Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

We started on the Great Loop in August with our two boys, one of whom
is using the Minnesota Online High School for 10th grade. We needed a
reliable connection and our research told us that free (or paid)
connections at marinas weren't going to be sufficient, and we were sure
right about that. Also, we anchor out a lot. So we bought the Verizon
Broadband Aircard and the associated Kyocera KR1 router that it fits
into, because our laptaps don't take the card.

We are very impressed with the coverage and speed. It even worked in
place like Whitefish Bay on Lake Superior where I'm not even sure they
have electricity yet. It has failed us in only five spots since August
4, places we couldn't get much of a cell signal either. The router
allows us wifi all over the boat, the anchorage and marina also. No
wonder we have made so many friends on this trip! Make sure to buy the
extra antenna that fits into the card. We aren't affiliated with
verizon and doubt if they will give us any commissions for the
promotion.

Now all we have to do is to figure out a similar sysem for the Bahamas.
We are familiar with the coverage and Outer Island Internet in the
Abacos, but would rather not buy a whole new setup to use for only six
weeks.

Jeff, Sally and the boys on "Adirondack"

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Tell us about the plan that you got from Verizon for internet connection.
How much does it cost a month and what kind of coverage do they have?

Ansley Sawyer
SV Pacem

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

If you Google for Verizon Broadband, you should get the details.

From memory, it costs $49.95 for the card for your laptop and that's really
all you need. Then, it costs $59.95/month if you have a cellphone with
Verizon, or $79.95/month if you do not.

We used this system all down the East coast - It worked well, but there were
pockets where there was no coverage and definitely many areas away from
large centers where connections were slow - It seems to automatically switch
from hi-speed technology to slow speed where the newer technolgy does not
exist.

Regarding the Bahamas, only low cost way, is to use the free hot spots -
They do exista nd we have used them. Anyone know if there is a list
somewhere?

"Ansley W. Sawyer" wrote in message
...
Tell us about the plan that you got from Verizon for internet connection.
How much does it cost a month and what kind of coverage do they have?

Ansley Sawyer
SV Pacem

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Gm1234 wrote:
If you Google for Verizon Broadband, you should get the details.

From memory, it costs $49.95 for the card for your laptop and that's really
all you need. Then, it costs $59.95/month if you have a cellphone with
Verizon, or $79.95/month if you do not.

We used this system all down the East coast - It worked well, but there were
pockets where there was no coverage and definitely many areas away from
large centers where connections were slow - It seems to automatically switch
from hi-speed technology to slow speed where the newer technolgy does not
exist.

Regarding the Bahamas, only low cost way, is to use the free hot spots -
They do exista nd we have used them. Anyone know if there is a list
somewhere?

"Ansley W. Sawyer" wrote in message
...
Tell us about the plan that you got from Verizon for internet connection.
How much does it cost a month and what kind of coverage do they have?

Ansley Sawyer
SV Pacem




try the following site;

http://pcworld.jiwire.com/

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

brian wrote:
Gm1234 wrote:
If you Google for Verizon Broadband, you should get the details.

From memory, it costs $49.95 for the card for your laptop and that's
really
all you need. Then, it costs $59.95/month if you have a cellphone with
Verizon, or $79.95/month if you do not.

We used this system all down the East coast - It worked well, but
there were
pockets where there was no coverage and definitely many areas away from
large centers where connections were slow - It seems to automatically
switch
from hi-speed technology to slow speed where the newer technolgy does not
exist.

Regarding the Bahamas, only low cost way, is to use the free hot spots -
They do exista nd we have used them. Anyone know if there is a list
somewhere?

"Ansley W. Sawyer" wrote in message
...
Tell us about the plan that you got from Verizon for internet
connection.
How much does it cost a month and what kind of coverage do they have?

Ansley Sawyer
SV Pacem




try the following site;

http://pcworld.jiwire.com/


sorry about replying to my own response.

here is another site.

http://www.free-hotspot.com/find_home.htm

brian

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Messing In Boats" wrote in
oups.com:

So we bought the Verizon
Broadband Aircard and the associated Kyocera KR1 router that it fits
into, because our laptaps don't take the card.


