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I have been thru several iterations. My recommendations:

1. Get a 200 mw wifi PCMCIA card, instead of the standard 30 mw card.
SMC used to make one - don't know who else does. The SMC card is set up
for both internal and external antenna.

2. Get an external antenna. I use a 5 db gain stacked vertical:
http://www.fab-corp.com/ (look down the page for the 5.5 db gain with
the MMCX connector - this fits the SMC card) - costs $11

3. Add a reflector. This one is cheap, easy to build, and _very_
effective: http://www.freeantennas.com/projects/template/. It can be
built with much more gain than a cantenna. My first version I made
from cardboard with aluminum foil taped over it - took about 15
minutes to build, and gave approx 18 db gain above the 5 db stacked
vertical. Having proved the concept, I have a more permanent version
now ;^)

bob
s/v Eolian, DE45 #11
Seattle


On Thu, 31 Mar 2005, it was written:

I'm looking for experience with external antenna solutions to very flaky
wifi access on the boat. There's every sort of hub range improver (get your
signal out to others better) but I don't see much, if anything of the other
way around.

Topsides, the range is only flaky, but at least I can pull and send stuff,
albeit I have to choose my moments. However, the screen is invisible in
anything between dawn and dusk and the keyboard is invisible in the dark,
limiting me severely in timing/scheduling.

So, I'd like to be able to go below, where there's no reception, not to
mention, protection from the elements.

Who's used what (up the mast isn't what I had in mind, though if it made
sense (I can't imagine it would, financially), I'd look at that) in the line
of plug-in remote antennas?

I've lost the link, but I saw something which was an antenna for those
laptops without wifi, on some unknown length of USB lead; one can buy
"active" USB extensions for not too much, which I assume would make it
feasible for me to put the antenna out the hatch while I'm at the nav, for
example...

Thanks for any real-world experience...

L8R

Skip

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Morgan 461 #2
SV Flying Pig
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