[lug] USB wireless

[Davide Del Vento]

My 0.02$

> That might be different if I were trying to do 802.11n -- those devices need
> the extra antennas for diversity receive.  I have a mixed 802.11b/g network
> here.
The N's are supposed to have a longer range and to be faster, but your
mileage will vary. I have a N-router and a PCI N card with a
three-lobe external antenna in my desktop (don't remember the brands,
but I can check, if you're interested). Their distance is about 30-50
feet, but there are just two "soft" walls. You know what? I have
signal strength and speed problems!
The same N-router works fine (and faster) with many 802.11G (embedded
or PCMCIA) laptops in the living room, i.e. less than 20 feet and just
one wall apart. The same laptops have troubles in the same room where
the desktop is, so the problem is not the desktop PCI card/antenna
(but it doesn't help being an N either)


> One serious warning here... since this is a Linux list.  Not a whole lot of
> the USB dongle things have any Linux support.  You'll want to do your
> homework to find some that do if you're talking about using them with Linux.
I was able to use everything I tried on my Ubuntu (you might need a
wired network connection first, to install what you need).
 At worst with NDISwrapper + windows drivers. Maybe I was just lucky.

Bye,
;Dav