Some Wi-Fi help please

[paris]

Well since there must be a lot of you out there haning Wi-Fi networks at home i thought i'd ask you some questions.

I am getting a wi-fi capable PPC (guess which one) and i want to run a wi-fi network at home to connect my PC with my PPC. So its just a 2 device connection i am after.

What equipment do i need on my Home PC? (P4 2.4, Win XP)
Do i just need a wi-fi PCI card?
Or do i need those so called access points???

I only need to connect my pc to the PPC and nothing else so my guess is that i just need a wi-fi pci card, but i am not completely sure about that.

will apreciate your help

[FredMurphy]

To connect just two devices, pop a Wi-Fi card in each one and use "Ad Hoc" mode. If you think you'll be connecting any other devices, you'll need an access point and connect them to the access point using "Infrastructure mode".

Just get a PCI Wi-Fi card for your PC for now - you can always add an access point later if you need one.

[Jorgen]

>If you think you'll be connecting any other devices, you'll need an access point

No, you can connect as many computers as you like in ad-hoc mode, as long as they use the same SSID and channel. And your family can run several sets of unconencted ad-hoc networks if not all are on speaking terms. :)

Infrastructure is meant for a server of some kind, e.g. a broadband DSL server.

If you want an Internet connection via ad-hoc, you need a computer with a proxy server that connects to the Internet (dial-up or DSL). I have used AnalogX (free of charge and my preference) and WinRoute (commercial). You must have a firewall (e.g. ZoneAlarm).

The ideal setup is an ADSL modem connected to a router with LAN and WLAN: it functions as both internet server and (kind-of) firewall.

Jorgen

[FredMurphy]

Cheers for the correction Jorgen. I think I've just demonstrated the danger of flicking through the manual and then quoting your misinformed impressions as fact. :oops:

[paris]

Thanks for the info guys. I might go for a PCI wifi card.

But again after checking some products I did set my eyes on a LinkSys Etherfast Wireless Access Point + Cable + DSL Router/4 Point Switch for £115. If I buy a PCI wifi card it will cost me £70 and what I am thinking is why not buy a device that will do much more for some additional money? With this device I will be able to replace my hub I have at home connecting 3 PCs and free my PC from routing the cable internet connection as well.

But again in this case I don't need a PCI wifi card on my PC do I??? I assume that the WAP will do the trick on its own.

I appreciate your help

Paris P.
cyusers.com

[FredMurphy]

Sounds like this will do the trick. You can use wired ethernet to connect your PCs and the WAP and wireless to connect your PPC.

This setup gives you more flexibility for not a great deal more cost. You can always add a wireless PCI card to any PCs you want to "unwire" later.

I've got a similar setup (separate ADSL router and WAP) and it lets me connect PCs with wires or without.

Fred

[paris]

The linksys has really impressed me! i thought that with this price i could only get a WAP but having all these capabilities in one device, i think i will go for this since it will give me more flexibility unless i am really out of money and go for a cheap pci card.

now i will have to start exploring to find some cool appz to utilize the wan, appz that can do things via a network, like remote control etc :) This will keep me busy until i get my PPC.


thanks for the help!

[TheNewSteve]

I have a netgear normal router for my cable internet (not wireless), but am getting a pocketpc (dell) and Sony Ericsson T68i. So I am already getting a bluetooth CF card. Can I connect AdHoc via bluetooth? My desktop computer is always running, but it's not very good or reliable, so this might be a problem. I think it might also be in sleep mode a lot.
Would this be a bad idea?

I'd like to avoid buying a new hub just so i can do pocketpc internet on the couch. There's supposedly free 80211b at my school's library and a coffee shop i don't really go to, and my friend couldn't connect his e740 at the library, so 80211b is not a huge deal for me. Is there an inexpensive Bluetooth dongle i could plug into my router? (by inexpensive, i mean less than the $70 netgear wifi router + $120 Socket wifi CF card, so anything less than $190 that i could connect to my router with at home would be fantastic).

Also, how much more battery life would I get with the Socket Bluetooth card over, say, the Belkin Bluetooth CF card that's $50 less?

Thanks!

-Steve

[FredMurphy]

Steve,

Sounds like you want a bluetooth access point to allow your PPC to connect in to your network. I know they exists, but they're nowhere near as common as 802.11b access points. Can't help you on pricing, but I'm sure a web search will do the trick.

I use a TDK Bluetooth PCMCIA card (their USB version is almost identical in function) and this works well when connecting my Jornada and Socket CF card (ActiveSync, etc). Also allows you to connect your PDA to the web. Not as good as a Bluetooth AP but it works. Also allows you to sync you T68i and Outlook on your desktop PC. Should be cheaper than a Bluetooth AP too, but will require your PC to be on for sofa-surfing.

No idea of the power savings on the Socket card, but it's an excellent product with good support. I'd recommend it.

[TheNewSteve]

Thank you very much. I do have a handy USB port right on the front of my desktop. Sure, I could have it running, but if it goes into sleep mode or if it's just an unreliable machine (eMachines, it is!), then would I lose connnection. Unless I had a laptop or something, it doesn't seem worth the investment of $200-250 to surf the "pocketweb" on my couch, for the $50 a USB adapter would cost me, I could live with slower speeds, I'd probably just do web and AOL IM, email. Heavy file transfers (where the bluetooth's slowness would shine :) ), could be done with the cradle, that's not a big deal. I wish they had a USB->ethernet adapter I could just plug it into, but you probably can't do that.

So the net is available through the USB adapter on net connected comp + bluetooth card in pocketpc?

Thanks!

-Steve

[FredMurphy]

So the net is available through the USB adapter on net connected comp + bluetooth card in pocketpc?

Yes - If I remember correctly (I now do everything via 802.11b) you can use the Socket CF card to instantiate a Bluetooth ActiveSync. You then have a "pass-through" web connection can be used for surfing from your PocketPC. You should be able to test the pass-through connection using the cradle before you use Bluetooth ActiveSync.

Only ever tried this with Socket CF (in PocketPC) and TDK PCMCIA (in PC) bluetooth cards.