Will I extend range on my wireless home/office project

I've been designing/building my mobile home/office for months. I'd like
to finalize my wireless network. I have a Ford Excursion and a 30 ft
travel trailer. The car has a satellite broadband internet access and
acts as a mobile hotspot for the trailer. The goal is to park the car
where the sky is clear and have internet access in the trailer via WIFI
which maybe parked in campsite that are shaded for satellite access.
I'm looking to extend the range between the car and trailer. Both car
and trailer are metal, and have tinted windows which reduces signal
strength to almost null.

Right now I have a linksys WRT54G in the car and i have to park no more
then 30ft away to have a stable signal. In the trailer I have linksys
range expander WRE54G (I always place it to the closest point to the
car) . I also have SRX - WRT54GX router not in use right now which I
bought in a hurry to help my range, when I opened I found out that is
not allowing external antenna connection which I may need...

To extend my range I came up with the following design based on info I
found on the net:

Buy a Pakervision WR3000 wireless router with guaranteed 1 mile range
unobstructed and use it as the hotspot router in the car with an
external antenna (outside top of car). Move the WRT54G router to the
trailer replace one of its antenna to external and install it top of
trailer. Install Linux kernel on WRT54G so it can act as a wireless
access point, assuming the Linux kernel allows such config.

My goal that the external antennas on the top of the vehicles can
communicate extending my range hundreds of feet. While computers can
connect to the internet in the trailer via the WRT54G which then
bounces the signal to Pakervision WR3000 router in the car which then
send the request via satellite (direcway).

I'm looking to get a couple of this type of external antenna:
5 X Range Extender Wi-Fi Booster Antenna
Magnetic Stand
Frequency: 2400-2483 MHz
Impedance: 50 Ohm
VSWR < 1.5 Average
Maximum Input Power 50 W
Antenna Length 10 inch (25 cm)
7 dBi gains
Omnidirectional Antenna
Polarization Vertical


Hope I made some sense and sorry it turned out to be and essay
Any comments/inputs on this design and/or external WIFI antennnas is
highly appreciated.

Thanks very much
Endre

(E-Mail Removed) wrote:
>... a Ford Excursion and a 30 ft travel trailer.
>The car has a satellite broadband internet access and
>acts as a mobile hotspot for the trailer. The goal is to park the car
>where the sky is clear and have internet access in the trailer via WIFI
>which maybe parked in campsite that are shaded for satellite access.

Sounds like fun.

>I'm looking to extend the range between the car and trailer. Both car
>and trailer are metal, and have tinted windows which reduces signal
>strength to almost null.

External antennas will be necessary on both ends.

>Right now I have a linksys WRT54G in the car and i have to park no more

The WRT54G is a good choice.

>then 30ft away to have a stable signal. In the trailer I have linksys
>range expander WRE54G (I always place it to the closest point to the
>car) . I also have SRX - WRT54GX router not in use right now which I
>bought in a hurry to help my range, when I opened I found out that is
>not allowing external antenna connection which I may need...

Neither of those are useful, due to the lack of an external
antenna connection, in the scenario you are looking at. (Since you
have it, at the end I'll suggest a way to use the WRT54GX.)

>To extend my range I came up with the following design based on info I
>found on the net:
>
>Buy a Pakervision WR3000 wireless router with guaranteed 1 mile range
>unobstructed and use it as the hotspot router in the car with an
>external antenna (outside top of car). Move the WRT54G router to the

I'm not familiar with a WR3000. I would *not* rely on any
"guaranteed 1 mile range", but would want to know what the power
output is and what the gain of the antenna is.

I would get another WRT54G... and one major reason for that is
because you are talking about using the WRT54G as a WDS
repeater, and it is very difficult to predict how well it will
work with another brand of equipment.

>trailer replace one of its antenna to external and install it top of

That will probably work. It requires the trailer WRT54G be set
up as a WDS repeater. It also means, with the two antennas both
actually being used, that the unit will be switching back and
forth between them. I'm not sure just what the total effect of
that will be, but given that your Internet bandwidth is
significantly less than the potential bandwidth of the wifi
link, it probably does not matter at all.

