Topic: Converting to Wi Fi at Home

[Ex-airbalancer]

The Bell wireless modem is $2 a month

[wing]

But it sucks, I thought we went over that

[Ex-airbalancer]

But it sucks, I thought we went over that

Found the correct location, it works fine now

[UmroAyyar]

But it sucks, I thought we went over that

Found the correct location, it works fine now

With that HDTV of yours, you could still use the rabbit ears to catch digital channels.

(sorry brig, its 2nd page already )

[Ex-airbalancer]

But it sucks, I thought we went over that

Found the correct location, it works fine now

With that HDTV of yours, you could still use the rabbit ears to catch digital channels.

(sorry brig, its 2nd page already )

I have reading a bit of that on  http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=81
I was thinking of trying it out.
The closes signal would be 100 km away, probably to far for rabbit ears

[tpl]

ms B  get a Linksys.   the wrt54G2 is probably the best bet at 45$ or so.  The "2" suffix is the new look and comes with the MAC "instructions". Earlier versions did not and had to be set up the old fashioned way first.   Linksys are now part of Cisco which is a GOOD thing.

If at some point you want to print wirelessly  you can get several wifi printers that really work. I have a HP Photosmart that does photo qual, regular qual , copying, faxing and works usb/ethernet/wifi. I am using it wifi currently. The printer has MAC drivers. As for the dell, persuade your work IT people to load any drivers you need AND you may need to persuade them to allow the machine to use wifi.

[Railton]

Lack of privileges will probably keep your work laptop from being able to print (and may even keep it off the wireless network).  You will have to talk to your IT department, and they may be able to install the appropriate drivers there for you to use at home, or they can boost your privileges for a day while you go home and install it (corporate policy may forbid that ).

My office laptop I can use wireless (for ex. the Maple Leaf Lounge) however, if I try to connect to the VPN wirelessly it's a non-starter. I think it's a security issue and you might also have the same problem Brig.
Railton

[Brig]

My office laptop I can use wireless (for ex. the Maple Leaf Lounge) however, if I try to connect to the VPN wirelessly it's a non-starter. I think it's a security issue and you might also have the same problem Brig.
Railton

Well, I guess we'll see what happens.  I don't usually require sustained network drive access, so no biggie.  We have MAX VPN with that Cisco RSA SercurID key -- not sure if that will make a difference or not. 

[initial_D]

Wireless & VPN are like triple_layer data packing on the ip packets, will definitely slow things for starter. Then there is the compatibility issue with the different type & level encryption algorithm.

There are dedicated routers that are designed specifically for vpn access, Linksys makes a few of them, starts at around $90 retail. I use a wired VPN router, and add a wireless Access Point for WiFi access.

[The Mighty Duck]

What OS are you running on the iMac?  'Cause if you're using 10.5, these are a really handy tool.  They do cost a pretty penny, though. 

Otherwise, a regular wireless router shouldn't run more than ~$50.  Although from the last time I bought one, I seem to recall the cheaper ones don't have as good of range as the more expensive ones, so if you've got a big house...

[dr_spock]

You can also use a wireless print server device if your wireless router doesn't come with a USB printer server option.   It might be a good idea to do a site survey to determine the optimal location of your wireless router/access point and which wireless channel and how much radio power to use.

Good luck.

[Schmengie]

It's simple to set up a shared printer in Windows. After installing the drivers on my laptop and second PC, I just enabled printer sharing in the printer properties on my main PC. (That's the one the printer's connected to) The printer's a 4-year old Canon Pixma iP6000D and I can print to it from any computer on my network. I've never used a Mac, so I'm not sure how you would set one up this way.

[Brig]

What OS are you running on the iMac?  'Cause if you're using 10.5, these are a really handy tool.  They do cost a pretty penny, though. 

Otherwise, a regular wireless router shouldn't run more than ~$50.  Although from the last time I bought one, I seem to recall the cheaper ones don't have as good of range as the more expensive ones, so if you've got a big house...

I have a ~950 sq. ft. apartment.     And I'm running OS 10.4.11.

[Ex-airbalancer]

What OS are you running on the iMac?  'Cause if you're using 10.5, these are a really handy tool.  They do cost a pretty penny, though. 

Otherwise, a regular wireless router shouldn't run more than ~$50.  Although from the last time I bought one, I seem to recall the cheaper ones don't have as good of range as the more expensive ones, so if you've got a big house...

I have a ~950 sq. ft. apartment.      And I'm running OS 10.4.11.

do you feel you are people ignore list, as you have wrote about your view from your apartment many times

[wing]

Geez this is complicated.

Brig, just go to futureshop / bestbuy / staples / whatever get a wireless G router and be done with it.

I bought a D-link, it's in the basement of my house I get full signal everywhere including the garage and outside, plug and play. Can't use my printer but I don't care, it's USB I just plug my laptop into when I need it.

[dr_spock]

I had to turn down the power of my DLink because the radio signal was going way too far outside of my house for my security paranoia. 

Since it is a apartment, one can get a 200 foot cable and move it around.  I did that in the old days before wireless.    

[Wetson]

Brig... I have the same setup at home that you want.  We have 2 laptops and 1 desktop hooked up to our wireless router all wireless.  We have the printer hooked up to a print server/router (Looks similar to regular router).  The printer server is wirelessly connected to the router.  Works like a charm and relatively easy to set up.  If your printer has a network cable you can hook it directly to the router and skip the print server.  Some wireless routers even come with a usb port in the back that you can hook your printer into.  It all depends on where everything is.

[UmroAyyar]

Brigitte, something like this will solve the problem. You don't have to tweak the settings too much as long as the tech support people let you install the printer driver on your laptop computer.

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=10530NW9130&vpn=WL-520GU&manufacture=ASUS

[Brig]

do you feel you are people ignore list, as you have wrote about your view from your apartment many times

Did you say something, AirB?    

Well, Demo asked if I was in a house, so I felt the need to reiterate. 

Thanks to the rest of you.  Was at a conference all day in Montreal, so just read your responses now.  I think I will follow Wing's advice. 

[Railton]

do you feel you are people ignore list, as you have wrote about your view from your apartment many times

Thanks to the rest of you.  Was at a conference all day in Montreal, so just read your responses now.  I think I will follow Wing's advice. 

...and let me know if you get your VPN working on wireless.
Railton