I'll had that it is easy to mix wireless and wired networking. I have an
AirPort Extreme base station which is connected via cat 5 ethernet cable to
a 4-port 10/100 switch. My desktop G4 is connected to the switch, with
another cable handy at the desk to connect whatever laptop I choose, be it
Mac or PC.
The rest of the computers are connected wirelessly, though they certainly
can use the 10/100 cable if I put them on the desk. Also, while the
wireless is 802.11g and is fast when used with my aluminum PowerBook G4, as
soon as I turn on an older 802.11b computer, the network slows down
appreciably, which is just a function of mixed networking, but still faster
(on the 'g' machine) than 802.11b on its own ('b' machines of course
communicate at 'b' speed).
What is nice about a mixed system is the flexibility. If I know I will
transfer files very quickly and for whatever reason don't want to use
FireWire disk mode (perhaps a head to head game?) I will use the fast
ethernet cable, and since I have two ore empty ports, can connect to more
computers to make a real lan party (though I've yet to need faster than
wireless for games).
The most I've ever had running at the same time was actually last night,
when I got yet another old PowerBook up and running with a wireless
connection. Here is the list.
PowerMac G4 Sawtooth - wired connection
PowerBook G4 12", Panther, Airport Extreme (g)
PowerBook G3 Pismo, Panther, Airport card (b)
PowerBook G3 Lombard, Panther, Linksys card and IOExperts OSX driver (b)
PowerBook G3 Kanga, OS 8.6, Orinoco Gold card and Orinoco 7.2 driver (b)
Toshiba Portege 3490, Windows 2000, 3Com OfficeConnect card, (b)
Compaq Presario 300, Windows XP (Korean), Proxim Orinoco (new) (b)
With that melange all connected, download speed was still better than
dialup, but not by much.
Andrew
On 12/30/04 7:09 PM, "Andrew Kershaw" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>> That's a good point! An 802.11b wireless access point, or bridge
>> (depending on how you're using it) is just the same as a 10MB
>> network port.
>
> That's not true. Firstly, 802.11b is "rated" at up to 11 Mbps, not
> 10 Mbps like 10base-T ethernet. However, 802.11b has tons of
> overhead (as does 11g), so your raw speed is never likely to exceed 6
> Mbps. Factor in WEP and you're even slower. The reason you never
> notice the difference is because you're only using your connection to
> download web pages or other files on the wider Internet. At best,
> your Internet connection is around 3 Mbps and will not saturate your
> 11b link. Second, depending on your range to the base station or the
> amount of noise on your wireless link, 802.11b will step down from 11
> Mbps to 5.5 Mbps. Then to 2 Mbps and 1 Mbps if it has to. There's
> no in between speeds. Long distance links are glacial (fortunately
> not many people have long distance links inside their own homes).
> 10bT is still the way to go for in-home networks where wiring isn't a
> problem.
>
> 11g has similar problems but starts with a higher 54 Mbps bandwidth.
> It will be faster in most conditions than your 10base-T wired
> ethernet but far slower than 100base-T ethernet.
>
> When transferring large files on my home network, I find that I
> saturate the link at just under 500 KBps (that's kilobytes) or ~3.9
> Mbps. I'm using 64-bit WEP on a Pismo with AirPort, OS 9.2.2, and a
> Linksys brand wireless access point. The server is an AppleShare IP
> 6.3 based G4 and the protocol is HTTP. Not very impressive. The
> same test using wired 10base-T comes in at 1000 KBps (~7.8 Mbps -
> about DOUBLE what I get with the wireless). There limitation is
> likely the server's NIC (merely 10base-T) since the Pismo has a
> 10/100base-T ethernet port and my LAN is set up with a 16-port
> 10/100base-T switch.
>
> Peace,
> Drew
--
G-Books is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and...
Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives |
-- Check our web site for refurbished PowerBooks | & CDRWs on Sale! |
Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html>
G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html>
--> AOL users, remove "mailto:";
Send list messages to: <mailto:[email protected]>
To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-books%40mail.maclaunch.com/>
---------------------------------------------------------------
iPod Accessories for Less
at 1-800-iPOD.COM
Fast Delivery, Low Price, Good Deal
www.1800ipod.com
---------------------------------------------------------------
