🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <0001HW.BE979820007C3EEBF04075B0@news.sonic.net>,
DaveC  <me@privacy.net> wrote:
:I want a wireless bridge (is that redundant?)

No, most WiFi equipment these days does not have a briding mode
[at least not in the shipped versions.] Some of the more stable and
reliable bridges that have been on the market for years are quite
restricted as to which systems they will connect to -- sometimes
only to the exact same model, sometimes only to devices by the same
manufacturer.

Wireless bridges that follow a standard and so should interoperate
[in theory] use 'WDS', "Wireless Distribution Standard". If a device
you are examining does not advertise WDS, then it isn't the right one
for you [short of replacing the firmware]; if the devices you want to
connect to are not WDS, then you might not be able to connect to them
from anything other than a device made by the same manufacturer.


:to act as an ethernet 
:converter, connecting to different brand APs (one at a time, of course). 
:Would like to buy only 1 bridge and have it work with other brands of APs. An 
:external antenna connector would be a plus. 

:I hear good things about D-Link's DWL-900AP+, rev C. 

I have no particular models to suggest at the moment, just general
comments:

1) Read the reviews in places like pcmag and tomsnetworking and amazon .
When I was last looking around a few weeks ago, it was quite
discouraging: the top-rated consumer-level 802.11g devices were
at 6 out of 10 or less in customer satisfaction. Mass sales is no
guarantee of quality.

2) Read the reviews again, and read the informal reports in places
like alt.internet.wireless and dslreports.com, this time with a view
to what customers are saying about their support experiences with the
companies. -My- quick summary, looking at those reports, would be

  "If one of the devices works for you in -your- circumstances, then
  Great! -- but that doesn't mean it will work for everyone. If you
  are having a problem with it, and it is from any of the well-known
  commodity WiFi manufacturers, chances are that you will be
  disenchanted by the support organization, with a significant chance
  that you will end up swearingly up and down that you will never
  EVER buy from that manufacturer again."

Or to put things another way: If it works for you, then it works
for you; if it doesn't work for you, then be prepared to throw it
out (or sell it on eBay). You seldom get serious support attention
from a WiFi manufacturer unless you have paid several times the
going commodity-device price.
-- 
   History is a pile of debris               -- Laurie Anderson