Coverage is outstanding and for your application it should be very high
performance......however.....

Those interested also need to know "Unlimited Access" does NOT mean
"unlimited usage", like a wifi or cable/DSL modem provides.

Verizon, specifically, includes 5GB/month of TOTAL data. This includes
the webpage spam, email avalanche, and everything else. Cellular has
never quite gotten over selling internet by-the-kilobyte, like it did for
years. Also buried in the long "agreement" is:

http://b2b.vzw.com/broadband/bba_terms.html
"Unlimited Data Plans and Features (such as NationalAccess,
BroadbandAccess, Push to Talk, and certain VZEmail services) may ONLY be
used with wireless devices for the following purposes: (i) Internet
browsing; (ii) email; and (iii) intranet access (including access to
corporate intranets, email, and individual productivity applications like
customer relationship management, sales force, and field service
automation). The Unlimited Data Plans and Features MAY NOT be used for
any other purpose. Examples of prohibited uses include, without
limitation, the following: (i) continuous uploading, downloading or
streaming of audio or video programming or games; (ii) server devices or
host computer applications, including, but not limited to, Web camera
posts or broadcasts, automatic data feeds, automated machine–to–machine
connections or peer–to–peer (P2P) file sharing; or (iii) as a substitute
or backup for private lines or dedicated data connections. This means, by
way of example only, that checking email, surfing the Internet,
downloading legally acquired songs, and/or visiting corporate intranets
is permitted, but downloading movies using P2P file sharing services
and/or redirecting television signals for viewing on laptops is
prohibited. A person engaged in prohibited uses, continuously for one
hour, could typically use 100 to 200 MBs, or, if engaged in prohibited
uses for 10 hours a day, 7 days a week, could use more than 5 GBs in a
month.

For individual use only and not for resale. We reserve the right to
protect our network from harm, which may impact legitimate data flows. We
reserve the right to limit throughput or amount of data transferred, and
to deny or terminate service, without notice, to anyone we believe is
using an Unlimited Data Plan or Feature in any manner prohibited above or
whose usage adversely impacts our network or service levels. Anyone using
more than 5 GB per line in a given month is presumed to be using the
service in a manner prohibited above, and we reserve the right to
immediately terminate the service of any such person without notice. We
also reserve the right to terminate service upon expiration of Customer
Agreement term."

In short....no downloading, no streaming, no webcam of the boat on the
net, no gaming, no downloading MP3s from usenet or P2P, no movies,
etc....

$60/month buys you spam-soaked webpages, email and "company intranet",
which is how the school probably is configured for it....

Think it's not enforced? Read:
http://www.evdoforums.com/thread2366-0-asc-165.html
from the users, themselves. You'll see references to 10GB/month. That
was then....5GB is NOW. I guess VZW thought it was giving away the
farm....(c;

Thought I should point this LIMITED "unlimited" service out before a
bunch of liveaboards wasted money on an aircard and were slaves to a
discount contract, then got dumped for abuse and stuck with no
service....

Oh, NO VoIP services on an aircard, either! NO CHEAP SKYPE on cellular's
internet! (although I've used it and it works just fine on Verizon's
Aircards to Japan, Europe, India, etc....(c;)

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

brian wrote in :

http://www.free-hotspot.com/find_home.htm

These websites are OK, but no where near complete or accurate.

Everyone should also download Network Stumbler from:
http://www.stumbler.net/
Download and install like any other freeware/beggarware.

Run Net Stumbler on your laptop with its wifi radio on and it will LOG
and IDENTIFY every wifi broadcast it encounters. If you plug a GPS into
the laptop, one of those little USB GPS receivers works great, Net
Stumbler will log the lat/long of each wifi hotspot it encounters with
each entry. If GPS info is available, it also interfaces with Google
Maps like a chart plotter to plot all the entries in its database it
found, so you can print out a map and keep it for favorite hotspots. I
don't use this function, much. I just run Net Stumbler and pick out the
"target" hotspot in realtime for access.

