wireless signal

unclebob42 · Joined: Jun 11, 2004 Posts: 9

I'm approx 75 feet short of receiving a wireless connection. Is there any way to add range to my laptop receiving this signal? I'm looking for something that will work in an R/V.

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Hi Bob,

I'd have to ask...... where is the signal coming from?

Did you already Google " Wireless Range Extender" ?

I just did........ There is a litany of info on the subject.
Give that a try.

Cheers mate and Good Luck,

Doc Cool

unclebob42 · Joined: Jun 11, 2004 Posts: 9

I had already done that search before I posted the question. The answers given are for the network to extend the range of the signal. I'm not the network, I'm trying to reach a network that I am allowed on without going outside of my R/V.

zlim · Joined: Mar 11, 2005 Posts: 2636

antenna
http://www.radiolabs.com/products/wireless/waverv.php
http://www.camp-wireless.org/article/rvwifiantennas.shtml
http://rvsignalmax.com/

Hang around some RV chat sites so you can see what works and what doesn't.

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Almost every forum, in their "Before you post" section, asks for all the information about your system, so the helpers here don't have to play 20 questions.

You did say "Laptop", so I'm assuming that's one with the wireless antenna built into the PC somewhere.
Since there is no way to access it directly, I'd probably be looking at a USB wireless adapter with an external antenna. I saw one while in Circuit City yesterday that's about a foot long and attaches to a stand that keeps it vertical.
Something like that would give you greater receive sensitivity.

Putting the Laptop near an outside window would surely help too. Windows provide less attenuation to wireless signals than the aluminum sides of a Mobilehome, Motorhome, Camper, etc.

Attaching such an antenna to the outside of the home would give even greater coverage.

Just some thoughts.

Doc Cool

PS: I provide wireless ISP to my neighbors house, about 300' away.
I put my Intellinet Wireless N router high up in a window that faces their house.
I also had to turn their desktop computer around so the three antennas on their Intellinet N Nic card would face towards my house.
The signal still has to go all the way thru their double wide mobile home to get to their computer, so there's a lot of signal attenuation there. I've been after them to move their computer to a location on the side of their house nearest to me. But that's not happened yet.

goretsky · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 3:46 am Post subject:

Hello,

Does your notebook's wireless network interface card have an external antenna connector? If so, you could try purchasing a directional antenna and the correct cable to connect it to your notebook's wireless adapter.

Another possibility might be to put a stronger antenna on the wireless access point, or place a directional antenna on it and point it at your notebook.

Regards,

Aryeh Goretsky

rddrgn2 · Joined: May 22, 2004 Posts: 81

hey all
just my two cents worth
i put up a post a couple back ("distance")with kinda the same issue Shocked

the way i fixed it was a Belkin usb adapter from walmart for around 35 dollars! works great! Laughing

i now have full signal in the back of the house (through a bunch of 8" solid brick walls) where as the linksys card Twisted Evil

hardly could pick up sqaut out side on the poarch at 140 feet strait line of sight!!!!!
still cant figure the diferance between the linksis and the belkin but i dont care now

mike

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

I have one of those little Linksys wireless adapters that plug into a USB port.
It works great here in the house, but I've never tried it for any Distance of more than 20'.

Since RV was mentioned by the OP, I'm just assuming that he's in a RV park where Wi/Fi is offered by the proprietor. In that case he can't do a darn'd thing about the signal strength from the source end.
All he can do is work on increasing the efficiency at HIS end.
An external directional antenna would be the nuts, if he could set it up.

I really hope that he finds a workable solution and then lets us know what it was.

This topic does come up quite often, these days, on many different forums.
And I'm sure it will come up again and again, as Wi/Fi becomes more popular.

It's just my guess, that wireless N will replace Wireless G one of these days.
It just travels much further. I'm glad I got it when I did.

Cheers Mates!
The Doc Cool

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

I just remembered a somewhat funny story that a friend told me.

He was staying with some folks that didn't have any Internet connection.
They lived in a metal mobile home.

But next door there was a family with Wi/Fi in their house.
Well, my friend took one of those little USB Wi/Fi doohickies and put it on a 6' USB extender cable and dropped it out the window.

For several weeks while he stayed there, he had great Wi/Fi service. Wink

I wouldn't have thought that those little USB wireless gadgets would work so well on an extension cable, but I guess they do.

