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Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30
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New MessageAnypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) ckbone
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Walmart has these on clearance for $30....maybe $20 for the PCMCIA version. I got three USB models last night. These are the 1.6mbps versions. Before you load any software, download the latest version from Intel. This latest version has support for XP. This works fine for internet connection sharing, playing MP3s, small file transfer, etc....
02-05-2002 10:57:56

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) ckbone
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http://computers.cnet.com/hardware/0-7054-404-1664868.html?tag=st.co.7054-402.pdtl.7054-404-1664868
02-05-2002 11:18:51

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) BubbaDog56
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ckbone,
These could be just the ticket for my daughter's PC downstairs and the wife's iO on the kitchen counter, I'm looking at a major PITA to run hardwire from my system upstairs to get them on the cable modem. I'm running a Linksys Router for the 3 hardwired system upstairs, how can I interface the Intel wireless into this setup? TIA for any help, this price is too good to be true if it will do what I want....

B'Dog

02-05-2002 19:58:36

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 1 times) Kudzu
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I'm looking at a major PITA to run hardwire from my system upstairs to get them on the cable modem.

Have you considered HomePNA as an alternative? If all systems are close to a phone jack, a HPNA to Ethernet bridge, 1 usb and 1 pci HPNA nic would make for an easy setup and integration into your current hardwired ethernet system.


I'm running a Linksys Router for the 3 hardwired system upstairs, how can I interface the Intel wireless into this setup?

You'd have to use Internet Connection Sharing, or a similar scheme. The 1.6 cards are HomeRF, and aren't compatible with the Intel wireless II gateway.

This unfortunately requires the ICS gateway system to be on for the wireless points to access the ethernet side of your network, and the internet.

02-06-2002 00:32:14

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) ckbone
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Well....I got two computers networked now using this setup. Soyo running XP and an EasyNow running W98. I used the driver off the included cdrom for W98, and the downloaded new XP driver. I also had to download the new Intel connection suite, once for XP and again for W98 (about 10 mb each). After installing the new software on the two computers, I also had to run the network setup off the XP cdrom on both computers. Kind of screwy, but when it was over, everything works ok. This is not nearly as fast as an HPNA setup, but being wireless does have it's advantages. I went back to walmart and bought a PCMCIA card for $30....maybe I can get my p90 thinkpad(no USB) working in this network....don't see why not. Pretty neat setup....
02-07-2002 18:29:29

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) ckbone
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FWIW....I think (don't quote me yet) you can bridge different LAN connections using XP's network connection software.....EasyNow AnyPoint to Soyo Anypoint to other computers on the HPNA network using the HPNA card in the SOYO. We'll see.
02-07-2002 18:36:45

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) ckbone
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In case anyone is still interested in this type of setup, I found several Proxim Symphony HRF wireless USB adapters on clearance at BestBuy ($29). I got one and set it up on a EasyNow computer (win98), It interfaces perfectly with the Intel AnyPoint LAN. Just another cheap entry into the wireless Lan setups. Bestbuy also had some Proxim pcmcia wireless cards for the same price....$29.
02-20-2002 19:30:32

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) BubbaDog56
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ckbone,

Are these the older Proxim cards that run at 1.2mbps? If so, what kind of results are you getting for real-world throughput? Are they adequate for surfing and MP3s? Tiger Direct has the USB/PCMCIA/PCI flavors of this for $24.95, but BestBuy is faster to get in hand (and easier if there are any problems)....

B'Dog

02-21-2002 06:23:05

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) ckbone
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These are the Proxim 1.6mbps versions, same as the Anypoint lan adapters. According to the box, these are compatable with any system that uses HRF. I haven't tried any of these very far apart....this is a small house. But they play mp3s just fine, file transfer is ok...not very fast though. They should share a modem connection ok....I did try it once. Don't know about anything faster.....
02-21-2002 10:19:45

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) Zogg
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All the Proxim Symphony stuff is 1.6Mbps. The older version did not support HomeRF and only supported Proxim's proprietary protocol, but the newer stuff labeled HRF will work with any HomeRF device as well as the older Proxim stuff.

I have the older version at home. I have a Symphony Ethernet Bridge (now the industry calls them Access points) that I hacked with a gain antenna and it made a HUGE difference in performance. You can get an adapter for the PCMCIA to put a better antenna on it, and I'm sure that the USB could be hacked fairly easily. So if one of your computers is stationary, I'd put a gain 2.4GHz antenna on it and you will definitely see a difference.

You can find the antennas for as low as $60 - I paid $40 on E-bay. I got some RG-188 coax from a surplus store and scrounged some connectors to make the right adapter to hook it all up. For the PCMCIA, just find a Proxim external antenna for a RangeLan-2 (looks like a short pencil with coax coming from it) and try that. If it doesn't help, then get a gain antenna (or build one), cut the pencil antenna off, then solder the coax to the gain antenna, or put a connector on the coax and hook it up to the antenna. Just make sure the braid and the inner conductor on the coax are not shorted together and it's that easy. And if you ever upgrade, a 2.4GHz antenna also works for 802.11b and will help it's performance, too.

