On 24 Jul 2006 16:01:39 -0700, "Jim" <jsjones@graceland.edu> wrote in
<1153782099.780437.239890@p79g2000cwp.googlegroups .com>:

>Just today I was given a newly provisioned static IP by my ISP to see
>if that fixes anything. In the process it was discovered that my
>Gateway IP entry was incorrect, one of the DNS IPs was listed instead
>(IP forwarding must have been on for this to have worked at all). Until
>the weekend arrives I will not know if things are better or not. Tech
>support gave me the wrong Gateway address some time back, but that may
>have been during one of my dropped connection complaints.

No DHCP? Ugh!

>You asked for the "exact" symptoms--
>During email or web activity I will simply lose the connection (very
>annoying when in the middle of an online purchase).

What does that mean? Exact error message please. Exact Status of the
wireless connection please.

>I can ping the
>router (using the local 192.168.1.1 address or the static IP assigned
>by the ISP) but cannot ping anything outside (none of the IPs for DNS
>or Gateway).

What does the router say about the WAN connection? Most importantly,
what are the status lights on the DSL modem?

>When I depress the reset on the router or use the router's
>webpage interface to re-apply the settings,

Power cycle the router instead.

>I almost always get the
>connection back and can continue for another web-link or two before it
>happens again.

Are you doing any peer-to-peer filesharing?

>If I go away and come back in an hour I am successful at
>refreshing my home page (one way I check for internet connectivity),
>but that doesn't last long (same as resetting the router). When I am in
>one of these "flakey" periods (e.g., weekends) I can run the ping
>command for 25 consecutive retries and I will lose my connection during
>one of the pings... so even tiny packet activity can experience this.

I still don't know what that means.

>I
>have experienced the problem with only wired PCs connected to the
>ethernet ports on the router (i.e., no wireless laptops in use). Here
>are some questions I have in response to your reply:
>
>Question1: can radio interference cause problems with my
>4-port+wireless router, even when the only connectivity I have and am
>using is wired?

Probably not.

>Question2: Can you explain more about the file sharing problem? I don't
>do much with file sharing at home and the problem I experience is
>certainly not only occuring with file sharing activity. I do have a
>shared printer set up and a shared folder on the primary PC near the
>router... but I am sure I have had that PC powered off and still
>experienced the problem from another wired PC (a Mac) or wireless
>laptop (Dell) that was not involved in sharing or printing. I think it
>is rare that I use file sharing to transfer files between PCs at my
>home... but I do have a pub folder for those occassions.

I said peer-to-peer filesharing, like Bittorrent or eDonkey/eMule, by
you, or by anyone else on your router.

>Question3: I have a Mac in a different part of the house connected to
>one of the ethernet ports on the router and this machine is rarely
>turned off. Could the length of cable be an issue? I am pretty sure it
>is under 100 meters long.

No.

>John Navas wrote:
>> On 23 Jul 2006 14:27:53 -0700, "Jim" <jsjones@graceland.edu> wrote in
>> <1153690073.800739.27830@m79g2000cwm.googlegroups. com>:
>>
>> >For several years I have battled with my wireless router connection
>> >that keeps dropping. Since it occurs for extended periods at night and
>> >on weekends, it seems provider related; but resetting the router fixes
>> >the problem (for awhile) so I used to think it was a router problem.
>>
>> Probably not a provider problem. Possible causes include radio
>> interference and peer-to-peer filesharing. See wikis below for more
>> info.
>>
>> >The latest firmware and several times replacing the router, from
>> >LinkSys to NetGear (4-port w/ wireless) didn't fix it. At one point the
>> >Paradyne DSL crashed and was replaced with another by the phone
>> >company, but problem returned. Recently I discovered that if I leave
>> >things alone for a long time (perhaps 10-20 minutes) I am again able to
>> >do work on the Internet (for awhile).
>>
>> What are the exact symptoms?
>>
>> --
>> Best regards, FAQ for Wireless Internet: <http://Wireless.wikia.com>
>> John Navas FAQ for Wi-Fi: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi>
>> Wi-Fi How To: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_HowTo>
>> Fixes to Wi-Fi Problems: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_Fixes>

--
Best regards, FAQ for Wireless Internet: <http://Wireless.wikia.com>
John Navas FAQ for Wi-Fi: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi>
Wi-Fi How To: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_HowTo>
Fixes to Wi-Fi Problems: <http://wireless.wikia.com/wiki/Wi-Fi_Fixes>