Wireless set-ups

You’re talking rabbit ears and tinfoil now.

uhm, not in my experience. I have a DLINK DWL-900AP+ AP downstairs. Its connected to my Linksys BEFSR11 DSL router (via a port on a Linksys EZXS55W switch). With this setup, I can walk around the house (up/down stairs), over to the pool, beyond and on to the lake shore - a good 100+ ft and can use my IPAQ 5455 PDA or my Dell laptop (which uses a DLINK DWL-650+ CARDBUS adapter) to browse, check email, even use Remote Desktop Connection and Terminal Services, with no problems -and usuall with a sustained 22mps rate and good signal.

And I agree, DLINK is definitely taking over from Linksys. Prior to getting the DLINK PC CARD, I had a Linksys WUSB12 wireless USB adapter. It had trouble staying connected even at less than 4 ft from the AP. So I ditched it and got the DWL-650+ adapter instead. It worked right out of the box. And keeps working.

In fact, it was because of the diminishing quality of Linksys products, that I bought the DLINK AP (and later the DWL-650+ adapter) to begin with. Next time I’m buying networking HW, guess what brand I’m buying. As I type this, I have a month old Linksys USB printserver (the one which also can work via wireless via a wireless adapter) which I still can’t get to work.

For the thrifty among us, Circuit City is eliminating their stock of Siemens networking gear. While it’s not the highest quality, right now it’s DIRT CHEAP at Circuit City (wireless router: $30. Wireless PCMCIA card: $20. USB ethernet: $20. Powerline ethernet: $30. Powerline 802.11: $30. etc. etc.)

My favorite deal? A four port router with 802.11b and homeplug built in for… $50.

asjunk

Security is “opt-in”. It’s turned off by default.

But it’s easy to set up. You just assign a key (typically a string
of hex digits, but some routers allow you to use an alphabetical
key). You set up the key in the access point and any other wireless
devices. When you first connect with your PC or laptop, you’ll
have to type in the key once. You shouldn’t have to do it again.

The Dlink gear I’m currently using allows up to a 256-bit key.
In practice, a 128-bit key should be enough for home use.
Heck, a 64-bit key will be fine, unless you’re worried about
the neighborhood kid trying to hack into some free bandwidth.

As ever,

Loyd Case

I’m using the Linksys USB on a desktop. The great thing i’ve having a nice long cable attached to the device means you can move the receiver around to get the best signal. Mine sits on the far corner of the desk, which is needed to pick up the signal travelling through two concrete walls and a floor.

Of course my signal quality from the AP is pretty lousy. I bought the Linksys BEFSR41W router/switch when I had my computers directly connected via Ethernet. This box can be upgraded to a wireless AP by plugging in a PCMCIA card. This seemed like a good (money saving) idea at the time I bought the router, but the signal strength from the PCMCIA card is obviously a lot less than the diverse antennas on a proper AP.

You live and learn.