Wi-Fi Home Control System

I am currently doing a project in my undergrad on a system that allows household power units to be controlled from a computer through Wi-Fi.

My plan is to build a hardware unit that can be plugged into the power sockets to control the switches. This unit will have a relay, a microcontroller (AVR kit) and a Wi-Fi tranceiver. On the computer, I will be programming a simple interface with possibly microsoft visual basic. And in the center is a wireless router.

Are there any thing I should know about the IP protocol and such as I don't have much knowledge on data communication.
Any suggestions on my idea?
Thanks in advance..

You might try posting your question in one of these AV Forums. People there may be more knowledgeable of Wi-Fi protocols.

Thanks for the tip Carl. I'll check it out.

But do you guys have any opinion on my project? Or anyone has any experience on something similar?