Wireless Networking 802.11b/a/g...

[Anonymous Poster]

Does anyone have any practical experience setting up any 802.11 standard wireless networking...? (NO Bluetooth/Home Networking etc.)

Has anyone seen/used any 802.11a/g devices as of yet?

This "standard" is constantly changing and becoming not backwards compatible with it's old self... and now the "b" units are going lowball in price... so is the "a or g" not far behind...?

What are your experiences with current manufacturers...(good/bad/ugly)...?

Any thoughts/opinions...?
Thanks... /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[gws]

802.11 is the standard. A vs B vs G. They are backwards compatible. We have a number of in house 802 nodes and they are all different brands. The work togeather fine.

 

[Fzahrt]

A lot of our customer's utilize 802.11b for point-to-point links or wireless user aggregation. Some schools hang Access-points off each of their edge switches around the campus. The net effect is a campus wide wireless network. While the have some lvl of security built in, it has been cracked a long time ago (AirSnort)...so don't be fooled by "it's secure"...because it's not.
Differences between 802.11a and 802.11b:

802.11b - 2.4Ghz, limited to 11Mbps at best - a lot of devices running at this range atm, which can cause issues.

802.11a - 5.xGhz, over 70Mbps at best, this is the lastest I have seen. Not much out there deployed...yet.

Not sure if that is what you were looking for or not. Cisco makes the best (most expensive) equipment imo, but there is nothing wrong with a Linksys device for the home or small business.

ok, we are gonna drift off into geekland here, so you are warned....


This got me thinking. I could take a old notebook I have (802.11b Wireless card in it), mount it in a box on the Bota with a small inverter and run a USB webcam. What would this do? 2 things come to mind..

1. BOTACAM - Live Webfeed of the Bota in action, of course! ...maybe recorded loops would be more appropriate as I don't need TBN watching me waste the landscaping with the FEL on one wrong turn. /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

2. I live in Orlando. Clear in the morning..then partly cloudy, then when the seabreezes kick in, nasty thunderstorms...so head to www.weather.com and check the latest looping radar images and see how much seat time I have left. /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif

Also you could play MP3s while driving, or run a cable channel over the wireless link (simple MPEG encoding) and keep an eye on whatever TV channel you wanted.

...ok, pulling away from geekland now.


Regards,
Frank

(Network Engineering grunt)

 

[wasabi]

Radical! I like it! If you pull it off. please let me know. If I could do similarly, I would have a mobile office and could be staying in touch with the securities markets in the wilderness!

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Why would you want to go wireless? You can string the wire just like electrical and get alot better use of your equipment. An added plus is network security. You don't have that geek nextdoor trying to bust into it and crashing the system. Cat 5 cableing is inexpensive if you do it yourself. I wired up all of the rooms in the house for about 3 years ago for $150.00 yes I do have to be close to an outlet in order to use the computer network but I am also ready for the gig switches and cards when they become reasonable. An 11mpbs system is just barely adequate today tomorrow its going to be in the trashcan 70 is ok but 100mbps has been around for years already. 1000mbps is just now coming down in price. String some wire and have something that will last for more than a year. Its not difficult to do. If you need help please feel free to contact me at maker@soon.com.

 

[Fzahrt]

Well one caveat here would be Wireless is line of site, with some play for a few trees or walls. My property isn't that big and is as flat as can be, so it is realistic for me to be several hundred feet away and get a link. They do make omnidirectional antennas that can be used on Accesspoints (even on a Linksys) to increase the range (notebook would connect via Ethernet to Access point) and amplifiers ( might violate FCC with this one though) to really pump the range.
In short, I also work outta the house, so there are possibilities for me as well (ya know there are IP phones that will work fine over a wireless bridge, but better shut off that rumbling diesel before you say, "hello") /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif Also, living in Florida, it is unwise to put a large rod on you tractor (lightning magnet?)...just ask the golfers /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif

Regards,
Frank

 

[Fzahrt]

Maker,
Every try to turn a tractor around or use a FEL with a wire attached to it? me either, nor would I want to..Cat 5 does not stretch very well /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif
As far as security goes, I live in the country, so not really a technical issue..but if you are really concerned, then simply encrypt your data on the way to the access point. A VPN client will do nicely at 3DES (168bit encryption) on a notebook, then additional 128bit encryption on the access-point. Hell, even the NSA would have a bit of trouble decrypting that stream /w3tcompact/icons/eyes.gif. I'm really not worried about my neighbors running a Linux box with Airsnort trying to understand my streams on a protocol analyzer. This just isn't that kinda of neighborhood.
If you are referring to wiring a house, I personally like to take my notebook around the house and outside on the deck, so wireless is nice to have. If you live around a bunch of techies, well then, encrypt away...problem solved.

Regards,
Frank

 

[Inspector507]

I was wondering how the BOTACAM would look with a mile of Cat5 cable laying in the yard to get run over. Probably would be clear pictures until then. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[gws]

For short distances around a property line of site is not an issue.

 

[gws]

instead of trying to keep a laptop running on a tractor.
How about just using a wireless camera, feeding video back to your desktop then let it upload the video to your website.