Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA - which chipset?
On Fri, Aug 05, 2005 at 01:30:53PM +1000, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. snip since the chipset seems to be the only thing that really matters (?)... how can one figure out what the chipset is? Is there a magic potion that shows the secret writing on the card? -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
[SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
Hi, I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? And also as I don't know much about wireless yet (I will learn when I get one) I want a product with a good range, reliable and of course that supports as many configurations as possible (I know there is b/g? But as of yet don't know which is better etc). Thanks, Luke -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
Hi, I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. This is also with Fedora (FC2, heavily modified); no idea about Gentoo, but I can't see why any recent distribution couldn't use it. Cheers, James -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi, I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. This is also with Fedora (FC2, heavily modified); no idea about Gentoo, but I can't see why any recent distribution couldn't use it. Thanks I'll look into the Linksys line. Does anyone have an idea of the ranges of these things... Just out of curiousity, while I'm overseas I might be able to test the security of some networks by checking my emails? (this is pretty much all I'll need the internet for...and submitting photos to a gallery, my laptop will mainly be used otherwise for work/photo storage) Luke -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
On Fri, 5 Aug 2005 12:17, Luke Ring wrote: [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi, I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. This is also with Fedora (FC2, heavily modified); no idea about Gentoo, but I can't see why any recent distribution couldn't use it. Thanks I'll look into the Linksys line. Does anyone have an idea of the ranges of these things... Just out of curiousity, while I'm overseas I might be able to test the security of some networks by checking my emails? (this is pretty much all I'll need the internet for...and submitting photos to a gallery, my laptop will mainly be used otherwise for work/photo storage) Luke Word of advice, look for a card with a chipset that support WPA-PSK. The Prism54 chipset(used in one flavour of the WG511) has had this functionality earmarked for implementation for well over a year... and so I'm stuck with WEP128... Also, ensure that you're buying what you think you're buying. Many people were stung by the WG511 when NetGear decided to change the chipset in one of the card revisions. Linux users did not realise this and found themselves with a card that did not support a feature they wanted. -- Marek W == (2b | !2b) == Send instant messages to your online friends http://au.messenger.yahoo.com -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
There are a lot of different cards out there, but fortunately most of them are supported in one way shape or form under Linux nowdays. To sum up the wireless standards: 802.11b - 11mbit/s max, medium range, compatible with g 802.11g - 54mbit/s max, short range, compatible with b 802.11a - 54mbit/s max, short-medium range, /standard/ not compatible with b/g - b and g are the most widely used standards. - Most 'a' equipment *is* able to interoperate with b and g. - Stick with b and g. Wikipedia is your friend! For the least amount of resistance, try getting something that uses the orinoco or prism2 drivers (although stray away from prism2_usb - spawn of satan!). They're probably the best supported out of the box under Linux, although there are a lot of other cards which work exceptionally well. Most of the different wireless projects out there have lists of cards known to work with them. Projects include: - linux-wlan-ng (802.11b) [1] - madwifi (802.11a/g/b) [2] (I think they're PCI/miniPCI only) - rt2x00 (802.11b/g) [3] - atmel wlan (802.11b/g(?)) [4] - rtl8180-sa2400 [5] - orinoco/prism2 [6] If you want something with a lot of range, try getting a Senao 2511-CD PCMCIA card. It has a very decent transmit rating (200mW), good sensitivity, and uses the orinoco driver. If you're on a budget, I can't recommend enough the Minitar[7] range of wifi equipment. Their drivers are fully open source(rt2x00), and their cards are made rather well. Generally, i'd suggest looking around online retailers and seeing what you can find within your price range. Most cards you'll be able to score for ~$75. Once you've found something that interests you, do a quick Google for Linux compatibility on it. You'll most likely find that it's supported, though some cards are more supported than others. You can always go the NdisWrapper route too. The NdisWrapper[8] lets you load a Windows driver in Linux. Most of the cards that aren't supported natively under Linux will work with the wrapper, but it adds an extra layer of complexity. I've setup and used the wrapper on a number of occasions and haven't had any problems with it. It can be quite helpful if you end up buying something that you thought was compatible but isn't. :-) Personally, i'd steer clear of any D-Link equipment with a '+' at the end of the product name. They use a Texas Instruments chipset that's got no official support, and the last time I checked the open source driver[9] was a bit flaky (ie, I couldn't get it to work). That was 18 months ago. If you have your heart set on D-Link equipment, make sure you can get it going first! Basically it comes down to this: know exactly what you're buying and make sure other people before you have gotten it to work. Cheers, Lindsay [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/802.11 [1] http://linux-wlan.org/ [2] http://madwifi.sourceforge.net/ [3] http://rt2x00.serialmonkey.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page [4] http://atmelwlandriver.sourceforge.net/news.html [5] http://rtl8180-sa2400.sourceforge.net/ [6] http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Linux/Orinoco.html [7] http://www.minitar.com/index.php?maincat=productcat=wirelessprod=wls_cardbuspage=1 [8] http://ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net/ [9] http://acx100.sourceforge.net/ Luke Ring wrote: Hi, I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? And also as I don't know much about wireless yet (I will learn when I get one) I want a product with a good range, reliable and of course that supports as many configurations as possible (I know there is b/g? But as of yet don't know which is better etc). Thanks, Luke -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. Correction: that should have been 1.4Mb/s... -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