Net Stumbler works much better than what XP comes with to find those
elusive open systems to use. Of course, it doesn't log onto each one of
them, so you may still encounter and password webpage logon to an open
hotspot and have to go begging/paying/spamming for access to it.

My favorite hotspots across any area are "Linksys" and "default", a
wireless router noone ever bothered to look at the setup webpage of...(c;

At Riverbend on the Ashley River you'll find the open hotspot SSID W4CSC
hooked to serious bandwidth from 50' up a tree with service up and down
the river for about a mile. Help yourself. Everyone who has bandwidth
needs to SHARE that bandwidth access with all the others....like mine.
Thanks.

Those that think if you connect to my open system as "stealing" in some
way, shouldn't. It's not illegal or immoral. One guy even beat a rap
the cops brought tracking his downloading habits. Snoopercop didn't like
the porn webpages accessed from his system. I'm sure it was him that did
the access, but because his wifi was wide open, his attorney pointed out
to the court it could have been anyone in a wide radius around his
apartment complex. As all Snoopercop had was his IP of his router...case
dismissed...(c; Mark one for personal freedoms.

--
http://www.epic.org/privacy/rfid/verichip.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VeriChip
http://www.verichipcorp.com/
Tracked like a dog, every license/product/tax.
Revelation 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor,
free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their
foreheads:
17 and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the
name of the beast, or the number of his name...

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

On Fri, 05 Jan 2007 12:47:28 -0500, Larry wrote:

Those interested also need to know "Unlimited Access" does NOT mean
"unlimited usage", like a wifi or cable/DSL modem provides.

Verizon, specifically, includes 5GB/month of TOTAL data. This includes
the webpage spam, email avalanche, and everything else. Cellular has
never quite gotten over selling internet by-the-kilobyte, like it did for
years. Also buried in the long "agreement" is:

It should also be noted that Verizon specifically prohibits the use of
connection sharing or router devices such as the Kyocera KR-1.

Sprint, on the other hand, has no such restriction with their Air
Card.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Get yourself an UEB-362 USB wifi adapter for $70, a $100 marine wifi
antenna, a 15' USB cable and 20' of LMR-200 coax and you are set for Out
Island or any other available access point you find. The EUB-362 is about 5
times as powerful as a regular adapter and with a good antenna mounted That
can give you about 2 mile range to almost any hotspot.

The hotspot lookup sites list less than 5% of what is available. You should
find several in West End, New Providence, and Georgetown though you will
have much better luck ashore than on the boat. As Larry said, get a copy of
Net Stumbler so you can scout out what is available.

--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com

"Messing In Boats" wrote in message
oups.com...
We started on the Great Loop in August with our two boys, one of whom
is using the Minnesota Online High School for 10th grade. We needed a
reliable connection and our research told us that free (or paid)
connections at marinas weren't going to be sufficient, and we were sure
right about that. Also, we anchor out a lot. So we bought the Verizon
Broadband Aircard and the associated Kyocera KR1 router that it fits
into, because our laptaps don't take the card.

We are very impressed with the coverage and speed. It even worked in
place like Whitefish Bay on Lake Superior where I'm not even sure they
have electricity yet. It has failed us in only five spots since August
4, places we couldn't get much of a cell signal either. The router
allows us wifi all over the boat, the anchorage and marina also. No
wonder we have made so many friends on this trip! Make sure to buy the
extra antenna that fits into the card. We aren't affiliated with
verizon and doubt if they will give us any commissions for the
promotion.

Now all we have to do is to figure out a similar sysem for the Bahamas.
We are familiar with the coverage and Outer Island Internet in the
Abacos, but would rather not buy a whole new setup to use for only six
weeks.

