David Taylor <djtaylor@bigfoot.com> wrote:
>> I attached the cantenna to the WMP11 and used Netstumbler to make
>> some measurements. The overall results were disappointing. The
>> cantenna didn't give me any improvement over the original rubber ducky

....
> Try it once you've gone somewhere where the signal is really weak and
> then see what difference you have. Or find a neighbours signal with the
> cantenna and then take it off and see if it still works.

I agree with David. When I first set up for testing, I was too close, and
I saw very little difference in the NetStumbler signal. It's almost as if
the device doesn't report signal above a certain strength. If you move to
where the signal is in the 70-80 range in NetStumbler, you can see some
antenna improvements. If it's in the 40-50 range, you aren't going to see
much change at all.

It's also helpful to be outside, at least a few feet off the ground, and
have a clean line of sight to the AP.

A single 3.25" can should give you 8-10 dB improvement in NetStumbler.
The 20dB drop that you see by pointing it the wrong way is impressive.
Or maybe your cable shorted out when you twisted it that way ;-)

> probe length = 1.2 inches (seemed short compared to the pictures but

That is 1.21" of _exposed_ probe, including the exposed center conductor of
the connector. The wire also goes down into the connector a bit.

---
Clarence A Dold - Hidden Valley (Lake County) CA USA 38.8,-122.5