Hmmm... let's see. (A) $8.99 for a new cable at the local electronics store vs. (B) $11.35 for a crimp tool plus $5.78 shipping + $3.95 for some RJ45 connectors, plus a couple of bucks for the bare cable (my 41-foot cable would be about three feet too short), coupled with the frustration of trying to make it work when I wired it up incorrectly, not to mention not being able to order any of the stuff because I can't connect to the internet without a working cable!... all that leads me to believe I made the right choice by choosing option "A".

tanstaafl.