Maximizing wireless signal.

[Stanley Burrell]

I just had a new router + DSL installed on my work compy and my exclusive bullshitting laptop has since been receiving 0.5-30 megs at what seem to be instances of barely touching the glass on my iguana's terrarium that I mounted (scotch tape) the external USB wireless 2Wire into (I have no idea why, but the 2Wire client connects to other WEPs at work and at school whenever I bring the lappy around with me.

My question is, since I think the reason I'm having such a weird flux is because of how it's (the portable USB hookup) antenna receives signal strengths when barely moved (I don't think it has anything to do with the device being faulty as it does going through a concrete wall.

I'm not buying an IR receiver system because those are unbelievably expensive, so I was wondering if any old school, makeshift aluminum foil "extensions" have a chance of working, er..? Copper wire? Neptunium? (The antenna itself is only two inches long and plastic, and really thin and. Dumb.)

Is there something I could also do with my built-in router in my USB cable modem on my main compy? I need to trick out this bad boy to we get signal. It's also really not a bad boy as much as it is an overpriced $49 piece of plastic KB Toys remote crap.

Thank you to the fiberoptic G.O.D.s, rep.

[Stanley Burrell]

This is a seriously important thread.

[Celephais]

Not too sure what you mean by the 0.5-30megs and the touching of a glass tank... um... first thing I would do is change channels, by default a lot of radio devices are set to the middle band, it's a noisy band... move to either end of it and see how you do.

[Stanley Burrell]

I meant that I taped the actual modem onto my iggy's terrarium, but it's like, every time I even barely move the cord connecting the portable modem to my laptop, I'll go from 30mbps to 0.5.

I don't really know what you mean by changing channels. I thought all wireless signals were around the same frequency more or less? I'm not too sharp on the wireless world and I'm trying to see how long I can stick it out in modern society without the crutch of a cellphone.

But yeah, is there any sort of tricks of the trade, probably broken down to the electromagnetic spectrum inept, to help me get a real strong connection going?

I've tried wrapping aluminum foil around it and couldn't really tell what the story was as far as signal strength and whether that actually helped, hurt or did jackshit to connect to my router/DSL.

[Celephais]

In your wireless settings on the router there should be an option to select a channel, usually between 1 and 12/16, basically "B/G" is given a band of frequencies, that band is divided into so many channels, and everybody broadcasts in those channels... since most devices default to the middle, if you get as far away from those as possible it's a clearer signal.

as for physically improving the gain on your attena I'm not too experienced with that. Since gain is improved in these weird shapes (lots of articles on that) by an antenna (if it doesn't actually increase power it changes directionality) I think the best way for it to work is to have your antenna parallel to the one on the router.

[Faent]

You can probably set the signal strength as well. The default setting is usually pretty low.

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