RE: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. What version of the card is this? I have a WPC54GV2 and have had trouble getting it working under: 1) Ubuntu Live CD with ndiswrapper 2) Auditor Live CD with ndiswrapper I haven't spent a great deal of time on it, but I get the impression that other cards might be less of a headache. The V2 is an ACX111 chipset (IIRC), earlier version were Broadcom. HTH, - Rog -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
RE: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
I've had great results with the Linksys WPC54g and ndiswrapper, but have only tried to connect it to a Linksys AP. It sustains 1.4Kb/s transfers between my laptop on the ground floor and the AP on the first, complete with OpenVPN securing the connection. What version of the card is this? I don't have it with me (at work, laptop is at home) but will check and report back with all the details. I have a WPC54GV2 and have had trouble getting it working under: 1) Ubuntu Live CD with ndiswrapper 2) Auditor Live CD with ndiswrapper I haven't spent a great deal of time on it, but I get the impression that other cards might be less of a headache. The V2 is an ACX111 chipset (IIRC), earlier version were Broadcom. That could be the issue; from memory, mine has a Broadcom chipset. Cheers, James -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Wireless network PCMCIA
Thankyou for the comprehensive reply! I have a bunch of stuff to consider now :) Thanks again Luke Lindsay Holmwood wrote: There are a lot of different cards out there, but fortunately most of them are supported in one way shape or form under Linux nowdays. To sum up the wireless standards: 802.11b - 11mbit/s max, medium range, compatible with g 802.11g - 54mbit/s max, short range, compatible with b 802.11a - 54mbit/s max, short-medium range, /standard/ not compatible with b/g - b and g are the most widely used standards. - Most 'a' equipment *is* able to interoperate with b and g. - Stick with b and g. Wikipedia is your friend! For the least amount of resistance, try getting something that uses the orinoco or prism2 drivers (although stray away from prism2_usb - spawn of satan!). They're probably the best supported out of the box under Linux, although there are a lot of other cards which work exceptionally well. Most of the different wireless projects out there have lists of cards known to work with them. Projects include: - linux-wlan-ng (802.11b) [1] - madwifi (802.11a/g/b) [2] (I think they're PCI/miniPCI only) - rt2x00 (802.11b/g) [3] - atmel wlan (802.11b/g(?)) [4] - rtl8180-sa2400 [5] - orinoco/prism2 [6] If you want something with a lot of range, try getting a Senao 2511-CD PCMCIA card. It has a very decent transmit rating (200mW), good sensitivity, and uses the orinoco driver. If you're on a budget, I can't recommend enough the Minitar[7] range of wifi equipment. Their drivers are fully open source(rt2x00), and their cards are made rather well. Generally, i'd suggest looking around online retailers and seeing what you can find within your price range. Most cards you'll be able to score for ~$75. Once you've found something that interests you, do a quick Google for Linux compatibility on it. You'll most likely find that it's supported, though some cards are more supported than others. You can always go the NdisWrapper route too. The NdisWrapper[8] lets you load a Windows driver in Linux. Most of the cards that aren't supported natively under Linux will work with the wrapper, but it adds an extra layer of complexity. I've setup and used the wrapper on a number of occasions and haven't had any problems with it. It can be quite helpful if you end up buying something that you thought was compatible but isn't. :-) Personally, i'd steer clear of any D-Link equipment with a '+' at the end of the product name. They use a Texas Instruments chipset that's got no official support, and the last time I checked the open source driver[9] was a bit flaky (ie, I couldn't get it to work). That was 18 months ago. If you have your heart set on D-Link equipment, make sure you can get it going first! Basically it comes down to this: know exactly what you're buying and make sure other people before you have gotten it to work. Cheers, Lindsay [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/802.11 [1] http://linux-wlan.org/ [2] http://madwifi.sourceforge.net/ [3] http://rt2x00.serialmonkey.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page [4] http://atmelwlandriver.sourceforge.net/news.html [5] http://rtl8180-sa2400.sourceforge.net/ [6] http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/Jean_Tourrilhes/Linux/Orinoco.html [7] http://www.minitar.com/index.php?maincat=productcat=wirelessprod=wls_cardbuspage=1 [8] http://ndiswrapper.sourceforge.net/ [9] http://acx100.sourceforge.net/ Luke Ring wrote: Hi, I'm travelling overseas soon and I will be taking my laptop with me. Is anyone able to suggest a good PCMCIA wireless network card that is supported by linux (gentoo flavour)? And also as I don't know much about wireless yet (I will learn when I get one) I want a product with a good range, reliable and of course that supports as many configurations as possible (I know there is b/g? But as of yet don't know which is better etc). Thanks, Luke -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
