Dynex Wireless N Router & Adaptor

[Leonard Chatagnier]

--- On Mon, 6/22/09, John Graddy <jwgraddy at valornet.com> wrote:

From: John Graddy <jwgraddy at valornet.com>
Subject: Re: Dynex Wireless N Router & Adaptor
To: "Ubuntu user technical support, not for general discussions" <ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com>
Date: Monday, June 22, 2009, 10:09 AM

On Sun, 2009-06-21 at 20:48 -0500, John Graddy wrote:
> I recently purchased a Dynex (Best Buy's store brand) wireless N router
> and USB adaptor.  I added the drivers to ubuntu Jaunty using
> Ndiswrapper.  When I run lsusb, I get a USB device that is identified as
> "Belkin Products", so I guess that Best Buy has some kind of arrangement
> with Belkin to use their stuff in the Dynex product line.
> 
> This adaptor and router work somewhat.  They advertise an "operating
> range" of "up to" 1000 ft. In linux, I get an operating range of
> approximately 35 ft. before the signal strength starts dropping off to
> nothing.  The network is unusable once I get beyond that 35 feet.  Under
> Windows, the operating range is a little better - maybe 50 feet.
> 
> Is wireless really that bad?  Am I doing something wrong?  Is there a
> better option available to me?
> 
> I'm seriously considering getting the phone company to install an DSL
> connection in another room in my house so I can use a wired network.
> Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> Thanks,
> John
> 
> 
> 
I've talked to Dynex tech support, reinstalled the Windows software,
tried the Dynex update available on the internet, and everything else
that I can think of.  I've just about decided that this network is not
going to work.

Does anyone have a suggestion on wireless hardware that will work over a
distance of about 100 feet and through typical residential walls (wood
and drywall)??  It would be nice if it would work "out of the box" on
Jaunty.

Thanks,
John

Haven't followed this too closely but in my experience 100 ft range for a wifi seem rather long.  My wifi machine is only a room and a hall away; about 20 ft. and the wicd icon in my kde sys panel says 72% when I hovor the mouse over it and the popup says 52 %(% of what I do not know).
When I was using the standard windows drivers that came with the WMP54G wireless G adaptor, that software listed an 80% signal strength IIRC.  I have a good quality(not best) antenna on the wifi machine and my wireless router/modem(2Wire) sits on top of my computer desk. Info just for comparison and I do not use a signal amp in my system unless it's built into the router.  So, have you considered a high quality wireless signal amplifier for your system. Setting the amp up as high as possible within reason should give added range.  No expert here; just my 2 cents.
Leonard Chatagnier
lenc5570 at sbcglobal.net