Ran out of ports. What to buy next?

Question

Hello.
I currently own a WRT54G hooked up to my DSL and home network. Everthing works fine.
I have used all 4 ethernet ports on the back though and am buying another computer soon.
What would people recommend I buy if I want 4 more ports?
Can I buy a normal wired linksys hub and "hook into" the WRT54G?
and will I still be able to attach a certain MAC address to a certain IP address? even though i may now have two devices?
I would be interested in an 8 port wireless too if easier but have not found one on the site.
thank you

Answer 1

I have a setup similar to what you want.  I would recommend that you purchase a switch.  You will probably want either a 5-port or an 8-port switch.  You can wire any router Ethernet (LAN) port to any port on the switch.   When you do this, you will need to unplug one of the devices that is currently wired to the router, and plug it into the switch --- this will make room on your router for the wire running from the router to the switch.
Connecting a router to a switch will "waste" one port on each device, that is, these two ports are not available for connecting computers, printers, etc.  So when you use a 4-port router with a 5-port switch, you will have 4+5-2= 7 useful ports.  Similarly, a 4-port router with an 8-port switch would give you a total of 10 useful ports.
"Wireless access" is not sold by "ports".  To add wireless access to your existing wired system, you would need to buy a "Wireless Access Point", and run a wire from it to your router or switch.
Alternatively, to add wireless access, you could replace your current wired router with a wireless router.  Most wireless routers come with wired Ethernet ports, allowing both your wired and wireless computers to use the same router.
The main advantage of using a wired router with a "Wireless Access Point", rather than using a "wireless router", is that you can place the "Wireless Access Point" in a different location than the router, and this may be helpful in getting wireless access to the locations that you want it, especially if you have a large home or heavily constructed (concrete-rebar) walls.  The disadvantage is that you will need to run a wire from the "Wireless Access Point" to your switch or router. 
The Linksys wireless routers that I have seen are set up with a default of 50 users, but I have never tested them to see how many wireless users could actually get connected.