Internet connectivity is never a stable speed. Between off-peak and high traffic hours it can be impossible to get a good connection. In order to rectify this you generally need to know what your internet speed is at any given time, but why do they differ so much site to site?

Your device’s IP address is a critical piece of information that you probably don’t think about very much. You’ll occasionally need it for some network-related setups (if you’re trying to punch a hole in your network to access the contents of your NAS box, run a web server, or connect to your home-grown VPN, to name a few examples), so it’s important to understand how to find it. Also, you have two. Sort of.

Wireless networking is kind of like an emergency kit for your car. You don’t really think much about it when it’s there, but you’re going to notice it’s missing when you need it. Also, you want to make sure it’s set up to give you the best possible experience.

When you’re meeting a group of new people, especially in the context of a business meeting, you want to put your best foot forward. One easy way to look like you’re the smartest person in the room is to simply learn everyone’s name.

If you want to feel like you’re part of a community, it’s time to get to know the people in your neighbourhood.

Growing up, I’m not sure I ever heard the term “networking.” When I finally heard it in college, it sounded to me like a trendy buzzword that only a business major would use. It made me think of briefcases and fat rolodexes—definitely not anything that would be relevant to me. I was a music performance major and thought the only skill I needed to succeed was a perfect performance.

Like Michael Myers from those Halloween movies, some things in life are (seemingly) inescapable. Taxes. Politics. Your neighbour’s wifi networks that are strong enough to give you an unusable signal in your home or apartment, no matter where you are.

Everyone has questions about wireless networking — and that’s totally OK. There’s plenty you might not know about wifi, even if you’ve successfully set up your router and are sitting there, right now, browsing Lifehacker on your laptop, desktop, smartphone, or tablet.

Clearly, a bunch of Lifehacker readers have issues getting wireless networking to work — whether you’re trying to connect from a long distance away, you’re getting crappy speeds on your devices, or you’re frustrated because there are 300 different wireless networks irradiating your apartment.

The average person spends 90,000 hours of their life at the office, and yet only one-third of U.S. employees are engaged in their work and workplace, according to a 2017 Gallup report.

Maybe that’s inevitable, but making our work and careers even slightly more satisfying and fulfilling could lead to a major overall improvement in our day-to-day lives.

I’m bad at names. So are you. Everyone’s bad at names. You’ve read a million tips for remembering people’s names, and none of them have worked. But maybe this one will! It’s one of the simplest, least gimmicky tricks I’ve heard, and I’ve used it before without really thinking about it.

Talking to strangers in a crowded room where everyone wants something from each other is a true nightmare, and at times it’s the most direct path to career development. But there is another way to network—from behind a computer screen.

Over the years, I've accumulated a bunch of Ethernet cables. I've kept a stash of cables of different lengths in a box - you'd be surprised how handy a 10 metre cable can be - as well as some short ones of just 25 centimetres and various in-between lengths. Here's how to tell what ethernet cables you're using and why it matters.

If you've ever gotten a job or a gig because someone "thought of you," you've benefited from networking. Good networking doesn't require anything slimy or selfish. It requires that you define yourself. And that means paying more attention to how you act when you meet or catch up with people.

Free wi-fi is a windfall, especially if you're working from the library or airport, or if you just want to save data on your phone or laptop. Still, you do have to care about security when you're out and about. Here's how to surf safely, on any device.

When you meet people, especially a lot of people at once somewhere like a networking event, it can be hard to remember their names at first. Here's an easy exercise that will help you to retain this information.

As technologies go, Wi-Fi has moved ahead quite quickly. We went from the first mainstream wireless networking option, 802.11b running at 11Mbps in the 2.4GHz band to the current 802.11ac that offers up to 1Gbps over dual frequency bands in less than 15 years. But another new standard, dubbed Wi-Fi 6 presumably because 801.11ax isn't good for marketing things that are new, will increase performance almost five-fold. Why should you care?

The harsh truth: A goal will start to dissipate when stuck inside a brain for too long. To move from that comfortable space of “I wish I could do it” to the thrilling realm of “Holy heck, I’m actually doing it”, it needs to be put out there. Spoken aloud. Shared with trusted friends. Given legs.

I used to hate unsolicited email, until I got unsolicited texts, calls, Twitter DMs, Facebook messages and LinkedIn invitations. Now I think email is the most polite way to reach a stranger directly. In that vein, I recommend this thorough guide to finding anyone’s email address.