>trailer. Install Linux kernel on WRT54G so it can act as a wireless
>access point, assuming the Linux kernel allows such config.

The WRT54G, out of the box, has a Linux kernel. I assume you
mean you are thinking of installing third party firmware. That
isn't necessary to make this all work, but is certainly nicer
and more fun to do with the third party firmware than with the
default firmware.

>My goal that the external antennas on the top of the vehicles can
>communicate extending my range hundreds of feet. While computers can
>connect to the internet in the trailer via the WRT54G which then
>bounces the signal to Pakervision WR3000 router in the car which then
>send the request via satellite (direcway).

That should provide some nice versatility.

One question I would ask is how much hardware setup time is
acceptable for each time you put this into operation? If you
want the antennas permanently mounted on either vehicle, that is
very different than if you can put them up and take them down
each time. A directional antenna requires at least some
adjustment each time, so it could not be just mounted and never
touched again. And many high gain antennas simply wouldn't be
suitable for leaving up while traveling. But of course higher
gain antennas will extend the range, and provide some isolation
from interference, so that might be useful on one or both ends
of the link.

>I'm looking to get a couple of this type of external antenna:
>5 X Range Extender Wi-Fi Booster Antenna
>Magnetic Stand

Non permanent?

....
>7 dBi gains
>Omnidirectional Antenna
>Polarization Vertical

Not much gain. The antennas that come with a WRT54G, and
virtually all that are similar to those, are perhaps 2-3 dBi. A
7 dBi antenna is 4-5 dB more, which will add some distance, but
will probably less than double the range. Figure on 6 dB being
enough to double the distance over which the link will function
at any given data rate. (However, with no obstructions, those
2-3 dBi antennas should be good for at least 3-400 yards.)

Jeff Liebermann will be able to cite a few specific antenna
designs off the top of his head, so I won't because I'd have to
do research and actually learn something...

>Hope I made some sense and sorry it turned out to be and essay
>Any comments/inputs on this design and/or external WIFI antennnas is
>highly appreciated.

If you don't mind setting up the external antennas each time you
do this (and I assume the Internet access takes significant
setup effort, so this would add only a small effort relatively),
you can use just about any directional antenna design, and could
easily choose something with significantly more gain than a 7
dBi antenna.

Another possible way to go is get another WRT54G and some low
loss coax and mounting hardware to locate its antenna
permanently on the top of the trailer. Then use a high gain
antenna on your existing WRT54G in the car. The only per use
setup required would be at the car.

Inside the trailer, install *both* the new WRT54G (which will be
configured as a client, connecting to the WRT54G configured as an
AP at the car) and your existing WRT54GX. Connect those two with
ethernet between the LAN ports. Your in trailer wifi clients will
connect to the WRT54GX, and use the WRT54G units as a point to point
link to the satellite system.

Send the WRE54G to me.

--
Floyd L. Davidson <http://web.newsguy.com/floyd_davidson>
Ukpeagvik (Barrow, Alaska) (E-Mail Removed)

On Thu, 05 May 2005 13:33:39 -0800, (E-Mail Removed) (Floyd L.
Davidson) wrote:

>>7 dBi gains
>>Omnidirectional Antenna
>>Polarization Vertical

>Not much gain. The antennas that come with a WRT54G, and
>virtually all that are similar to those, are perhaps 2-3 dBi.

If you include the connector and tiny cable loss, the antenna gain is
more like 1.3 to 2.0dB gain depending on sloppiness of contruction.

>A 7 dBi antenna is 4-5 dB more, which will add some distance, but
>will probably less than double the range. Figure on 6 dB being
>enough to double the distance over which the link will function
>at any given data rate. (However, with no obstructions, those
>2-3 dBi antennas should be good for at least 3-400 yards.)

Agreed. The original requirement was for 30ft. I'm wondering why he
couldn't just grab a roll of stranded CAT5 and roll it out between the
car and the trailer. Methinks 30ft wireless links are a rather wasted
effort.

>Jeff Liebermann will be able to cite a few specific antenna
>designs off the top of his head, so I won't because I'd have to
>do research and actually learn something...