Jeff, Sally and the boys on "Adirondack"

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Larry wrote:

Everyone should also download Network Stumbler from:
http://www.stumbler.net/
Download and install like any other freeware/beggarware.

Run Net Stumbler on your laptop with its wifi radio on and it will LOG
and IDENTIFY every wifi broadcast it encounters. If you plug a GPS into
the laptop, one of those little USB GPS receivers works great, Net
Stumbler will log the lat/long of each wifi hotspot it encounters with
each entry. If GPS info is available, it also interfaces with Google
Maps like a chart plotter to plot all the entries in its database it
found, so you can print out a map and keep it for favorite hotspots. I
don't use this function, much. I just run Net Stumbler and pick out the
"target" hotspot in realtime for access.

Net Stumbler works much better than what XP comes with to find those
elusive open systems to use. Of course, it doesn't log onto each one of
them, so you may still encounter and password webpage logon to an open
hotspot and have to go begging/paying/spamming for access to it.

My favorite hotspots across any area are "Linksys" and "default", a
wireless router noone ever bothered to look at the setup webpage of...(c;

At Riverbend on the Ashley River you'll find the open hotspot SSID W4CSC
hooked to serious bandwidth from 50' up a tree with service up and down
the river for about a mile. Help yourself. Everyone who has bandwidth
needs to SHARE that bandwidth access with all the others....like mine.
Thanks.

Those that think if you connect to my open system as "stealing" in some
way, shouldn't. It's not illegal or immoral. One guy even beat a rap
the cops brought tracking his downloading habits. Snoopercop didn't like
the porn webpages accessed from his system. I'm sure it was him that did
the access, but because his wifi was wide open, his attorney pointed out
to the court it could have been anyone in a wide radius around his
apartment complex. As all Snoopercop had was his IP of his router...case
dismissed...(c; Mark one for personal freedoms.

thanks for the info Larry about net stumbler.

Brian

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

On Fri, 5 Jan 2007 14:18:58 -0500, "Glenn Ashmore"
wrote:

Get yourself an UEB-362 USB wifi adapter for $70, a $100 marine wifi
antenna, a 15' USB cable and 20' of LMR-200 coax and you are set for Out
Island or any other available access point you find. The EUB-362 is about 5
times as powerful as a regular adapter and with a good antenna mounted That
can give you about 2 mile range to almost any hotspot.

That's basically what I'm using and it works very well.

http://wlanparts.com/product/SUB-362EXT

http://wlanparts.com/product/OD24-9

http://wlanparts.com/product/LMR400CUSTOM

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Larry wrote:
....

$60/month buys you spam-soaked webpages, email and "company intranet",
which is how the school probably is configured for it....

Think it's not enforced? Read:
....

If you want cheap data service with no restrictions, you can get
T-Mobile. I got a BlackBerry this summer and used it as a modem. The
data rate isn't bad (about the same as dialup) and with EDGE it can do
much better. The total cost is $30 a month, but voice calls are $0.20
a minute. I recently converted it to a "family plan" phone, and in
that mode unlimited BlackBerry data is only $20 a month on top of the
normal phone charge.

The browser built in is an HTML browser; most major sites recognize it
as a handheld and scale down the display, but you can force it to look
like normal IE if that's needed for some sites. When used as a modem
tethered to a PC everything just works, though I haven't tried Skype.
Unlike the other companies, TMo has no restrictions on tethered use.

Although some say T-Mobile coverage is not as good as Cingular/ATT or
Verizon, I haven't had any problem with T-Mobile on the New England coast.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Larry" wrote in message
...
brian wrote in :

http://www.free-hotspot.com/find_home.htm

These websites are OK, but no where near complete or accurate.

Actually, they are completely useless considering we were discussing finding
hotspots in the Bahamas.

GM

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

brian wrote in :

thanks for the info Larry about net stumbler.



Quite welcome! I've had great fun with it. I got a USB to serial cable
for my Gateway notebook and put data from the Garmin GPSmap 128S
GPS/plotter/sounder I bought at a thrift shop for $12 into it. GPRMC from
the Garmin plots great on Net Stumbler...