I'm sure the 11Mbps 802.11b stuff is still faster, but it's nice knowing that hardly anyone driving by or in the neighborhood can tap into my wireless network because they are all using 802.11b stuff.

02-21-2002 11:02:26

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) BubbaDog56
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Zogg,

Thanks for the info, I think I'll give it a spin. Don't really need blazing speed for anything I'm doing. Software & Stuff has the HRF Gateway for $39 and the cards for $25, the Gateway is $10 cheaper than Tiger Direct. I guess I can just plug the gateway into one of the ports on my existing router and run it concurrent with my existing hardwire network.

As far as security, there is an advantage to the Home RF, since not a lot of people use it nobody is trying to find your signal like with 802.11 systems. The ZD Net review called it "Security through obscurity"....

B'Dog

02-21-2002 13:19:07

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) Zogg
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B'Dog,

'Security through obscurity' - I like it! That is exactly what I meant. Everyone is touting 802.11b stuff, but the reality is that the slower 1.6Mbit equipment works fine for surfing, email, etc. because it's still faster than almost any Internet connection including broadband.

The only downside I have found to the Proxim equipment is file transfer speeds. The reviews I have read do indicate that the Ethernet Bridge actually slows things down as opposed to just using two computers with USB/PCMCIA/PCI adapters. But I really think it's because of the antenna, because when I modified mine the transfer times increased dramatically.

I know that hacking RF is a lot different than hacking PC's, and being a ham radio operator helped because I already have a lot of useful tools. But it really isn't hard, so if you are unhappy with the performance then don't be afraid to try. If you break an adapter, the replacements are really cheap right now as you indicated.

Good luck,
Zogg

02-22-2002 09:22:05

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) JhonR
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Here's a few questions:

Can the HRF cordless gateway be used as an ethernet bridge? I'm thinking that it can -- at least partially (depending on how it shares internet access). Basically puts the wireless part of the network behind a NAT-type firewall within the home network?

Is there anyway to use a pair of cordless gateways to connect two separate wired networks? Again, as ethernet bridges? This part, I highly doubt, but it would be nice if it were possible -- particularly as I have no desire to either run cable under my house or spend several hundred dollars on 802.11 bridges.

-jhon

02-24-2002 16:37:02

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) Zogg
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JhonR:

Yes, the Cordless gateway is a bridge between the wired network and the wireless network. It will do NAT for you, but I don't run it that way. I put it in a mode where it just bridges between the network segments, and as long as everything is in the same subnet all the devices will talk. I let my firewall/router handle NAT out to the Internet.

No, you can't use two of them to bridge two wired networks. However, there are now some 802.11b devices that will do that function. I know Linksys has one and I think I saw a D-Link the other day. They are in the $175 price range, but that is a LOT cheaper than wireless bridges used to be.

You could possibly have a Proxim Gateway in one location, and a remote PC with a PCI or USB adapter to talk to the Gateway, and let the OS on the remote PC route traffic to another wired adapter. When I tried it with Windows 2000 once it did not work properly, but I bet you could get it to work with Linux. But, you would have to put a gain antenna (and probably a directional antenna like a Yagi) on the remote adapter to be able to have a reasonable amount of separation between the gateway and the remote PC.

02-24-2002 17:34:19

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) JhonR
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Zogg,

That's good news. I figured at the absolute least I would be able to hook it up through a hub to my DSL (I have 5 public IPs) and use it to share internet access. Glad to hear it does of some type of "bridge" mode.

The distance isn't too far, so I may not need to doink around with the antenna at all... About 50 ft. between nodes. The way the house is laid out makes it next to impossible to wire comfortably between halves of the house -- without going under the house.

-jhon

02-24-2002 17:49:42

New MessageRE:Anypoint Wireless USB/PCMCIA $30 (modified 0 times) BubbaDog56
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The Proxim Symphony HRF Gateway and USB Network Adapters showed up from Software and Stuff yesterday, this is too easy! Plugged the gateway into my Linksys Router upstairs (that the cable modem feeds), no software required at all. Plugged one of the USB adapters into the Moniputer downstairs, turned on the PC and installed the software. It automatically found the Gateway and configured itself, whole project took about 10 minutes total. Not near as fast as the newest stuff out there, getting about 600kbps vs. 1400kbps straight out of the router to my PC upstairs. But still faster than DSL and a h*ll of a lot better than dialup. Plus no phone wire in the room made the purchase even easier. Got another USB unit for the iOpener in the kitchen, will setup tonight and report back. Probably order one more and get rid of the cable running down the hall upstairs to my son's room. Can't beat the price for a wireless network, by the time I outgrow this the new 802.11 stuff will be affordable....

B'Dog

03-05-2002 06:17:14

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