Gaming New 360-Owner, Some Questions

[TraumaHoundNDS]

I bought a 360 from a co-worker who got it last Xmas and rarely played it (apparently his girlfriend thought he was much more the gamer than he really is.) Came with LEGO Indy & Kungfu Panda and he also had GH: Aerosmith (which, based on his gamesaves, is the only game he played when he did play it.) I decided to finally pick up a 360 to play Batman: Arkham Asylum which comes out in a month (I wanna get the demo that I've played at Fry's...hoping it gets released this weekend following Comic Con.) Anyhoo:

1) He has a gamer tag created, how can I delete it (I checked the 360 KB but it returned an error every time I tried to get an answer about this, despite this being a linked question)?
2) Is there a way to reset the console to factory defaults?
3) As I'm a new owner of a previously-owned 360 do I still get a free XBL Silver account? I don't know how much online play I'll ever do so I don't necessarily need to go "Gold", plus I'd have to shell out the bucks for that pricey wi-fi plug-in....
4) ...is there a cheaper/reliable wi-fi plug-in other than the "official" one? Is that controller-typepad a worthwhile add-on if I do go online with my 360?

Thanks for any help/advice you can impart.

 

[asdf]

You can change the gamertag for $5 I think (800 MS points)

 

[TraumaHoundNDS]

You can change the gamertag for $5 I think (800 MS points)

Yeah, I saw that XBL sells you the right to change your name but I'm looking to delete it from the system itself.

 

[FAST6191]

1) Should be an option to format the hard drive.
2) See 1)
3) Silver is free to all, you should still be able to score a gold account trial or two if you make a throwaway address and try to make a silver account unless the previous owner already did that.
4) Wireless bridge or use a laptop with wifi and wired options and again bridge the connections using an OS.
Typepad: most games/people use a headset although many more favour muting them.

 

[754boy]

Just go to My XBOX>>System Settings>>Memory. Then go to profiles and delete his. It's really simple.

 

[juggernaut911]

Just go to My XBOX>>System Settings>>Memory. Then go to profiles and delete his. It's really simple.

So crazy it just might work!!!!

Also, why not just get a long cord instead of wi-fi?

 

[JKR Firefox]

You can use a cheap wireless router as a wi-fi adapter.

Google it. I know it can be done, I just don't have time to look for you at the moment.

 

[TheWingless]

He could also try to use a spare computer(we use our HTPC) or a Laptop with a wifi card and use it as a wifi adapter for the XBox because there was no way we would buy the 360 wifi adapter either.

 

[FAST6191]

You can use a cheap wireless router as a wi-fi adapter.

Google it. I know it can be done, I just don't have time to look for you at the moment.

This too, the general method is wireless distribution system which has been built into most modern routers/hubs/switches. It essentially makes your second hub/router/switch act as a second access point (the thing with the laptop is the "poor man" version). WDS will drop your speed but it will probably still be above what your internet will go out at.

Just remember to only leave one device with DCHP or you will at best cause serious errors, it should be covered in any guide though.

 

[Hermessz]

I use a wireless bridge. Simplest solution, unlike the theft of the "Microsoft WiFi Adapter" which is a waste of money/
Have fun with xbox

 

[TraumaHoundNDS]

Thanks for the tips on wi-fi. In the end I picked up a 25' ethernet cable and plugged it into my router. Since it doesn't have to be plugged in all the time it's no big deal, I just unplug it when I'm not using it and coil it up.

Got a free month of Gold, which was perfect for downloading the Batman: Arkham Asylum demo. Might sign up for the year since it's not that expensive overall though I don't know how often I'll actually use it (unless I get really good at Halo 3 online or something.)