--
http://www.epic.org/privacy/rfid/verichip.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VeriChip
http://www.verichipcorp.com/
Tracked like a dog, every license/product/tax.
Revelation 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor,
free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their
foreheads:
17 and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the
name of the beast, or the number of his name...

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Gm1234" wrote in
:

Actually, they are completely useless considering we were discussing
finding hotspots in the Bahamas.



See my other post about Network Stumbler (www.stumbler.net)....(c;

It works in the Bahamas.

--
http://www.epic.org/privacy/rfid/verichip.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VeriChip
http://www.verichipcorp.com/
Tracked like a dog, every license/product/tax.
Revelation 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor,
free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their
foreheads:
17 and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the
name of the beast, or the number of his name...

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Guess I've been lucky. I've had Verizon's broadband wireless access for
a couple of years. It's on almost 24/7, and I DL a LOT of stuff, bound
to be more than 5 gig. Never heard a word from them or had any
problems.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Larry" wrote
See my other post about Network Stumbler (www.stumbler.net)....(c;

It works in the Bahamas.


The link doesn't work, but I am aware of stumbler. What use would a cruising
sailor put stumbler to?

I pull into a harbour in the Bahamas, drop the anchor. Once settled, I turn
on my laptop or pda and look for networks (the wifi card's software allows
this). If there happness to be a hotspot, fine. But if not, what do I do??
Pull up anchor and motor around until I find one - maybe in another harbour
20 miles way?

I guess I just don't see how this would be of practical use to someone who
is actually out there sailing.

GM

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

The link doesn't work, but I am aware of stumbler. What use would a
cruising
sailor put stumbler to?

I pull into a harbour in the Bahamas, drop the anchor. Once settled, I
turn
on my laptop or pda and look for networks (the wifi card's software allows
this). If there happness to be a hotspot, fine. But if not, what do I
do??
Pull up anchor and motor around until I find one - maybe in another
harbour
20 miles way?

I guess I just don't see how this would be of practical use to someone who
is actually out there sailing.

Have you tried it?

It's useful in seeing not only the available networks but their signal
strength. This can be very useful if you want to position yourself for a
better signal. Or aim an antenna if you're anchored such that it's
practical (as in, not a single hook swinging).

Leave it running on a laptop in reasonable view from the helm and you could
use it to find the most suitable spot to anchor BEFORE throwing out the
hook. Or to make a temporary connection to the net, get what you want and
move on to your anchorage.

It's a tool, like any other, that's useful to those that understand it.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Bill Kearney" wkearney-99@hot-mail-com wrote

Have you tried it?

It's useful in seeing not only the available networks but their signal
strength. This can be very useful if you want to position yourself for a
better signal. Or aim an antenna if you're anchored such that it's
practical (as in, not a single hook swinging).

Leave it running on a laptop in reasonable view from the helm and you
could
use it to find the most suitable spot to anchor BEFORE throwing out the
hook. Or to make a temporary connection to the net, get what you want and
move on to your anchorage.

It's a tool, like any other, that's useful to those that understand it.


Bill,

Perhaps you have never been to the Bahama Out Islands? - We are not talkng
about armchair sailing here, are we ;) ?

So you choose the spot to anchor based on the internet signal strength??
Great Idea!!

Ever tried anchoring in Hopetown? And you are going to "aim" the antenna
from your anchored boat?

The wifi software that comes with any wifi card, shows a list of available
networks AND their signal strength. Right now, I see my signal at 80% and my
neighbour's at 18%! So, why do I need more software?

Have I used stumbler? - I downloaded it a year or so ago to my laptop and
checked it out - It did nothing as well as my PDA could do with no add-on
software. And this is in the city, where there can be numerous signals - not
in an out island anchorage where there is seldom more than one available
signal, and a weak one at that.

