> So, anyone have any advice, such as good places to get bulk cable, whether > I should spend more on cat6 rather than 5e or 5, whether I should get > patch panels or just some switches, if I should consider running anything > except ethernet, etc? It depends a lot on the house, and on your needs. In many houses it's a royal pain to run wire -- that's a function of the age and the construction style. Also how good you are at repairing the holes you made. If you don't need computers scattered all over the place, but merely want one or two boxes outside the central location of the net (I have 7 computers in 1 room, then 2 laptops that move around), consider wireless (e.g. orinoco). If you really do need to run wires, buy a (electrician's) snake. The frustration it saves is well worth the cost ($30-40). I personally can't see why you'd need more than cat5 for general use. For any long or difficult run, pull an extra wire (or something cheaper), in order to ease any future runs. I recommend using with the Leviton wall plates and their interchangeable plugs. You can get them at most local hardware chains. Andy > TIA, > > -Yaron