"Ellen MacArthur" wrote in message
reenews.net...
Thanks, Gilligan. Your a dear. I don't understand all that technical
stuff. Decibels are for
sound waves. I just can't figure out how they apply to radio waves when
you can't even hear
them. But I just ordered one of the antennas. Anything's gotta be better
than the weak little
antenna inside my laptop. Should I set the rate inside the card driver
properties at 1 Mbps to
make it work the best?

Cheers,
Ellen

I think your system will set the optimum data rate on its own. It will work
fine at 1 Mbps.

If your laptop had an external antenna connector and you could keep the
antenna cable short, you can get some real range with a directional antenna
15 dBi gain. Presently, with my notebook, I can only hack about 1/4 mile
with its built in antenna. You can put the notebook in your car and drive
around town (especially near hotels and cafes) and use their access.