USB probably doesn't help. It's another layer of bus and drivers to go through, and has a much lower B/W than pcmcia or PCI. The drivers, in XP's case, might be quite significant.
Also, your PC may not be correctly setup in the TCP/IP parameters. Try the performance tests at dslreports.com. Specifically look for the TCP/IP (MTU) configuration wizard.
Signal strength has quite a lot to do with antenna orientation and position relative to concrete walls, metal boxes (computer case, fridge, oven). Also, remember that radio waves bounce around, and can form peaks and valleys in intensity. Closer to the router will not necessarily give you better results. Also, his meter might just be calibrated differently than yours. If he's getting good performance, I wouldn't worry about what the meter says. But, you can move the box around the room and between rooms to see if the power meter changes.
Lastly, attach your box to the network with a wire and compare the performance results to see if it is your computer or the wireless connection.
Luke
At 09:39 AM 9/23/2002, Raymond Sinatra Jr. wrote:
Okay, frustrated wireless guy here. My roommate has a laptop with Windows XP and a wireless network card. I have a desktop with Windows XP and a USB adapter. My roommate and I are roughly the same distance from the router (his room is 10 feet further away from the router). All equipment is Linksys. His signal strength is never better than 'good' and oftentimes stands at 'low'. My signal strenght is 95% of the time listed as 'excellent'. He is currently surfing at much higher speeds, most times more than twice the speed. What gives? Does signal strength have anything to do with the speed of surfing? Is the fact that the adapter is connected via USB slowing me down?
Please help...
Do you Yahoo!?
New DSL Internet Access from SBC & Yahoo!