Gee thanks. Methinks an omni makes sense for this application.
There's no way to predict exactly in what direction the car and
trailer will be oriented. It's one less thing to adjust. The range
is short so gain isn't a big issue. Bandwidth is limited by the
satellite system, so there's no need for super S/N ratio. Yeah, an
omni will work. If you want to spend money, just about any decent
omni will work:
http://www.fab-corp.com (Antennas-Omni)
I don't have any idea about the mounting and cable restrictions, so I
can't suggest a specific model. If a mag mount seems ideal, then one
of the 5.5dBi magentic mount antennas seem tolerable (and cheap).


--
# Jeff Liebermann 150 Felker St #D Santa Cruz CA 95060
# 831.336.2558 voice http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
# (E-Mail Removed)
# (E-Mail Removed) AE6KS

It is a fun project.

Floyd and Jeff, first thank you very much taking your time and giving
so much thought and feedback to my project.

To answer some of your questions:
The internet hardware setup very minimal (Model: DataStorm D2), power
the system, wait for GPS signal and push the search button on the
satellite controller. It will align to satellite and connect to
internet automatically in 5-15 minutes.

The satellite connection is pretty slow compare to WIFI. Currently the
upload speed: 15-70kbs, Download speed:200-700kbs. I'm getting a
different satellite system later (INETVUE .98 meter) which will
increase the upload up to 256kbs and download up to 1.5mbs.

I use Cat5 cable now between the car and trailer and I want to keep
that option as well. However I had scenario where my car had to be
parked the other side of roadway where I could not use cable connection
between trailer and car.

I'm looking for permanent installed external antennas and rather not
adjust those if all possible. I thought of magnetic because of easy
installation.

I'm only looking to maximize my internet speeds through the WIFI. I
won't need 1 mile range either but few hundred yards would be nice.
There will be no cable connection between the car and the trailer
unless I stay longer time in a place. The car will be totally self
powered has solar and plenty of batteries to run the system without
touching for days (depending how much Sun it gets).

I will have to give another thought of the WR3000, it make sense how
different brand would be difficult or impossible to synchronize. I was
just not impressed the WRT54G transmission power. It seems to me drops
signal much sooner then an earlier B model I had years ago. I could be
way wrong since I didn't do any measurements.

Floyed:
I thought I have to install a 3rd party firmware to use the WRT54G as a
WDS repeater. Under what menu I set it up as WDS on the Linksys OS?


I've been living on the trailer for 5 months, what I learned that I
travel and move a lot so I'm looking minimal setup. Stop, push a
button, brew a cup of coffee and start working over the internet

Thank you
Endre

I predict that you will.

Barry

On 7 May 2005 12:42:21 -0700, (E-Mail Removed) wrote:

>The satellite connection is pretty slow compare to WIFI. Currently the
>upload speed: 15-70kbs, Download speed:200-700kbs. I'm getting a
>different satellite system later (INETVUE .98 meter) which will
>increase the upload up to 256kbs and download up to 1.5mbs.

I think you mean INetVu:
http://www.highspeedsat.com/inetvu.htm
http://www.c-comsat.com/iNetVu_mobile.html
Are you sure StarBand, DirectWay, and others offer 1500/256 service?
I don't think so (but might be wrong).

>However I had scenario where my car had to be
>parked the other side of roadway where I could not use cable connection
>between trailer and car.

Well, running CAT5 across the road isn't a great idea.

>I'm looking for permanent installed external antennas and rather not
>adjust those if all possible. I thought of magnetic because of easy
>installation.

The problem with the maggot mount antennas is not the antenna or the
magnet. It's the tiny coax cable that goes between the antenna and
the radio. It's invariably too long and VERY lossy. You may have
5.5dBi of gain in the antenna, but if the coax has a loss of 5.5dB,
then you have a net gain of zilch. Might as well put the access point
in a window and use the stock antennas (assuming you have line of
sight). Looking at the maggot mount omnis on:
http://www.fab-corp.com
I find that they come with 5ft of RG-174 coax for a loss of about 3dB.
That's half your tx power and half your receiver sensitivity gone up
in smog. Add the loss of the pigtail (if any) and coax connectors
(1dB per pair), and the maggot mount antenna offers only a slight net
gain.

