Long-Distance WiFi Device

[Gashmore]

I have to laugh. You got any idea where this place is? It is an island 20 miles from nowhere with a population of maybe 125 people. There might be 6 or 8 yachts in the anchorage at any time with any wifi capabilities and there is no network support on the island. The restaurant owners have enough trouble explaining how to enter a 64 bit key as it is. The purpose of the WEP is advertising not security and the card with the key on it clearly states that you use it at your own risk. If they want a totally secure connection they can sail back to Tortola and go to an internet cafe. (Assuming there are no key capture dongles on those machines.)

Yes WPA is more secure but it would have to be PSK which can be cracked with a little persistance.

[hellosailor]

Good that we both can laugh. The Google ad banner appaering on this thread has (or had when I saw it) a link to "WEP CRACKER" offering a $25 box that could crack WEP WiFi for any user.

You got an island where all 125 people are upstanding saints, no sinners? Shouldn't need WEP at all then.

I wonder if any Ugly Americans in Paradise make a point of scanning WiFi sites in remote locations, to feed off their fellow rich tourists?

[off-the-grid]

2 questions for the EnGenius owners.

Where did you connect the other end of the ground cable that gets connected to the power injector?

Is anyone running it off DC, either with a DC power adapter (if so please provide source and part number) or hard wired?
It just seems kind stupid and a little bit of a PITA to have a wall wart and to have to run the inverter for something that's permanently installed, especially for something so small as that little box.

[Redcoat]

wifi@802marine.com

[Gashmore]

If you are talking about the 3220 it is 48V. There are some 12V/48V DC/DC converters but they are pretty expensive but you can hard wire them into the house supply. Powerstream has one: 12 volt DC/DC converters regulator from 100 to 700 Watts. Search form PST-DC1248

It is a little noisy in a couple of the marine SSB bands though.

Some of the POE injectors have a ground wire clip that gives some limited protection from lightning pulses if you tie it to the boat's lightning ground but in my experience just kiss all your electronics good bye and consider yourself lucky if any survive.

[bbhflts]

Originally Posted by Gashmore

I went ahead and ordered a Bullet 2HP to play with last night. Hopefully it is in stock and I can get it by this weekend. I have a 48V injector left over from a fried 3220. Tested it with 12V and it puts out +12V on pin 5 and ground on 8 so it should work.

Read that thread and it looks like the problem was using a cable with a strain relief prevented the seal from working. I always make up my own cables so that should not be a problem. Wrapping both the RF and Ethernet ends with an amalgamating tape would be good insurance too.

Proper cabling is critical. The 3220 that died was wired with standard CAT5. The jacket wore through as it entered the mast and water wicked up into the connector. When water bridges between the power pin and a logic pin something bad is sure to happen. I have been using gel filled direct burial cable ever since that failure.

A router with built in POE would make a really neat installation but I doubt one exist. The router manufacturers build for the cable/DSL mass market and our requirements are miniscule in comparison.

Gashmore. How much did you pay for your Bullet 2HP. I'm being charged $75 which I figure is pretty good. Still I want to check as it's normal for resellers to shaft people here in Dubai and double the European or US price, regardless of only having to pay 5% sales tax and there being no employee tax.

[idpnd]

I got the Bullet 2HP going, paid a small fortune for it through a UK retailer.. still a lot less than that "special" 500 USD box some people are using..

It has POE and provides fantastic range with an external Engenius Outdoor 2.4GHz 8dBi omni antenna.

[highseas]

Right now I'm 5 miles from shore,and getting perfect internet.Very impressed with Alfa 500mw 802.Streaming music perfectly.MagicJack phone works excellent also.

[phiggins]

HighSeas,

What model is the Aplha 500mw 802 that you have? There seems to be several. And where did you buy it and for how much?

Thanks

[highseas]

The unit is the Alfa 500mW USB wireless-G Wifi adapter,w\threaded antenna jack.$47.95 US.The antenna is what makes it work,get the Engenius 2408 omni antenna $60.+shipping of course.You need the 10 in. pigtail(RP-SMA)(m)to N male between antenna and Alfa,then run a 10ft. USB extension cable(from Walmart) from supplied Alfa USB cable to laptop.Mount as high as possible but don't add any extra length.The Alfa is from Data Alliance (online),and antenna from Ashlin computers in Ontario Can.(also online).Works best in clear weather.Finding unsecured signals can be a problem in some locations.Less than $200. (Can.$) in total.The better systems are far more costly.

[phiggins]

Thanks High Seas. Good information.

[highseas]

I got this great info. from this great website.Thanks to all.Living aboard isn't so bad after all.Started year two,three weeks ago,no regrets.This winter will enjoy tropical heat ,instead of 30kn. arctic outflow,-20 deg. for weeks on end.

[ldrumond]

Quick thanks to Bob Stewart, (Island Time PC) member and vendor on this forum. I just recieved and installed, 25' up the mizzen spreader, his Bullet2 Hp based package. Went from 0 hits on laptop internal, to 2 hits on USB antenna 15' up the rigging to 24 hits after installing permanent setup. Bob shipped it out next day, his instructions were simple and straight forward, system was preprogrammed, cables, weatherproof connections etc. were all top notch. Price was reasonable, given the guy's gotta make a buck. Couldn't be happier with results.

(I'm in no way connected nor do I have an interest in his business)

[phiggins]

High Seas, Could you look at this link and tell me if its the right pigtail to order..thanks..

CompuNation - External Product Link: STARTECH, NRPSMA1MM=

[highseas]

Looks the same,different brand though.I ordered mine from Data Alliance,same place I got the Alfa.