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baslinux - Re: [BL] Udhcpc and Loop Linux and Kernel Compilation (was:[delete])

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  • From: sindi keesan <keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org>
  • To: baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [BL] Udhcpc and Loop Linux and Kernel Compilation (was:[delete])
  • Date: Thu, 21 Dec 2006 23:50:49 +0000 (UTC)

On Thu, 21 Dec 2006, James Miller wrote:

On Thu, Dec 21, 2006 at 04:50:11PM +0000, sindi keesan wrote:

We have a pringles can. What size dish? Why mesh? I have several
stainless steel strainers of various mesh sizes. Do you use these to
reflect a signal like you can do with low-quality radio signals?
Sometimes I pick up a station better by standing on the opposite side of
the radio from the source.

Look up "cantenna" using scr/google. There are all kinds of plans out there for making directional antennas for wifi from scrap. I also saw a very simple one someone made from hardware cloth attached to a couple of plywood semi-circle cut-outs that turned an

I found one involving a Chinese strainer with bamboo handle, and some suggested sizes for a reflector (1" from the antenna).

I do not want to take the working pcmcia cards apart to attach antennas, when the county free wireless signal should be strong enough to work without an added antenna.

omnidirectional antenna into a directional one. But all this presupposes an external antenna, which your PCMCIA cards are unlikely to have. I did once borrow an old wavelan card that had a little plastic plug in the end that, if removed, exposed a fitting to which an external antenna

I found instructions for the airo card, to remove the cap first and then attach an antenna somehow. A reflector sounds easier and safer.

could be attached. There you start to run into expenses though: the fittings, of which there is a bewlidering array (usually referred to under various acronyms) and which defy traditional notions of gender (they all look hermaphroditish to me), and the cable, which is some kind of mini-coax that looks like it requires specialized tools to operate

Someone had a method with USB wireless adaptor. We have one of those to try next, lucent orinoco.

on. I did manage to find some external omnidirectional antennas for cheap (ca. $7) on newegg though--complete with 4' of cable (you need to check if the fitting is right for your card, though). I think I once ran across a site that showed a dissection of a PCMCIA wifi card, and how someone had attached antenna leads directly to the card, since it didn't have a fitting for an external antenna. There's a large wifi antenna hobbyist network out there with lots of information.

I found mention of this.

All these signals are 2.4GHz, same as newer (newest?) cordless phones.
iwlist with the airo card (orinoco card does not support it) shows the 8
strongest signals. First has address FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF - maybe this is a
cordless phone? Next is the one I briefly picked up in the kitchen,
followed by two lines of 00:00:etc. which sometimes change so that one or
both match the second line, and four more lines. I have picked up the
existence of SSID "" "Netgear" "Apple" "Linksys" and "2Wire".


The "" likely means that someone has told their router not to broadcast the E/SSID--which makes it a bit harder to tap into their network. Any
It also does not broadcast the router address (FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:).

that have a router manufacturer's name for the E/SSID may have been left with their default settings (as they came from the factory), which means WEP/WPA encryption may be disabled. You might also be able to log into the router administration web page and check how they have their network set up since they may not have changed the default admin username and password. All this is ethically and legally questionable, as you will doubtless understand. Of course if you can find out who owns the router, you might just ask to share their connection for a nominal monthly fee.

I can wait two months and get a free signal. I am now prepared. I will play with iwconfig and iwlist (which requires compiling mwavelan_cs.o so it will work with the orinoco cards). So if my neighbor does set up wireless I can choose his signal (udhcpc -r ?) instead of the county one.

Airo cards can get 2-3km of reception line of sight (LOS). I don't have much line of sight. They suggested a rooftop antenna on a broom handle. I live on the first floor.

James




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