>I'm only looking to maximize my internet speeds through the WIFI. I
>won't need 1 mile range either but few hundred yards would be nice.

Nail down the numbers please. At short range, almost any antenna will
work. At about 300ft, you'll be into a directional antenna at one
end. At "a few hundred yards", you'll certainly be into direction
antennas at both ends unless you want to tolerate a VERY narrow
vertical beamwidth on a high gain omni antenna. That will only work
if the camper and vehicle are both level and at the same elevation.

>I was
>just not impressed the WRT54G transmission power.

I just measured my WRT54G. About +13dBm in 802.11g. +15dBm in
802.11b. However, my accuracy sucks because my test equipment is
either ancient or home made. Increasing the TX power to improve the
range must be done at both ends. If you want high power (+20dBm and
+23dBm) and a rather good quality receiver, look into one of the Senao
based wireless bridges:
http://www.seattlewireless.net/index.cgi/SenaoCard
Note that these are 802.11b, not 802.11g. That will limit you to
about 3Mbits/sec thruput. However, that should be sufficient for your
satellite extension. I would still go with the WRT54G.

>Floyed:
>I thought I have to install a 3rd party firmware to use the WRT54G as a
>WDS repeater. Under what menu I set it up as WDS on the Linksys OS?

It's not in the stock Linksys firmware. However Sveasoft Satori has
it as well as other firmware mutations. The availability of such
features is one one reason why I like the WRT54G.

>I've been living on the trailer for 5 months, what I learned that I
>travel and move a lot so I'm looking minimal setup. Stop, push a
>button, brew a cup of coffee and start working over the internet

OK, that means omnidirectional antennas on both ends. Let's run the
numbers and see how far you can go using maggot mount antennas and a
pair of WRT54G radios:
Distance = Unknown
TX power = +15dBm
TX coax loss = 4dB
TX ant gain = 5.5dbi
Fade Margin = 20dB
RX ant gain = 5.5dBi
RX coax loss = 4dB
RX sens = -88dBm (at 6Mbits/sec OFDM)

Plugging into:
http://www.terabeam.com/support/calculations/som.php
and trying various distance values until we get 20dB fade margin, I
find that this arrangement will work to about 0.12 miles or 753 ft.
Good enough methinks. I think the 4dB coax losses are a bit
optimistic, but good enough for now.


--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 AE6KS 831-336-2558

Jeff Liebermann <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>On 7 May 2005 12:42:21 -0700, (E-Mail Removed) wrote:

>>I'm looking for permanent installed external antennas and rather not
>>adjust those if all possible. I thought of magnetic because of easy
>>installation.
>
>The problem with the maggot mount antennas is not the antenna or the
>magnet.

Do those things actually hold on that well? I've never tried
one, but I just can't bring myself to trust something like that.
I'd want it *bolted* down.

>It's the tiny coax cable that goes between the antenna and
>the radio. It's invariably too long and VERY lossy. You may have
>5.5dBi of gain in the antenna, but if the coax has a loss of 5.5dB,

For Endre's benefit, let me say that it *absolutely* the case.

The fewer connectors and the fewer/shorter the lengths of lossy
coax, the better. Spending good money on high gain antennas and
saving money on cheap feedline is counter productive. The ideal
physical design is a relatively short run of low loss coax and
does not require a pigtail (a short length of more flexible, but
high loss, coax with the right connections on each end).

Antennas with 'N' connectors are the right ones. The ideal run
would use less that 4 feet of 1/2" semi-rigid low loss coax with
an 'N' to whatever converter at the end. Rather than a short
bit of flexible coax, a non-rigid mount for the radio is good
too.

Even a very plain 3 dBi antenna with that setup will out perform
a much more expensive arrangement using coax and various
connectors chosen to make the installation simple and/or easy to
look at.

>then you have a net gain of zilch. Might as well put the access point
>in a window and use the stock antennas (assuming you have line of

The stock antenna on a unit mounted in a window has just about
*ZERO* loss from connectors and cables!

