Looking for some suggestions on the best Wi Fi equipment (MFG) to secure the best possible connection. To start some serious travel in Ocean Rose, I need to be connected to the Internet for business reasons. This is one area that I am willing to spend the proper amount of money to secure the best equipment. Outside antenna, amplifier, low loss cable, Either net connection into Apple Air Port Extreme would be best for me.

Thanks so much for the suggestions.

Bob Wilkins
Ocean Rose

Bob:

I just spent nine months cruising from the west coast of Florida to Maine
and back to the Chesapeake. I had both a Verizon aircard and a wifi
amplifier, low loss cable and an antenna mounted on my bimini.

The wifi gear just wasn't worth it. It did work and extended the available
signal strength several times from what was available from the built in wifi
on my laptop.

But the number of unprotected usable wifi sites was too small to be of any
use.

The only time I really used it and it was very useful in this case, was in
Oriental, NC. There the Verizon signal was horribly slow. But there was a
free wifi signal at the marina at Oriental harbor. I was anchored about 1/4
mile away in line of sight and the amplifier rig pulled in the signal
nicely. Since I was anchored there for a week or so, I had internet coverage
that I wouldn't have had otherwise.

But this was a rare exception.

Anchored off of Miami Beach I had dozens of potential wifi sites but they
were all protected.

I suppose this is the difference between urban Miami and laid back Oriental.
But it was generally the case. Even in Maine I had 4-5 potential wifi sites
at The Basin a popular anchorage, but all were protected.

OTOH, 95% of the time I had a usable Verizon signal and 75% of the time it
was quite good.

So consider your wifi gear purchase carefully. It was not worth it IMHO.

David

Take a look at www.wifisolutionslynx.com ?works well for me. I had their system alongside my Radiolabs and the Lynx has almost 5 times the available sites most times.
Rodger

Do a search for the posts on the Nanostation2.  Inexpensive - around $50.00
and very effective.

Rich

Rich & Laura Werner
GB32-277

David, as we've discussed several times on T&T, unprotected Wi-Fi sites are
getting rarer and rarer.  On the West Coast, that has a lot to do with the
fact that AT&T now mails out their router defaulted to web-protection ON.
It is enabled by default.  So those who plug it is and toss away the
instructions, the majority it appears, are all protected now.

Unlike you, I find my Verizon Air-Card excellent up and down the West Coast.
It is not always top speed, but often it is.  There are still a few places
in remote areas where there simply isn't any signal at all, but those are
thankfully rare.

As you found the day of the "free lunch" with unprotected Wi-Fi access are
gone.  Vendors like AT&T defaulting their routers to Protected are one
source.  The fear of unprotecting their routers by ill-informed customers is
another cause.  But I found the Air Card a better compromise than paying $10
a day for commercial Wi-Fi.

Bob Peterson
"Lopaka Nane"
47' Lien Hwa CPMY
San Francisco

-----Original Message-----
From: trawlers-and-trawlering-bounces+bob=peterson.org@lists.samurai.com
[mailto:trawlers-and-trawlering-bounces+bob=peterson.org@lists.samurai.com]
On Behalf Of David Marchand
Sent: Saturday, September 26, 2009 11:03 AM
To: trawlers-and-trawlering@lists.samurai.com
Subject: Re: T&T: Wi Fi suggestions

Bob:

I just spent nine months cruising from the west coast of Florida to Maine
and back to the Chesapeake. I had both a Verizon aircard and a wifi
amplifier, low loss cable and an antenna mounted on my bimini.

The wifi gear just wasn't worth it. It did work and extended the available
signal strength several times from what was available from the built in wifi

on my laptop.

But the number of unprotected usable wifi sites was too small to be of any
use.
ited.