It's just a thought.

Cheers mates!
Doc Cool

rddrgn2 · Joined: May 22, 2004 Posts: 81

yep the usb adapters work great plus you can turn them into a directional for real cheap to just look up wok antenna
yep just like the pan chinees food is cooked in!!!

btw took my usb to my landlords comp and diabled her linksys card (50 feet farther away than i am) and she went from no bars to four bars
she kicked me out so she could go get one right then

lmao rof!!!!!! Laughing

mike

Raydeo · Joined: Jun 23, 2005 Posts: 46 Location: Boring, Oregon

I was faced with exactly the same problem in an RV park . I first tried the Belkin USB gadget (from Walmart) that's mentioned in this tread, with poor results.
I found this gizmo that solved all my problems :

http://www.data-alliance.net/servlet/the-75/alfa-AWUS036E-RealTek-Turbo/Detail

I also got the 16' USB cable to enable moving the gadget around to find the best reception ( as the Good Doctor mentions ) :

http://www.data-alliance.net/servlet/the-91/USB-2.0-Active-Repeater/Detail

Various hi gain antenna's are avail for this unit , if need be. The whole project came to about $40

As we say in the RV World :
" Your Mileage May Vary " Smile

,
Raydeo

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Raydeo,
Are you by any chance a HAM Radio operator?
We who are, have been fussing around with antenna size, height and directivity for ages. The old rule of thumb is that "the bigger the antenna, the better the signal."
That's why I used to put up 24' long CB radio antennas.

My friend and PC Guru is also a Ham Radio buff and he assures me that we can share his DSL service, via directional antennas, over the three miles that separate his house and mine. I opted for my own Satellite ISP service, from Wild Blue.

The first link in the last post, is a good one. I'm sitting here imagining how much better that little gadget would work with one of those 1' tall antennas on it. That should at least double the signal.

73's Mates!

The Doctor Cool

Raydeo · Joined: Jun 23, 2005 Posts: 46 Location: Boring, Oregon

Hi Doc :
Athough I'm not a member of the HAM community, I've been accused of such after a few beers Very Happy

My technical experience is within the world of commercial radio broadcasting , whose names are four-letter-words, as opposed to three...
Having no experience with wireless routers and their transmission range capabilites and all, I'm thinkin' that you might ask the fellow who runs the store . All he can do is say No (or FU Very Much ) Wink

My gut tells me that 3mi is a bit of a stretch, but ya never know until ya try with this RF stuff. We used to say that "FM" stood for F' in Magic...
That link has several hi gain antenna options, as well as booster amps, etc.

Good Luck,
Raydeo

"Simplicity is the highest form of Science" - Albert Einstein

BTW: yer tip on the "AT&F" modem init strings worked good !

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Well, back in my working days in Illinois, I daily traveled the state, running service calls. I used to work 2m FM repeaters all over the state, and from one side of the state to another, all with a 3w Handy Talky.

But, like I'm sure could be done with PC wireless, I used a 30w Bi-Directional amp to boost my signal from my little HT and shove it into a 200w amp to feed my rooftop 5/8 wave antenna. I talked wherever I dang'd well pleased and with full quieting into the repeaters, statewide.

Accessing Wi/Fi from a built in PC antenna is just the most basic of the basics.
It just goes up hill from there as you add technology.

I'm pushing Wi/Fi 300'+ and thru a double wide mobile home, with my Intellinet Wireless N router. After using this Intellinet Wireless N Router, I feel like throwing rocks at my old Linksys WRT54G Wireless Router. The distance is much greater and so is the speed.
I get 300'+ outside of my house and 270Mbps connection speed, anywhere in my house.

My wireless N nic card will also receive Wireless G signals, but with its three antennas, the sensitivity is much greater than a Wireless G nic.

If I had to guess, I'd say that Wireless G will be just a memory in a very few years.
Sort of like steam cars and analog TV. Wink

Cheers Mates!
Doc Cool

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Sorry, I just had to comment on this:

Raydeo · Joined: Jun 23, 2005 Posts: 46 Location: Boring, Oregon

" CQ " Doc :
Thought I'd give a "QSL" : You are quite right about the wonderful world of HAM radio. And lest we forget the tremendous contributions that HAM's provide in times of emergency...
Are you familiar with Sen Barry Goldwater's HAM shack phone-patch work done during the Vietnam War ? Volunteers provided 24/7 free phone calls for the troops stuck in that mess.

