Re: wired/wireless bridge: a more surefire Linux wireless solution?

dave
2005-02-02T21:18:22Z

James Miller wrote:

>This question is not really Linux-specific, and is maybe more
>hardware-oriented than OS-oriented. But being a Linux user, I'd like to
>know if/how it might apply to me. It concerns a comment I read regarding
>an article on wireless networking with Linux, and it's really something I
>had earlier wondered about, though in less specific terms. So, to go on
>with my query.
>
>It seems widely accepted that Linux has spotty support for wireless
>networking--at least I read articles and comments to that effect with some
>regularity. I wondered, when I first confronted these sorts of problems:
>"why couldn't a wireless receiver-type-thing just be hooked up to a Linux
>machine's wired NIC to connect said machine to a wireless network?" I
>didn't really appreciate the technical aspects involved when I first
>thought of this, but now that I've read someone's suggestion about using a
>bridge to do just this sort of thing, I might understand better. The
>person responding to the article I was reading was basically saying
>something like: "why bother with the software problems (lack of drivers
>and documentation on chipsets to write them) associated with hooking to a
>wireless network in Linux? Just get a wireless bridge and hook it to your
>wired NIC and get on the wireless network that way."
>
>So, let me just ask: is this really some sort of solution to the wireless
>support problem under Linux? People objected to that poster's suggestion
>on the basis that it was too bulky (extra pieces of hardware like the
>bridge and its power adaptor). Maybe it's a bit more expensive, too. But
>if this really would work--i.e., allow you to connect to a wireless
>network through your existing wired NIC--it could be a solution for at
>least some situations. Possible cons would be that a lousy old 10/100
>wired NIC can't match the throughput of the latest 801.11g wireless NIC's
>(to which I say; big whoop! 100mbps suits my all my needs and more).
>Certainly an enterprising hardware manufacturer could address the
>bulkiness problem: I have an external HD, for example, that draws 6 volt
>power from the ps2 port. Of course the possibility always exists--and is
>in fact quite likely--that there's already some device that does this,
>i.e., sort of augments your existing wired NIC with wirless capability
>and that I simply haven't run across it yet.
>
>Feedback will be appreciated. I've probably overlooked or poorly
>understand many of the technical details.
>
>James
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Gang,
I use one in my room at my camp where I stay while I work. They wired
the camp with Cisco wireless AP's. I use a Linksys ethernet to wireless
bridge and it works fine. I had a Dlink but it gave me lots of
problems. If you have more questions just ask.
Dave