any way to enhance wireless reception

[acc]

Hi:

My wireless connection is very week in some parts of my house (of course the ones I would like to work in), is there thing that I can do or device that I can buy to enhance the wireless antenna and improve reception when there is a weak signal?

Thanks a lot,

ACC

[jdhurst]

I don't know, but it might be cheaper in the long run just to replace the wireless router with a stronger one, or move it to a more central location in the house.

I use a Netopia router (strong signal) that sits in the basement behind an 8-inch steel I-beam. I get a strong signal on the second floor of the house with no problem.
... JDH

[acc]

hi Jdhurst:

Thanks a lot for your response!

I do not have a router at home, I just pick up the wireless connections with my machine, having a router will improve that? Sorry, I have very little knowledge on the topic, I thought the router was to make a cable connection wireless.

Any further information on this will help a lot!

Thanks!!

ACC

[jdhurst]

I have interpreted your post that you are using someone else's connection for your home internet (not your own). Many people would see that in a negative light. If you do something wrong, the owner of the signal will be held responsible. Did I interpret this correctly?

If you have your own internet (cable or DSL) in your house, then put a wireless router on your side of the cable or DSL modem and you shall have wireless internet. Secure it, so no one else can use it. This is a security position and not a selfish position.
... JDH

[acc]

I am trying to use a wireless service provided by the university, so it's open to any student (after password authentication), but it is not my own line. Is this compatible with installing a router at home and would this improve the reception (which is weak where I live).

Thanks a lot!

ACC

[jdhurst]

The overall answer is "Yes", but you may need the help of a friend to set it up if you are not familiar with wireless. You would need a home profile and a University profile once your home wireless is set up. But it should all work - I have multiple wireless profiles on my T41 and it works fine. ... JDH

[acc]

Thanks a lot, I'll give it a try!

ACC

[schen]

I am trying to use a wireless service provided by the university, so it's open to any student (after password authentication), but it is not my own line. Is this compatible with installing a router at home and would this improve the reception (which is weak where I live).

Are you on campus or off-campus? If you are on campus, you might have a discussion with the Tech department and explain your dilema. They might be able to give you a map or some idea of where the APs are located so that you can chose some alternate areas to work. Wireless coverage on a college/university campus is a very iffy thing and there are always going to be dead/weak spots and you kinda just have to work with them.

That being said, you can do an external antenna by using a PCMCIA wireless card that has the connector for an external antenna such as the Orinoco cards and their clones such as some of the Dells, Proxim and IBMs. Then you look for the correct "pigtail" for your connector on one end and the necessary connector for the antenna of choice on the other end. You can find external antennas of all sizes and types by searching the internet. You can either construct your own or buy one from any number of places ranging from ebay to CompUSA. A good resource for antenna information are sites that specialize in providing information to folks engaged in "Wardriving". It's a sketchy practice, but those people do tend to know a LOT about antennas.

[acc]

Hi Schen:

Thanks for your advice. As you may notice, I am not computer savvy, so I was wondering whether there could be something external to attach/connect to the laptop to improve the reception, withouth the need to replace internal cards. And, on top of that, something that does not required elaborate configuration, and works like the built in antenna of the computer, that detects the connection by itself.

Thanks a lot for the details, I will get some help to follow your suggestions if the above is not possible.


Cheers,

ACC

[schen]

After rereading your post, it sounds like you are a commuting student who lives just off campus. If that is correct, what you can do is to work in areas of stronger signals while you are there on campus, but when you go home, then use and external antenna.

I believe you can use an additional PC Card wireless adapter without having to do anything to your internal one. Your wireless utilities should be able to resolve the two and let you just choose which device you'd like to use. In that situation, you can just leave that card at home attached to an external antenna when you head to school.

[acc]

Great!

I'll give it a try! Any particular device recomended for the R51 that anyone has good experience with?

Thanks a lot,

ACC

[seaweedsl]

Hey. I can recommend a simple solution that will serve you for desktops as well as laptops:

Get one of these USB adapters for when the signal is weak where you are:

http://www.wlanparts.com/product/SUB-362EXT

Position it high and in line of sight to the campus's AP to get the best signal, while watching on the client adapter's utility.

Remember that metal, concrete, trees etc can block or diminish the signal. A window sill towards campus is a wild guess for a good spot.

The advantage of USB over pcmcia cards is that you can use common usb extension cables to set up the adapter further away from your computer without any loss. The antenna connector for the cards will need a cable that loses signal. Also, those cables tend to break the connector on the card.

Finally, if you still don't get adequate reception with the included antenna on the USB device, then add on a high gain external antenna to connect to this adapter. The 9dbi antenna shown on the same page as the USB adapter is an inexpensive choice.

These "rubber duck" omni antennas have a donut or disc shaped reception pattern, so don't point the antenna AT the AP (campus), point it up, more or less, so that it's sides go to the source.

Steve

[FRiC]

Another possibility is getting a repeater like the Linksys Wireless Range Expander. It's not cheap, but it's useful if you have more than one computer that needs wi-fi access or if you have some other type of wi-fi device (such as a smart phone) that can't be easily modified to have stronger reception.

[f1reverb]

I use an Airlink AWLL3055 USB wireless adapter with a 10db gain antenna. I picked up a pair at Fry's on sale for 19.99 each . . .

http://shop4.outpost.com/product/507709 ... IN_RSLT_PG

Fry's shows their web price at 44.99 but they have it on sale often.

I show maybe three networks on my Z60t IBM wireless adapter (not the Intel), and I use the Airlink and I find 12-15 networks around my house (which is 1/2 acre and one acre parcels around me). It is almost too strong but fills the gap in one particular area of the house on my home network.

[acc]

Another possibility is getting a repeater like the Linksys Wireless Range Expander. It's not cheap, but it's useful if you have more than one computer that needs wi-fi access or if you have some other type of wi-fi device (such as a smart phone) that can't be easily modified to have stronger reception.

I tried the Linksys Wireless Range Expander suggested by FRiC and did not help, I'll try the other suggestions to see if I have more luck.

Thanks to all for the suggestions!!!!