>sight). Looking at the maggot mount omnis on:
>>I'm only looking to maximize my internet speeds through the WIFI. I
>>won't need 1 mile range either but few hundred yards would be nice.
>
>Nail down the numbers please. At short range, almost any antenna will
>work. At about 300ft, you'll be into a directional antenna at one
>end. At "a few hundred yards", you'll certainly be into direction
>antennas at both ends unless you want to tolerate a VERY narrow
>vertical beamwidth on a high gain omni antenna. That will only work
>if the camper and vehicle are both level and at the same elevation.

I just *like* the added flex available with at least one high
gain antenna. It's difficult to know what sort of requirements
will come up with a mobile unit, so I'd go with at least a high
gain antenna for the car, and would probably settle for an omni
permanently mounted on the trailer.

>>I was
>>just not impressed the WRT54G transmission power.
>
>I just measured my WRT54G. About +13dBm in 802.11g. +15dBm in
>802.11b.

Is that with it set for the default 28 milliwatts output? Doesn't
look too bad. 28 mw would be 14.47 dBm, so it certainly tracks.

>However, my accuracy sucks because my test equipment is
>either ancient or home made. Increasing the TX power to improve the
>range must be done at both ends. If you want high power (+20dBm and

Of course the WRT54G(S) can be cranked up at least 4-6 dB, so it
is then right at that "high power" range too. They can
do 254 mw, which would be +24 dBm, but I'm not sure how long it
would last at that power. I know that short term they do in fact
work at that output, and at least don't burn out in one day.

Everything I seen in writing suggests the Linksys has pretty
good receivers, though I'm not able to verify that.

>>I thought I have to install a 3rd party firmware to use the WRT54G as a
>>WDS repeater. Under what menu I set it up as WDS on the Linksys OS?
>
>It's not in the stock Linksys firmware. However Sveasoft Satori has
>it as well as other firmware mutations. The availability of such
>features is one one reason why I like the WRT54G.

These things are just too much fun!

Sveasoft just released the free 1.0 version of Alchemy, the
successor to their Satori firmware. It very definitely improves
on the Web interface, though there doesn't seem to be any
significance for those who is using a command line interface.

Specifically they now have a web interface to manipulate the
vlan configuration for the ethernet bridge. So what before was
just "AP Isolation" is now fairly flexible. They also have
a better status display, which will show the received signal
strength for the connected clients. It also does a "site survey"
which displays information about all received signals.

All of that was of course available via the command line with
the Sartori firmware, but those who only use the WEB interface
will find the improved functionality very nice.

I sorta went over the edge. I downloaded the Linksys source
code distribution as well as the Sveasoft source code. That is
right at 250 Mb over a dialup modem... it literally took all
day long.

But, I now have a cross compiler set up and can easily generate
a binary for any program that I want to run on the WRT54G. (I
dislike vi, so the first real program is a stripped down version
of MicroEmacs!)

But I also added the ability to nfs mount filesystems. Now,
rather than being limited by the 16Mb total RAM split between
the filesystem and the cpu, and rather than needing to recompile
and reload the entire firmware to get access to new programs...
I just mount a few gigs of disk from the box with the cross
compiler.

I haven't done anything particularly useful with it, but it
certainly has great entertainment value.

>>I've been living on the trailer for 5 months, what I learned that I
>>travel and move a lot so I'm looking minimal setup. Stop, push a
>>button, brew a cup of coffee and start working over the internet
>
>OK, that means omnidirectional antennas on both ends. Let's run the
>numbers and see how far you can go using maggot mount antennas and a
>pair of WRT54G radios:
> Distance = Unknown
> TX power = +15dBm
> TX coax loss = 4dB
> TX ant gain = 5.5dbi
> Fade Margin = 20dB
> RX ant gain = 5.5dBi
> RX coax loss = 4dB
> RX sens = -88dBm (at 6Mbits/sec OFDM)
>
>Plugging into:
> http://www.terabeam.com/support/calculations/som.php
>and trying various distance values until we get 20dB fade margin, I
>find that this arrangement will work to about 0.12 miles or 753 ft.
>Good enough methinks. I think the 4dB coax losses are a bit
>optimistic, but good enough for now.