GM

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Gm1234" wrote in news:iTdoh.64166$Qm2.28386
@read1.cgocable.net:

We are not talkng


Can any psychologists in the audience tell me why the mere mention of
something different can cause so much controversy?

I mentioned a freeware tool noone is forced to buy or use.

I get gang warfare under the interstate bridge on the East Side with
motorcycle chains and razor blades.

WTF???

Maybe it happens when boats are put up for the Winter and testosterone
levels get elevated.....(c;

I think it's cool...tied to a GPS then plotted on Google Maps is really
cool.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

And might I add: USEFUL

Thank you Larry

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Perhaps you have never been to the Bahama Out Islands? - We are not talkng
about armchair sailing here, are we ;) ?

Oh gee, what a surprise, an arrogant sailor! Yes, been there done that.

So you choose the spot to anchor based on the internet signal strength??
Great Idea!!

In all situations, of course not. But if someone wants connectivity, and a
great many people live for more than just the sail (even when sailing) it's
a fine idea.

The wifi software that comes with any wifi card, shows a list of available
networks AND their signal strength. Right now, I see my signal at 80% and
my
neighbour's at 18%! So, why do I need more software?

Have I used stumbler? - I downloaded it a year or so ago to my laptop and
checked it out - It did nothing as well as my PDA could do with no add-on
software.

Then you obviously haven't actually tried it. But hey, be pig-headed, it's
apparently in your nature.

And this is in the city, where there can be numerous signals - not
in an out island anchorage where there is seldom more than one available
signal, and a weak one at that.

And perhaps that's the best place for you. The company of others is
apparently not suited to you.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Bill Kearney" wkearney-99@hot-mail-com wrote in
t:

Perhaps you have never been to the Bahama Out Islands? - We are not
talkng about armchair sailing here, are we ;) ?

Oh gee, what a surprise, an arrogant sailor! Yes, been there done
that.

OK, then maybe you can tell me where in the Bahama **Out Islands** you
found wireless. If you're talking Nassua or the Abacos, then yes, wireless
is available.

-- Geoff

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Bill Kearney" wkearney-99@hot-mail-com wrote

Oh gee, what a surprise, an arrogant sailor! Yes, been there done that.

Yes, I am sure you have. Arrogance has no bounds.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Geoff Schultz" wrote

OK, then maybe you can tell me where in the Bahama **Out Islands** you
found wireless. If you're talking Nassau or the Abacos, then yes,
wireless
is available.

Netstumbler was very useful on Exuma for finding signals. Found 3 usable
signals at Georgetown with weird radiation patterns. 200 yards made a lot
of difference in signal strength. Also at the Four Seasons Marina, Emerald
Bay, Staniel Cay and Cat Island.

Marina wifi antennas are aimed out over the slips and tend to fall off
rapidly near the edges of the pattern. If you can find the center of the
pattern you can be a fair ways off and still get a usable signal. The
problem with marina systems is that you have to go in and open an account
which cost a few bucks if you are not in a slip. A lot of villas along the
beach have unsecured APs too and they have very erratic patterns. Must
have something to do with the position of the AP to windows and metal in the
house. With a good wifi rig you can sometimes find them several hundred
yards off shore.

Coverage is hit and miss but with the right tools you can sniff out more
spots.

--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Netstumbler was very useful on Exuma for finding signals. Found 3 usable
signals at Georgetown with weird radiation patterns. 200 yards made a lot
of difference in signal strength. Also at the Four Seasons Marina,
Emerald
Bay, Staniel Cay and Cat Island.

Marina wifi antennas are aimed out over the slips and tend to fall off
rapidly near the edges of the pattern. If you can find the center of the
pattern you can be a fair ways off and still get a usable signal. The
problem with marina systems is that you have to go in and open an account
which cost a few bucks if you are not in a slip. A lot of villas along
the
beach have unsecured APs too and they have very erratic patterns. Must
have something to do with the position of the AP to windows and metal in
the
house. With a good wifi rig you can sometimes find them several hundred
yards off shore.

