....let's just say that i have a friend that is "borrowing" WiFi bandwidth from his next door neighbor. Is there anyway my friend can boost that signal?

8/25/2008 10:08:34 PM

pretty sure a repeater could do this

8/25/2008 10:09:40 PM

yes but it involves breaking into the home with scissors and a pringles can

8/25/2008 10:10:47 PM

i'm interested in this too

the free wifi my apt complex offers is weak in one corner of the apt, the corner with my bedroom

8/25/2008 10:11:09 PM

Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize djeternal was the threadmaker.

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:12 PM. Reason : ]

8/25/2008 10:11:47 PM

Quote :

"yes but it involves breaking into the home with scissors and a pringles can"

don't forget aluminum foil and tape!

8/25/2008 10:11:53 PM

uhh... well there is, I'm pretty sure. But I dunno if you can do it without direct access to the router.

8/25/2008 10:12:07 PM

If you get a better wireless card you can improve the signal if your current one sucks. A repeater in the right location of your home may help as well as simply repositioning the computer to a better location.

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:12 PM. Reason : ]

8/25/2008 10:12:11 PM

someone needs to make the "cddweller needs to lighten up" thread

8/25/2008 10:12:34 PM

They do. I'm emo 24/7

8/25/2008 10:13:44 PM

what is this repeater you speak of, so I can tell my friend

8/25/2008 10:14:04 PM

how much would i expect to pay for this repeater?

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:14 PM. Reason : ^that too]

8/25/2008 10:14:11 PM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812189159

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:15 PM. Reason : repeater prolly isn't necessary]

8/25/2008 10:14:22 PM

i was told good repeaters are like 80 bucks on ebay...the person that told me about them is suspended([user]itstiberius[/user])

8/25/2008 10:14:58 PM

Make a cheap pringles directional cantenna and point it at different angles, refreshing the wireless network page, until you find where that signal is strongest. Easy!

8/25/2008 10:15:03 PM

^stainless salad bowls work well too

8/25/2008 10:15:43 PM

^^ instructions for building this please, so i can tell my friend

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:16 PM. Reason : a]

8/25/2008 10:16:24 PM

fecaljapan, would that help me?

the signal is fine in the living room, but it goes to shit at my desk which is only like 30 ft away

8/25/2008 10:18:32 PM

just google "cantenna"

there are hundreds of good instructions

8/25/2008 10:18:40 PM

^^probably, i'd just buy it and see--if it doesn't help return it

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:21 PM. Reason : sp]

8/25/2008 10:21:03 PM

so, i'm looking at that connector on it...how do you hook that thing up?

8/25/2008 10:25:39 PM

Quote :

" All American 11677 Posts user info edit post http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812189159 [Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:15 PM. Reason : repeater prolly isn't necessary]"

wait a minute, does that have a coax connection? where the hell would my friend plug that in?

8/25/2008 10:25:54 PM

you connect it in place of the std antenna, you can get a new nic with a dipole antenna for around $10 more, if you have a usb adapter or something like that

8/25/2008 10:27:12 PM

haha, me and djeternal keep having the same thought process

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:28 PM. Reason : ^holy cow, english homes, we are not all computer whizzes]

8/25/2008 10:27:41 PM

but the point is, my friend doesn't have access to the antenna since he is borrowing the signal

^ for the record, it is not me having these thoughts. it is my friend

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:28 PM. Reason : a]

8/25/2008 10:27:54 PM

^exactly

8/25/2008 10:28:42 PM

eric, does your "friend" have a laptop or desktop?

if it's a desktop, get a better wireless antenna. if it's a laptop, you need a signal booster/repeater.

whatever you want to do and however much money you want to spend.

8/25/2008 10:32:12 PM

yeah, i mean the antenna on your nic, not the router

8/25/2008 10:33:06 PM

my friend has a laptop, can you recommend a booster/ repeater?

[Edited on August 25, 2008 at 10:34 PM. Reason : a]

8/25/2008 10:33:47 PM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833315075

something like this would prolly work

8/25/2008 10:37:48 PM

my friend's wireless card in his laptop is already REALLY good, he is just a little far from his neighbor that he is borrowing the signal from

8/25/2008 10:41:19 PM

repeaters/bridges are usually $oklahoma; if you can get by with a new card, you'll prolly save some money, but you could try http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833314030

8/25/2008 10:49:24 PM

^that looks just like the router at my dad's house. is it pretty much the same thing?

8/25/2008 10:52:39 PM

yes and no--some (most?) routers can be used as bridges, but not vice-versa

8/25/2008 10:59:05 PM

get a wrt54gs or a buffalo router

put dd-wrt on it

run it in repeater mode

profit

8/25/2008 11:01:32 PM

i'm gonna look into that

thanks for all the help fecaljapan!

8/25/2008 11:02:23 PM

ok, here is the deal. my friend gets a pretty good "borrowed" signal from his neighbor when he is in his bedroom. but when my friend moves into the living room, it drops the hell off. what is my friend's best option to get a good signal in the living room?

8/25/2008 11:11:22 PM

gets some friends that aren't worthless

8/25/2008 11:31:10 PM

the repeater should work--if you wanna keep your wireless card, i'd go with that

8/25/2008 11:36:08 PM

i`d suggest your friend bite the dust and pay for road-runner lite instead of spending money to steal stuff- especially when your friends neighbor might move or wise up and put encryption/mac filtering at any point

8/25/2008 11:40:02 PM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833314030

OR

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833164029

Both will get the job done.

8/25/2008 11:55:16 PM