Tech Idiot Needs Advice... Wireless

[pianoman]

I will be moving into my new house later this week and would like to setup my ADSL to be wireless... I have a desktop for the house, but would like wireless so that I can use my laptop in the Sala by the waterfall, or out back while the wife cooks dinner, or in the front yard while sitting under the large umbrella...

Again, I am a "Tech Idiot" so intend to go to the local Computer Shop and pay them to set it all up, but would like to know what I should be considering both hardware wise and estimated costs.... The whole area of the house and yard is only about 60 meters by 100 meters... But the house is the usual Brick & Concrete construction...

Pianoman

[cdnvic]

Wireless uses several common protocols. 802.11A/B/G/N and two security encryption methods. WEP and WPA.

I would strongly suggest "N" wireless gear, from the router right to the network cards because N has much better range and isn't bothered so much by solid walls as the others.

Make sure you have WPA encryption (WEP is useless) and a strong password to keep your network to yourself.

[Meerkat]

You should be able to do it with ease. Find yourself an 802.11g Wireless Router - they're everywhere and go for well under USD 100 - pop "Wireless Router" into an Amazon search for an idea of what's out there. Two brands that are often mentioned are D-Link and Linksys. Make sure you get the "g" type, not the "b" type (older and slower). I'm assuming of course that your laptop has a built in "g" Wifi card; most laptops made over the last couple of years have them built-in. If not, you can simply pick up a Wifi adaptor that slots into your PC Card slot.

Your desktop will typically connect to the Router via CAT5 cable (the same type that currently connects it to your broadband modem provided by your ISP). Setup is a breeze - I've got routers of both makes in a couple of properties and they were both straight forward to do. Both your PC and laptop will be able to use the net simultaneously.

To get the maximum range, the Wifi router should be placed as near to the centre of the land as possible (no brainer!), and on the second floor if possible. Our place here is about 3,000 sq.ft. with about the same again for the garden, so I think a bit smaller than yours. There's not a spot on the property that I can't get a good enough signal to even stream TV over the network. The published 802.11g range is 35m indoor and 110m outdoor, so with your dimensions you should be OK. Of course it does depend on how many walls it has to go through! There are repeaters available that basically extend the range if necessary.

There is a newer type being launched, 802.11n, but this hasn't been nailed down to a standard yet, so I'd be cautious about becoming an "early-adopter". Chances are your laptop doesn't have an "n" Wifi card built in anyway, so it shouldn't really be an issue. However if it does, the new "n" standard promises about a 100% increase in range.

[Petch01]

An interesting option is to get yourself a wireless router which allows you to change the manunfacturer's firmware to third party firmware. These are for example HyperWRT, DD-WRT, Tomato etc. They are build generally for Linksys equipment. The third party firmwares allow you to increase your transmitting power from the standard 28 mW to the maximum of 251 mW. You can play around with the transmit power to find the optimum between range and distortion. i.e. if 84 mW is enough don't set it to 100 mW etc.

I have a TOT-adsl modem, type Global Dare DB120 (package 2004) in bridge mode with a Linksys WRT54GL (2,700 THB) with Tomato firmware (free). Works like a rock.

Petch01

[Kyosuken]

The guy said he wasn't tech savy and you advise him to get a customizable router. I am not saying your idea is bad, just that it's not the easy way for him.

If you want a good wireless router i would go with Dlink they've got very good 'stock' antennas, and best you can remove them and change with a better suited antenna. For a better reception if your laptop has a pccard wireless adapter with emovable antenna is best too.

If you want both the house and the exterior to get good signal so i advise as i said above : a dlink wireless router like http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=6 and an antenna like http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=416 the antenna doesn't have to be from dlink you can find small 7/8 dbi antennas in good computer shops in thailand. As for where you need to put the antenna : By a window if possible and open the sh*tty mettalic grid anti-mosquitoes because it will reflect most of the signal.

If you want to improve signal quality even further you will have to check if your wireless adapters can be setup for slow bandwith use (when 54mb is too much to connect to you will lose sync and connection to your rooter) so it's good if you can throttle it to 11/12 Mb or even lower (it will be in any case muuuuuuuuuuuuch above the bandwith you need for Internet).

[Petch01]

The guy said he wasn't tech savy and you advise him to get a customizable router. I am not saying your idea is bad, just that it's not the easy way for him.

You're right.

Petch01

[phazey]

Apple Airport is simple to set up, and has half decent range.

[cdnvic]

N router and wireless cards eliminates the need for the customizations anyway. It may not be an "official" protocol but most every manufacturer is making them now and it's been around for over three years now so early adopter isn't exactly accurate here.

The data transfer speeds are also way faster than G.

[paveet]

Provided you have a matching N card

[cdnvic]

Provided you have a matching N card

Yes, as I've mentioned three times now, get an N card and router.