Anywho, the old joke in commercial radio is ,
" Radio : Justa Bunch of Four-Letter-Words "
Or as Hunter S. Thompson supposedly said :

"The radio business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side."

Keep Yer Antenna Up,
Raydeo

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

A lesser antenna might work, but I guarantee this one. Wink

My new Wi-Fi antenna.

Error: image could not be loaded. Image is not available from server

Image URL: http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g90/DrWho1943/indexphp.gif

I want to supply Wi-Fi to the guys on the International Space Station. Laughing

The Doctor Cool

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

On a more serious side, I've been doing someones homework. Wink

A little Googling turned up this site and a very workable WI-Fi extender.
http://www.getasignal.com/wi-fi/wi-fire-wifi-adapter.html?gclid=CJP1sd...5gCFQIf

The price ain't too bad either. Actually very affordable for the service it provides.

I may buy one and try it out at my neighbors house.

I'd love to push my WI-Fi output out to the full 1000' or more.
I have another neighbor I'd like to supply with Wireless Internet.
He's currently using my Dial Up connection.

73's....I've got some more Googling to do.............

Doc Cool

Raydeo · Joined: Jun 23, 2005 Posts: 46 Location: Boring, Oregon

I ran across that gizmo when doing my initial research. Too many bad reviews
re: flimsy mounting and extreme directivity scared me off :
Example :

" It seemed like just what I needed. As a business traveller who uses WiFi almost daily, this looked like the ideal solution when all I could get was a weak signal or none at all. I read several reviews and decided to give it a try.
My first impression when I opened the box was that it was very cheaply built. This was confirmed when I tried to "clamp" it to my laptop screen. Even the slightest movement, or keystroke, is enough to shift it and lose the signal. The retractable cable doesn't swivel at the unit so it becomes wrapped around the base and often hinders movement when trying to adjust the finicky antenna. Also, the cable's retractable mechanism takes some getting used to. It's positioned in the middle of the cable and if you don't give both ends a tug at the same time, it will inevitably become entangled in the spool. They do warn you about this in the manual, but it's easy to forget about it and will cost you a few minutes to fix.
As for performance, well, I played with this thing for about a month at different locations and only a few times would it pick up a useable signal. And when it did, it usually wouldn't connect. Not once did I get a useful connection with it that I couldn't get with my built-in antenna. I e-mailed the tech dept at Hfield and the replies I got were the elementary suggestions, such as "Did you try adjusting it in all directions to get the best signal?". Duh.
So, I now have a $79 paperweight that is too light to be even usefull for that. Don't waste your money and patience. "

Also :
http://www.maximumpc.com/article/hfield_technologies_wi_fire_wi_fi_adapter

However, Fixed mounting the Wi-Fire box with a long USB cable may work well ?

I'm thinkin' that using the gadget I suggested with a hi-gain antenna and long USB cable (if necessary) will do much more. Antenna choices :

http://www.data-alliance.net/servlet/the-ANTENNAS/Categories
If you explore the above site you'll find mucho info on range extension, etc.

That's my story and I'm stickin' to it Wink

Raydeo

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

I'd think getting a connection within a mobile park would be a piece of cake.
There are just so many options available.

I'm trying to share my Satellite ISP with a neighbor about 1000' away.
I've already gone to an N type router with three antennas on it and I'm already sharing services with a neighbor about 300' away. They're getting about three bars, so that's OK.

For the long range, I'm looking at building a DISH type antenna for the receiving end.
There's a great "Do it yourself" project on one web site, using a Direct-TV dish.
I just happen to have four of them.
http://www.engadget.com/2005/11/15/how-to-build-a-wifi-biquad-dish-antenna/

In this project they are using heavy plastic and copper sheeting, for the reflector.
A single piece of G-10 Glass Epoxy circuit board would work as well and is much easier to acquire and work with.

If I were a bit younger, I'd go into production on these dishes and sell them over the internet. Old TV dishes are a dime a dozen around here and the other parts are easily purchased and assembled.

All you'd need is a nic card with a suitable coaxial connector for an outside antenna. Several companies provide those.

For an old HAM, this looks like a great week-end project.

Cheers mates!
The Doctor Cool