Port Forwarding?

I just got a router in hopes of making SL work better than it did on my old hub.

One thing that having a router enables one to do that a hub can't do is to enable port forwarding.

SL has a command line option "port" that allows one to set port numbers.

Based on the use of the word "port" in both SL command line options and in the phrase "port forwarding" combined with ignorance and curiosity I conclude that I should ask if there is any purpose or function for the port forwarding feature of the router in connection with SL

So, is there?

only if it doesnt work

ports are little pipelines that run tru the internet http is port 80 and so on
most modern home routers will notice something trying to get out on port X and just allow it
if it doesnt do this you have to go into the firewall and either manually open ports or use port forwarding

its also really handy to know when you wanna run a doom 3 server @ work

"-port" command can be really helpful if you have multiple instances of SL on your network at the same time. The SL -port command designates a port for that instance of SL to use so packets arrive to the proper machine and running instance of SL(some routers handle this better than others so the -port command specifies it). Port forwarding basically sets specific ports to specific machines and is mainly a server function although programs like emule require port forwarding to work optimally. I am certainly no expert but that is they way I understand it.