March 15, 2004

By: Frank Keiser
Website: http://www.1st-in-games.com

SOHOWARE’S HOME NETWORKS BRING FAMILIES CLOSER THROUGH INTERACTIVE ONLINE GAMING

As the number of Internet-connected homes in the U.S. continues to rise, it’s not unusual to hear screams and exclamations coming from the family room at the end of the hall. Take that you intergalactic alien! Pow! Turn, turn, turn! Ahhh, I’ve been hit! It’s no longer just noise from the television but shouts of excitement originating from family members as they enjoy interactive, multi-player games online.

Once thought of only as a boys club made up of teenagers and computer geeks, interactive gaming has become more common and is now widely accepted as a mainstream form of family entertainment. According to the Interactive Digital Software Association, more than ever before, women and girls in the family are making interactive gaming part of their daily lives. Estimates by the IDSA show that more than 43 percent of PC gamers today are female.

And, there are no indications that the tremendous growth and popularity of gaming will slow down anytime soon. The affordability of powerful new PCs and faster Web connections has made the Internet a loud, colorful and exhilarating playground with something for every member of the family. Players can choose from a variety of online gaming applications including action, adventure, traditional arcade, board and card games, game shows, puzzles, racing, sports and simulation competitions and strategy contests.

Recent industry reports have shown that as many as 92 percent of all online users were aware of at least one electronic gaming Web site and that a majority of these Web surfers had visited and played at least once on sites such as the MSN Gaming Zone, which registers an average of 100,000 visitors a day.

But like all things in life, this newfound opportunity for inexpensive family fun brings with it the challenge for households to balance every member’s desire to utilize the home’s single high-speed connection in order to play their favorite game. One company committed to helping parents solve this dilemma is SOHOware, a leading manufacturer of simple, consumer-friendly home networking solutions.

SOHOware products such as the Broadband Internet Gateway enable consumers to easily create home networks that maximize broadband connections and allow residences to share a single Internet address and high-speed connection by wired or wirelessly networked computers in the home. Easy to install and simple to use, this residential gateway lets several family members compete against each other in multi-player games or simultaneously play individual gaming applications of their choice.

SOHOware understands that interactive, online gaming has become more important to its customers, so simply addressing sharing of the high-speed Internet connection among family members is only half the solution, said Andy Chang, SOHOware’s vice president of marketing. Because optimizing speed is the key for gaming enthusiasts, the company is dedicated to offering products that take full advantage of today’s incredibly fast Internet connections.

According to Chang, SOHOware’s broadband-based solutions are specially designed to provide an ideal platform for high-performance multi-player gaming applications. Products such as its 10/100 8-port switch provide users with a dedicated 200Mbps throughput per port, giving all computers on the network the full bandwidth of the shared broadband connection.

SOHOware gamers simply attach BIG or the 8-port switch via SOHOware’s wired Ethernet or wireless CableFREE network products. Gamers are then able to enjoy unlimited gaming applications without delays or choppiness in multimedia programs.

Giving families the opportunity to become closer to each other through the Internet will become increasingly important since analysts at Forrester Research estimate that 50 percent of U.S. households will subscribe to some form of broadband connection such as DSL or cable modem by 2005, Chang said. By offering home networking products that make it easy to share broadband access and maximize speed, family members will not only be able to reach a whole new level of competitive gaming, but will enjoy the time they can spend together in mutual interests, said Chang.

Also see: free pictionary games.

About The Author:

Frank Keiser is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.1st-in-games.com.  Great games for the entire family for hours of fun or competition. We feature all your favorites.