That looks accurate to me. I'd note that if enough thought is
given to engineering the antenna systems, probably at least 8 dB
of extra gain can be picked up. And at least 4-5 dB more power
can be used too, with the WRT54G units. Instead of 250 yards,
maybe 1000 yards is possible with reliable solid connections.

(Of course no matter how well this all works, the instant an 18
wheeler pulls up and parks right between the car and the
trailer, it all goes to Hell in a hand basket anyway.)

--
Floyd L. Davidson <http://web.newsguy.com/floyd_davidson>
Ukpeagvik (Barrow, Alaska) (E-Mail Removed)

On Sat, 07 May 2005 20:43:17 -0800, (E-Mail Removed) (Floyd L.
Davidson) wrote:

>Do those things actually hold on that well? I've never tried
>one, but I just can't bring myself to trust something like that.
>I'd want it *bolted* down.

They vary substantially. I have about a dozen assorted magnet mounts
for my assortment of ham and commerical antennas. (Real hams drill
the holes). The mag mounts will not stick to a curved surface making
positioning important. Some have such a grip that they are impossible
to release without gouging the paint job. Others are so weak that the
wind will blow them over. In general, the bigger the magnet base, the
better it holds.

>The fewer connectors and the fewer/shorter the lengths of lossy
>coax, the better.

Drivel: One of the demos I give erratically for the ham clubs and
commerical radio cronies is to take every coax cable adapter in my
collection, string them in series, and measure the loss. I usually do
th

>I just *like* the added flex available with at least one high
>gain antenna. It's difficult to know what sort of requirements
>will come up with a mobile unit, so I'd go with at least a high
>gain antenna for the car, and would probably settle for an omni
>permanently mounted on the trailer.

Fine. Then find me a spring mounted 2.4GHz omni. Something with a
3/8"-24 thread. I could probably build one with a little bracketry,
but I can't buy one. Maybe Ed can add it to his product line. The
problem is that all of the high gain omni antennas are long and
designed for mast, pipe, or tower mounting. However, campers and
vehicles need to deal with tree branches which means flexible or
spring mounted antennas, not rigid fiberglass tubing. Maybe a tilt
over marine antenna mount.

>>I just measured my WRT54G. About +13dBm in 802.11g. +15dBm in
>>802.11b.
>
>Is that with it set for the default 28 milliwatts output? Doesn't
>look too bad. 28 mw would be 14.47 dBm, so it certainly tracks.

Yes. It's my WRT54Gv1.1 running Sveasoft Satori, with everything on
the Wireless -> Advanced page set to defaults. Power level at 28.
However, the accuracy of my test equipment and goofy calibration
methods are somewhat lacking. I'm guessing I'm withing +/- 2dBm
(approx +/- 30%) which isn't great. Measuring the tx power also
involves a bit of number juggling. I measure the top of the spread
spectra on the spectrum analyzer and add 10dB (bandwidth / IF BW) to
get peak power.

>Of course the WRT54G(S) can be cranked up at least 4-6 dB, so it
>is then right at that "high power" range too. They can
>do 254 mw, which would be +24 dBm, but I'm not sure how long it
>would last at that power. I know that short term they do in fact
>work at that output, and at least don't burn out in one day.

I'm guessing(tm) that 250mw output is a bit much for the Broadcom
chip. It proabably won't cook it at room temperature, but might do so
if mounted outdoors in the sun. I've been tempted to see what happens
on the spectrum analyzer when I crank up the power level. Probably
distorts and splatters badly.

>Everything I seen in writing suggests the Linksys has pretty
>good receivers, though I'm not able to verify that.

Yep. However, the main advantage of the WRT54G Broadcom chips is that
the digital noise level on the board is minimal and doesn't screw up
reception by adding a mess of noise.

>Sveasoft just released the free 1.0 version of Alchemy,

Thanks for ruining my weekend. I gotta try it.

>But, I now have a cross compiler set up and can easily generate
>a binary for any program that I want to run on the WRT54G. (I
>dislike vi, so the first real program is a stripped down version
>of MicroEmacs!)

