Re: Campground nightmare, need help with Wi-fi signal

dano11 wrote:
> We live in an RV, we have 3 computers, all laptops without an external
> antenna connector.
>
> We travel, and constantly find RV parks where the signal is week and
> fluxuating all the time. Sometimes to the point of no signal, it
> makes working the internet very difficult.
>
> My question, and what I'm thinking. To accomodate multpile laptops,
> get a high gain directional exterior antenna, mount it to the RV.
> Run a cable from there to a central interior location, then attach a
> short basic Wifi antenna like you might find on a wireless router or
> PCLAN card to the cable and mount it inside. I'm wondering if this
> would work to make our RV more of a "Hot spot" for our laptops.
>
> Yesterday I got fed up with getting cut off every 30 seconds, so I
> took a Linksys router antenna and a piece of my wife's jewelry wire to
> connect it to the bedroom TV coax cable. I know it is a complete
> wavelength mismatch and the impedence is probably wrong, but it seems
> to have improved my connection to the point of almost tolerable.
>
> I'm thinking if I can amplify the signal with a high gain antenna,
> and wire that signal into the RV and focus that through a typical Wifi
> antenna, we should get a stronger and cleaner signal that our built in
> laptop antenna's can get happy with. I need to know if this will work
> before spending the money on parts.
>
> Am I wrong here, or will this work for our needs?
>
> Thank You for any input,
> Dan
>
>
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You may want to try something a bit more normal than canabalize your wifes
jewelry... :)
I had the same sort of problem in my rv, and even though the system already
had wireless built in, no law says you HAVE to use that one only... I got
the external usb/wifi thing, just turn off/disable the internal one, and use
the USB/external one in the RV (or whenever I need a better signal), neat
part was I could unplug it and still take the laptop (with the builtin
wireless) with me when I left the RV...

Just to be specific (this is what I have, about $50, lots of manufacturers
make them, I just happen to have this one, usually available at places like
best buy, walmart, circuit city etc )
at
<http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satellite?c=L_Product_C2&childpagename=US%2FLayout &cid=1115416827622&pagename=Linksys%2FCommon%2FVis itorWrapper&lid=2762262965B08>

Wireless-G Portable USB Adapter
The easy way to connect your desktop or notebook to a high-speed wireless
network

I Use it with a USB exstension cable (about $20 for a 12 footer, actually
two to give me 24 feet), and just place it in the window/out the window/on
the dash/on the roof/duct taped to my tv antenna ... They make several
different USB units, the local store just happened to have this on the shelf
....

Very cheap, works very well, and highly recomennded

(ps, if you happen to have the usenet group Rec.Outdoors.RV-Travel, check
there, a lot of people use wireless in their rv's)