ad-hoc question

[mscdex]

Hi, I was wondering if having a wireless network via ad-hoc (direct pda to computer, w/o AP) has to have a "line-of-sight", i.e. you can't be in one room of the house with your pda and have the wireless-enabled desktop in another room? Also, if you do not have to be in direct "sight", then how far away does ad-hoc work? 100ft? 200ft?

[ttran]

Hi, I was wondering if having a wireless network via ad-hoc (direct pda to computer, w/o AP) has to have a "line-of-sight", i.e. you can't be in one room of the house with your pda and have the wireless-enabled desktop in another room? Also, if you do not have to be in direct "sight", then how far away does ad-hoc work? 100ft? 200ft?

If you are referring to the AdHoc using 802.11b, then I don't think that
LOS (Line-of-Sight) is a requirement since it's using radio wave for
communications. I think the spec of the 802.11b standard called for a
300ft. or so.

[Doug Rausch]

ttran is right. Same rules should apply as using the infrastructure mode (i.e. you don't need to be in the same room). Distance will be affected by walls and such, same as normal. I would also expect a small drop in range since the antennas on most wireless cards are not as sensative as those on wireless routers. Remember, antenna positioning will be real important, may help to turn your computer so its antenna is in a better position (not next to power supplies or an outside wall)

[Jorgen]

>then how far away does ad-hoc work? 100ft? 200ft?

The distance depends on the size of the antenna (tiny in CD/PC-cards, better in routers...) and on the angle going through the walls - in the worst case you can go through several meters of wall!

I suspect that other wireless devices must have some influence (I have a wireless telephone, mobile phone, TV, wireless headphones), but wireless LAN works very well, both in ad-hoc and in infrastructure mode!

Jorgen