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#112108 - 20/08/2002 11:51 802.11a - Is anyone using it?
robricc
carpal tunnel

Registered: 30/10/2000
Posts: 4931
Loc: New Jersey, USA
Is anyone using 802.11a? My 802.11b network is getting me down. For anything other than browsing the web or network printing, it sucks. Way too slow. I was thinking of adding an 802.11a AP to my network.

I was also looking at this but up to 14Mbps excites me very little.
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-Rob Riccardelli
80GB 16MB MK2 090000736

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#112109 - 20/08/2002 11:58 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: robricc]
BartDG
carpal tunnel

Registered: 20/05/2001
Posts: 2616
Loc: Bruges, Belgium
I was also looking at this but up to 14Mbps excites me very little.

That's shocking!

(sorry, couldn't resist! )
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#112110 - 20/08/2002 12:07 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: BartDG]
robricc
carpal tunnel

Registered: 30/10/2000
Posts: 4931
Loc: New Jersey, USA
Asoka is using a chipset from this company. It was odd seeing them make the RioReceiver an example of a home networking product. I doubt very many visitors to that site would recognize what the RioReceiver is.

The graphic towards the top of the site is dynamic. You may have to refresh to see the receiver.
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-Rob Riccardelli
80GB 16MB MK2 090000736

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#112111 - 20/08/2002 12:08 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: robricc]
ricin
veteran

Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
I don't personally own and 802.11a equipment (yet), but I have been on a network that had one of these and it worked quite well. A friend of mine had a 802.11a card in his laptop, and the speed difference was very obvious. Still, for speed, nothing beats being wired (again, yet).
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Donato
MkII/080000565
MkIIa/010101253
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#112112 - 20/08/2002 12:08 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: robricc]
Dignan
carpal tunnel

Registered: 08/03/2000
Posts: 12338
Loc: Sterling, VA
What do you consider slow? like what are you averaging on downloads in kbps?
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#112113 - 20/08/2002 12:10 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: Dignan]
robricc
carpal tunnel

Registered: 30/10/2000
Posts: 4931
Loc: New Jersey, USA
When I rip a CD, transferring the MP3s to my music server is painfully slow. True 10Mbps over cat5 is at least twice as fast and more reliable. After reading the manual for the powerline stuff, it seems like an OK option. Plus it would be much cheaper.
_________________________
-Rob Riccardelli
80GB 16MB MK2 090000736

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#112114 - 20/08/2002 12:17 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: ricin]
robricc
carpal tunnel

Registered: 30/10/2000
Posts: 4931
Loc: New Jersey, USA
Yeah, that thing is cool. Very expensive though.

Do I remeber correctly that you need to register with the FCC to run 802.11a?
_________________________
-Rob Riccardelli
80GB 16MB MK2 090000736

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#112115 - 20/08/2002 12:38 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: robricc]
grgcombs
addict

Registered: 03/07/2001
Posts: 663
Loc: Dallas, TX
I've never heard this. I probably won't adopt 802.11a until Orinoco comes out with a new pcmcia card. Their stuff is stable (though pricey), and most of their access points simply use the pcmcia cards (upgradable).

Greg
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#112116 - 20/08/2002 13:31 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: grgcombs]
drakino
carpal tunnel

Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
802.11g is my migration path. I still need 802.11b access for many things, so switching to a at home would be costly. Where as g is backwards compatible, so my card will work fine at home and work.

Both a and g are 54mbps, but a made it out quicker.

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#112117 - 20/08/2002 13:48 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: drakino]
robricc
carpal tunnel

Registered: 30/10/2000
Posts: 4931
Loc: New Jersey, USA
Thanks for the heads-up on 802.11g. I would tend to go with whichever is cheaper. If I were to get 802.11a, I would keep my 802.11b access point running for backward compatibility. 802.11g would only benfit me by having one less geeky box. I actually prefer having as many geeky boxes as possible.

If I do go with a faster wireless, I have a bunch of devices that will still have to run on 802.11b. I cannot see any 802.11a-to-ethernet bridges on the market. 3 of the powerline bridges at $89 a piece (cheap) would cover almost every device in my apartment. The only one to remain wireless would be my laptop and 802.11b is fine for that.

The powerline suff keeps looking great because I have more devices with ethernet ports than cardbus or PCI slots. However, the chart below from this PC Magazine article is keeping me from taking the plunge.

_________________________
-Rob Riccardelli
80GB 16MB MK2 090000736

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#112118 - 20/08/2002 13:49 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: robricc]
ricin
veteran

Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
AFAIK that only applies to using an external, high-gain antenna for reaching long distances, and not to equipment being used within a building. Of course, I could be wrong.
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MkII/080000565
MkIIa/010101253
ricin.us

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#112119 - 21/08/2002 11:56 Re: 802.11a - Is anyone using it? [Re: robricc]
SuperQ
addict

Registered: 13/06/2000
Posts: 429
Loc: Berlin, DE
that's because the 802.11b marketing is deceptive. it's 11mbit, but that's full duplex, you actualy only get 5.5mbit each way. or around 650kbytes/sec.

also, it depends on your signal strength. if you are far-out, it will down-train to 2mbit mode.
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