Grapes, from their older Ottawa home. Running network cables through its lath-and-plaster walls to connect computers in their separate offices would have been "a nightmare," Mr. Moher says.
"In our home, it's not ideally suited for having wires running around," agrees Ms. Metulynsky.
Instead, the couple bought a wireless network router so their computers could communicate without cables. They then added a Lexmark printer that also connects to the wireless network. Now Mr. Moher can print documents on the printer in Ms. Metulynsky's office from his laptop in his own office - or in the back yard. She, in turn, has moved the printer away from her desktop computer to another part of her room.
"It simplifies things," says Mr. Moher. "No wires to trip over, and just really, really easy."
There are still wires in the Groovy Grapes offices, but these small business owners have started cutting away the tangle that grows up around most desktop computers. If they wish, the couple can keep going with other devices such as keyboards, mice and headsets.
New technologies to eliminate cables from the ubiquitous universal serial bus (USB) connections will soon offer the possibility of connecting almost any computer peripheral without using wires.
For anyone who has ever struggled to untangle wiring on and under a desk, it's a tempting vision. But there are questions for small business operators to consider, such as whether creating a wireless work area is worth the cost, and whether interference problems arise from mixing various wireless standards.
The first cables to eliminate are those connecting your keyboard and mouse, says Mark Tauschek, senior vice-president at information technology research firm Info-Tech Research Group in London, Ont. Those are "the two most annoying wires, or constraining wires," he says.
Wireless mice from manufacturers such as Logitech International S.A. and Microsoft Corp. start at about $30 to $50, and cordless keyboards at about $100.
Mr. Tauschek says the next most troublesome wires in his office are those connecting his headset and digital-camera docking station to USB ports on his computer. The technology to eliminate those cables is available but is still a little pricey, he says.
Manufacturers are now shipping products based on two competing standards - known as Wireless USB and Cable-Free USB - that get rid of USB cables. Mr. Tauschek says he could attach his USB devices to a Cable-Free USB hub that would communicate wirelessly with his computer, but the hub currently costs about $225. "It doesn't bother me enough that I want to spend $225 to fix it," he says. His advice: wait a bit, as prices will surely come down.
Three vendors are shipping wireless USB hubs and connectors (or "dongles") that plug into USB ports on PCs, says Jeff Ravencraft of Portland, Ore., chairman and president of the USB Implementers Forum. As well, Lenovo Group Ltd. and Dell Computer Corp. have introduced laptop computers with built-in wireless USB.
Wireless USB can match standard USB's 480-megabit-a-second speed over distances up to three metres, or deliver 110 megabits a second up to 10 metres, Mr. Ravencraft says. Currently, peripheral devices such as printers and cameras can't use dongles so must be wired to a hub, but in the future manufacturers are expected to build in wireless USB.
Cable-Free USB delivers only 54-megabit speed but can reach up to 30 metres. It's also simpler to install because it doesn't require new software drivers, says Robert Eisses, vice-president of sales and marketing at Icron Technologies Corp., a Vancouver-based maker of USB devices.
