Date: Fri, 17 Jan 2003 15:19:45 -0800 From: Chester Prudhomme <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: [LIB] CF Wireless Card for Libretto 50??
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Date: Fri, 17 Jan 2003 17:30:35 EST > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: Re: [LIB] CF Wireless Card for Libretto 50?? > > In a message dated 1/17/03 11:39:21 AM Mountain Standard Time, > [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > > Lawrence Young wrote: > > > > > A Wireless Access Point can serve multiple wireless clients (up to 253) > > and > > > bridge them to the wired LAN the WAP connects to. A wireless router is > > > essentially a wired router plus WAP. A WAP is useful when you already > have > > a > > > wired LAN setup. Otherwise, a wireless router is what most people buy > and > > in > > > most time it actually costs less than WAP alone. > > > > Not to mention meaning one less piece of hardware to clutter up one's work > > area!! Especially important in my case! > > > > Chester (aka Mr. Clutter) > > Since you all are giving a primer in wireless (and wired) newtorking and I am > less-than-novice grade, please help me a little more on these issues, like: > > - If I buy a wireless PCI expansion card for a desktop and a wireless PCMCIA > card for my L100CT, will that be sufficient to "do wireless", or will I still > need some of the other equipment mentioned? > > - Is it even thinkable to invest in wireless networking for internet access > if one is using dial-up service, or is the bandwidth choked off too much for > reasonable speed? > > - What sort of range can be expected, and what degree of obstruction (walls, > floors, etc.) is tolerated? > > Thanks. All very good questions Lee! Unfortunately the answers are only as good as each individual case of a wireless installation representing a result. That said - you would need a wireless base station to go along with your desktop PCI and laptop PC cards, i.e., a wireless access point if you already have a router or a wireless router if you don't. The wireless installation will only give you the up/down load speeds already available to your web signal upload/download - be it cablspeed, DSL, dialup, etc. I must say though that I haven't run across anyone using or anything written about wireless applications using dialup bandwidth for the input/output signal. In keeping with that situation let me urge you to investigate (if it is available to you to begin with) the local cable access packages to see what they do offer. Often they offer at least two levels of service (mine offers 4 different packages) with the "residential" service being 5 to 6 times faster than 56K (which never comes close to that speed anyway) for $5-10 more a month than a local dialup ISP. If you can get cablespeed at any level, do it - it will change your life!! My cablespeed gives me 1400-1600 kps download and 250 kps upload speeds! In any case, if you are confined strictly to dialup service wireless is convenient enough to let you communicate with other computers in the area without having to hardwire the entire area. Range - it gets really location specific on this question. I have used my Libretto in airports, internet cafes and big city hotels for a year now and I have been able access a signal from 500 feet away (line of sight) at times. More realistically though, my neighbor brings his laptop over here sometimes and he can access his wireless cable router with a good signal from 200 feet away through 4 wooden, insulated walls (and my low roof overhang) - his transmitter is on his second floor however, the lower the transmitter the worse the transmission, antenna placement is everything. I have also put his laptop out in my guest house which is about 90 feet away through 6 uninsulated (but 4 inch thick) wooden walls and gotten a good signal. Concrete walls and basement transmitter placements are the real signal killers as is the foil backing of the insulation in your walls. BUT, I think you could expect a good enough signal at least at 60 feet in your own home. Chester ************************************************************** http://libretto.basiclink.com - Libretto mailing list http://www.silverace.com/libretto/ - Archives -------TO UNSUBSCRIBE------- Reply to any of the list messages. The reply mail should be addressed to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - Then replace any text on the message's subject line: cmd:unsubscribe --------TO UNSUBSCRIBE DIGEST------ Do above but with this on subject line: cmd:unsubscribe digest **************************************************************