Coverage is hit and miss but with the right tools you can sniff out more
spots.

Excellent report Glenn. That's why having a tool like NetStumbler is
useful. The normal built-in wifi software doesn't usually give you signal
strength meters. And the few that do usually don't have a rolling log of
it. With stumbler you get a bar chart showing you the signal strengths of
all the networks it could see, logged for as long as you have stumbler
active. So you can fire up stumbler and use it to hunt around a bit looking
for a good signal.

You're also right about the windows and metal. Many modern windows have a
coating (either for UV or tint) that seems quite effective at blocking wifi
signals. That and the wire put up behind most stucco also serves as a
rudimentary Faraday cage also blocking signals.

If you REALLY want to geek out and see more detailed wifi info then get a
linux boot CD with a program called kismet on it. kismet is like stumbler
on steroids. But it's overkill for most folks.

-Bill Kearney

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:37:47 -0500, Bill Kearney wrote:


If you REALLY want to geek out and see more detailed wifi info then get a
linux boot CD with a program called kismet on it. kismet is like stumbler
on steroids. But it's overkill for most folks.

And WarLinux is like kismet on steroids. ;-)

https://sourceforge.net/project/show...group_id=57253

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

War Linux is a package of Kismet, nmap. wavemon and several other wifi
utilities that are way past anything you would need for finding a place to
get connected. That is unless you are into black hatting. You really don't
need to hack into an AP in the Caribbean as when there are APs around most
of them are not secure anyway.

--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com

"thunder" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:37:47 -0500, Bill Kearney wrote:


If you REALLY want to geek out and see more detailed wifi info then get a
linux boot CD with a program called kismet on it. kismet is like
stumbler
on steroids. But it's overkill for most folks.

And WarLinux is like kismet on steroids. ;-)

https://sourceforge.net/project/show...group_id=57253

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Bill Kearney" wkearney-99@hot-mail-com wrote in
t:

That's why having a tool like NetStumbler is
useful.

If you boys cruise up the Ashley River to look at the gardens, you'll
find SSID W4CSC in the middle of the river bend just upstream from
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens (http://www.magnoliaplantation.com/) about
400 yards upstream from the end of the no-wake zone that protects the
plantation's riverbank. It's unprotected, 50' up my tree and runs 200mw
so there's plenty of signal and bandwidth for all.

Charleston City Marina, in the face of free internet with no restrictions
from The Harborage at Ashley Marina next door, easily in range of city
marina boats, gave up trying to boost revenues by selling internet and
now provides free internet to anyone with a wifi transceiver by simply
connecting. This goes along, also, with the City of Charleston's
peninsula-wide new free internet system that provides a throttled 110Kbps
wifi signal across the whole downtown area for anyone to use. The city
sells more bandwidth for a small fee to help pay for it and have a lot of
subscribers, locals like lawyers/doctors/business/real estate who buy the
wideband service with such mobility. It's been quite successful and self
supporting, I'm told.

Charleston is quite wifi friendly. My Netgear SPH101 Skype phone worked
at the tire dealer while I was waiting for them to replace the damned
Bridgestone super tire that couldn't stand the terrible pressure at 32psi
and bubbled the tread off the cord. That makes tire 3 with tread
separation from Goodyear and Bridgestone in the last 6 months....another
issue that needs fixing.

We Charlestonians WOULD appreciate it if you brought a little cash with
you and spent some while you're appreciating our free wifi hospitality,
however...(c;

Y'all come! Sit a spell! Have a Mint Julep on the veranda while the
kids play on the jogglin' board.
http://www.oldcharlestonjogglingboard.com/
Ship one home for later!
http://www.charlestonfavorites.com/

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Y'all come! Sit a spell! Have a Mint Julep on the veranda while the
kids play on the jogglin' board.
http://www.oldcharlestonjogglingboard.com/
Ship one home for later!
http://www.charlestonfavorites.com/


Funny you should mention jogglin' boards. I just built one for my
grandchildren. Finding a serviceable clear 2x10 pine board was harder than
finding old growth teak. They sell junk at the big box stores these days.