Yech. I never could figure out emacs. Vi (or vim) rules.

>(Of course no matter how well this all works, the instant an 18
>wheeler pulls up and parks right between the car and the
>trailer, it all goes to Hell in a hand basket anyway.)

Never mind the moving obstructions. Most trailer parks and
campgrounds I've been in are full of trees. Usually, they're located
around the perifery and between parking spaces for privacy. Finding
line of sight might be a challenge.


--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Sun, 08 May 2005 00:32:22 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>>Sveasoft just released the free 1.0 version of Alchemy,
>
>Thanks for ruining my weekend. I gotta try it.

I couldn't resist. Loaded, reset to defaults, setup, and it works.
Alchemy-V1.0 v3.37.6.8sv

SNMP is nice but returns some really dumb comments. Time to find a
MIB file. Well, maybe not. It's 1AM and I'm ready to drop.

Thanks much.


--
Jeff Liebermann (E-Mail Removed)
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 AE6KS 831-336-2558

Jeff Liebermann <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>Floyd L. Davidson wrote:
>
>>The fewer connectors and the fewer/shorter the lengths of lossy
>>coax, the better.
>
>Drivel: One of the demos I give erratically for the ham clubs and
>commerical radio cronies is to take every coax cable adapter in my
>collection, string them in series, and measure the loss. I usually do
>th

I'm not sure what you were going to say there... But my guess
is that the loss from all of those nice connectors strung
together isn't that bad. It probably isn't.

But take the same bunch of connectors and put them like that and
hang the whole thing out the 2nd floor window, and leave it
there for a year or two. Then measure it. It may not be so
good by then...

Excess cable is a guaranteed loser. Excess connectors are just
potential losers. If they are properly installed and sealed up
agains moisture, and then never disturbed, they're fine.

>>I just *like* the added flex available with at least one high
>>gain antenna. It's difficult to know what sort of requirements
>>will come up with a mobile unit, so I'd go with at least a high
>>gain antenna for the car, and would probably settle for an omni
>>permanently mounted on the trailer.
>
>Fine. Then find me a spring mounted 2.4GHz omni. Something with a
>3/8"-24 thread. I could probably build one with a little bracketry,
>but I can't buy one. Maybe Ed can add it to his product line. The
>problem is that all of the high gain omni antennas are long and
>designed for mast, pipe, or tower mounting. However, campers and
>vehicles need to deal with tree branches which means flexible or
>spring mounted antennas, not rigid fiberglass tubing. Maybe a tilt
>over marine antenna mount.

That's the reason for an omni on the trailer (a short whip that
can flex will do it), and using the high gain at the car where
it all has to be setup up each time.

>>>I just measured my WRT54G. About +13dBm in 802.11g. +15dBm in
>>>802.11b.
>>
>>Is that with it set for the default 28 milliwatts output? Doesn't
>>look too bad. 28 mw would be 14.47 dBm, so it certainly tracks.
>
>Yes. It's my WRT54Gv1.1 running Sveasoft Satori, with everything on
>the Wireless -> Advanced page set to defaults. Power level at 28.
>However, the accuracy of my test equipment and goofy calibration
>methods are somewhat lacking. I'm guessing I'm withing +/- 2dBm
>(approx +/- 30%) which isn't great. Measuring the tx power also
>involves a bit of number juggling. I measure the top of the spread
>spectra on the spectrum analyzer and add 10dB (bandwidth / IF BW) to
>get peak power.

Pick up an older HP power meter. You *can't* measure average
power with a spectrum analyzer.

>>But, I now have a cross compiler set up and can easily generate
>>a binary for any program that I want to run on the WRT54G. (I
>>dislike vi, so the first real program is a stripped down version
>>of MicroEmacs!)
>
>Yech. I never could figure out emacs. Vi (or vim) rules.

Everyone has strange quirks. Guess you are entitled to one or
two... but along with the three or four we tripped on last week
and the month before, frankly I'm beginning to wonder about you.

--
Floyd L. Davidson <http://web.newsguy.com/floyd_davidson>
Ukpeagvik (Barrow, Alaska) (E-Mail Removed)