....anything to the pack of miscreants here, but since there is some
interest in cell phones, I thought I'd mention my experiences to date
with what cell carriers call a "network extender."

While we are only about three miles from a cell tower (at least one I
can see when I drive by it), cell coverage in our little part of the
boonies is, at best, marginal. We get two bars out of five on our cells.
That's good enough most of the time for decent phone calls, but there
are the occasional problems.

So, I popped for a network extender. My provider is offering a half
price rebate on it...thus the incentive. It's for voice only, but there
are units that will handle data.

It looks like a small router, and it attaches to your existing router.
There's a built-in GPS antenna, and there's a "portable" GPS on a 20'
cable that you can attach to a window. If you can get a GPS signal,
you're in business.

The hookup is simple...and it took about three minutes for the GPS to
get the signal it needed.

Now, we're getting five bars out of five everywhere in the house and
about 10' away from the house in every direction. When you're too far
away outside, the phone reverts back to normal cell reception. Thus, the
extender would not be useful to a neighbor or someone driving by.

For those in the know (and I am not one of them), the signal strength is
now -46 to -54 anywhere in the house. Previously, it was -85 to -95.
Perhaps some electronics maven can explain those numbers...they are not
something an English major studies. :)