--
Glenn Ashmore

I'm building a 45' cutter in strip/composite. Watch my progress (or lack
there of) at: http://www.rutuonline.com
Shameless Commercial Division: http://www.spade-anchor-us.com

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

"Glenn Ashmore" wrote in
:

Funny you should mention jogglin' boards. I just built one for my
grandchildren. Finding a serviceable clear 2x10 pine board was harder
than finding old growth teak. They sell junk at the big box stores
these days.

--
Glenn Ashmore



Are there still TREES left that long?...(c;

I watched a guy come up to the checkouts at Home Depot with one of those
big carts that had two warped sheets of plywood on it, standing up in the
little channels. "They give you those warped up sheets?", I asked him.

He looked at me, oddly, looked at the plywood, whirled the cart around
and headed back down in the direction of the plywood department. It was
just awful what was on that cart! I wouldn't have used it to cover a
mudhole in the yard...(c;



--
http://www.epic.org/privacy/rfid/verichip.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VeriChip
http://www.verichipcorp.com/
Tracked like a dog, every license/product/tax.
Revelation 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor,
free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their
foreheads:
17 and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the
name of the beast, or the number of his name...

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:29:11 -0500, Glenn Ashmore wrote:

"Geoff Schultz" wrote

OK, then maybe you can tell me where in the Bahama **Out Islands** you
found wireless. If you're talking Nassau or the Abacos, then yes,
wireless
is available.

Netstumbler was very useful on Exuma for finding signals. Found 3
usable signals at Georgetown with weird radiation patterns. 200 yards
made a lot of difference in signal strength. Also at the Four Seasons
Marina, Emerald Bay, Staniel Cay and Cat Island.

Marina wifi antennas are aimed out over the slips and tend to fall off
rapidly near the edges of the pattern. If you can find the center of
the pattern you can be a fair ways off and still get a usable signal.
The problem with marina systems is that you have to go in and open an
account which cost a few bucks if you are not in a slip. A lot of
villas along the beach have unsecured APs too and they have very erratic
patterns. Must have something to do with the position of the AP to
windows and metal in the house. With a good wifi rig you can sometimes
find them several hundred yards off shore.

Coverage is hit and miss but with the right tools you can sniff out more
spots.

I've had pretty good luck finding networks all around lower British
Columbia. The household and small business ones are usually stronger than
the (expensive) marina ones provided by Broadband Express, etc. I've
even come across household networks with welcome screens! (Lotsa techies
with waterfront homes in BC.)

I even picked up a network from a large yacht once, wide open for anyone
to hop on an run up his satellite bill, or poke around his network,
hacking his personal computers and onboard systems! Of course I wouldn't
dare, but I hope he's fixed this!

Matt O.

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

On Wed, 10 Jan 2007 12:34:23 -0500, Matt O'Toole
wrote:

I even picked up a network from a large yacht once, wide open for anyone
to hop on an run up his satellite bill, or poke around his network,

Many of the large cruise ships have WiFi networks but I've never been
able to reach the public internet from one. They typically charge $1
per minute for that priviledge.

That's still cheaper than the casino. :-)

Wireless Internet while Cruising
 

Glenn Ashmore wrote:
Get yourself an UEB-362 USB wifi adapter for $70, a $100 marine wifi
antenna, a 15' USB cable and 20' of LMR-200 coax and you are set for Out
Island or any other available access point you find. The EUB-362 is about 5
times as powerful as a regular adapter and with a good antenna mounted That
can give you about 2 mile range to almost any hotspot.

The hotspot lookup sites list less than 5% of what is available. You should
find several in West End, New Providence, and Georgetown though you will
have much better luck ashore than on the boat. As Larry said, get a copy of
Net Stumbler so you can scout out what is available.

Glenn,
What is the status of your boat? I noticed you have not updated your
web site in a few years, does that mean the boat has been put on
temporary hold?