I was reluctant to mention the following in my original post due to
the fact that it involves beta software and as such may be flakier
than desired, but DD-WRT firmware does support a wireless repeater
function:
http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php...eless_Repeater
It requires the v24 beta firmware, but the finalized v24 firmware is
expected soon. The nice thing about this setup is that you can use
your router as a bridge that is directly wired to your computer. Once
you get it working flawlessly, you just change the "wireless mode"
pull-down menu to select "repeater" and you are doing the same thing
but without the ethernet cable.
Note: I have not tried this. I am not interested in trying it. But
based on my experience with DD-WRT, I know that it works and works
well.
The one aspect of this that I like is that avoids the need for
ethernet up the mast. I am always skeptical that un-tinned, small
guage, solid wire is just not durable in a marine environment. I
expect that I will toy with this in the furture as a means of ensuring
that if even my ethernet cable corrodes to the point of being un
useable, I will just switch to repeater mode and do it wirelessly.
David
S/V Nausicaa
On Mar 30, 8:01 pm, "Skip Gundlach" wrote:
On Mar 30, 7:48 pm, Wayne.B wrote:
On 30 Mar 2007 09:55:37 -0700, "Skip Gundlach"
wrote:
My setup has a bridge at the top of the mast, and an AP in the boat.
That worked for a time, including with a Vonage router in between.
Somehow it went off the rails, and I'm currently attempting to make it
retrack.
I've been trying some new equipment since our last discussion about
WiFi. My latest acquisition is an Engenius/Senao NOC-3220 EXT which I
have configured as a bridge and interfaced with POE Cat-5 cable. It
took a while to get it working, thanks in part to my inexperience, and
thanks in part to sketchy documentation which unfortunately seems to
be par for the course.
My advice is to get your bridge first configured directly to a laptop
so that you can confirm that your settings are correct. At that point
you should be able to substitute an AP pre-configured on a different
WiFi channel (maybe ch 1 instead of 6).
Once you have the Ap/router working with a PC you should be able to
plug in the Vonage box to the router and have it take off also.
Take it one step at a time. It is important to avoid IP conflicts
and/or incorrect subnet settings.
Hi, Wayne, and list,
My objective is/was/still is to avoid repetitious plugging and
unplugging of cables. For that matter, it's my objective to set it
and forget it as to cables; I want to be able to address the bridge
wirelessly so that each new harbor can be configured without my having
to do the plug and play bit. It had been my original presumption that
I would have to do as you described, but Bill Kearney and others in
this space have asserted that it's not necessary.
I have yet to achieve a stable configuration which doesn't have the
plug/unplug/replug requirement, let alone that plus handset/dial tone
telephony, but my second generation unit(s) have yet to surface as I
have a few more pressing issues to address at the moment. Thus, I
expect to succeed at that eventually. I had it once, but it went
Tango Uniform a while into my experience which was, in a word,
ecstatic, while it lasted.
Thus, for the immediate time, I am doing as Dave has done, and have
nothing other than a mast-top configured bridge, connected to an
antenna and POE, with ethernet to my computer. It allows skype and
google internet telephony, and surf an mail, which suffices for right
now.
L8R
Skip