930 Forums
=> GENERAL DISCUSSION => Topic started by: tigersscareme on January 21, 2008, 01:17:00 pm
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I'm not sure who to ask since all of my friends are equally dumb about computers, but here goes:
1) if you have a lot of stuff on your desktop (i.e. photos and documents) as opposed to filing those things in various files not on the desk top, does that make your computer slower?
2) we have wireless internet here at the house that is not locked. lately it's been spotty at best. if there's an interloper (neighbor) on the wireless, would that pull the signal away from my airport-thing? (the router thing is in the basement, i'm on the second floor of the house. it hasn't been problematic for the past year, but the past two weeks has been really painful to get a continuous signal upstairs. first floor is less problematic)
you may begin laughing at me now, thanks.
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The short answer to both of your questions is no.
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#2 may be due to someone in the house or a neighbor getting a new cordless phone, which may interfere with the wifi. Another cause could be someone else's router being on the same channel as yours (the channel can be set in the router settings...usually by plugging in 192.168.1.1 into your web browser).
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Chip beat me to the cordless. I think 802.11b conflicts with the 900 Mhz phones from my own prior experience. Aside from the changing the channel, you could also switch to 802.11g, or if it is your own cellphone causing the problems, switch to one with another frequency like 2.4 ghz. If your router or cards don't handle g, you'll have to buy new gear, but prices are relatively cheap nowadays. Also some cordless phones employ spread spectrum, which can use a range of frequencies and still overlap your channel changing.
Originally posted by Chip Chanko:
#2 may be due to someone in the house or a neighbor getting a new cordless phone, which may interfere with the wifi. Another cause could be someone else's router being on the same channel as yours (the channel can be set in the router settings...usually by plugging in 192.168.1.1 into your web browser).
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as far as crap on the desktop goes, it can have a small effect on performance but only noticeable if you're on an older/less powerful machine.
it'll slow down your boot-up by a few seconds while the computer scans your hard drive for icons for each on of those files you have there, amidst the 1000 other things it's trying to do during start up.
it might also take a fraction of a second longer to redraw (refresh) your desktop should you minimize your windows.
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Originally posted by 930clubber:
Chip beat me to the cordless. I think 802.11b conflicts with the 900 Mhz phones from my own prior experience. Aside from the changing the channel, you could also switch to 802.11g, or if it is your own cellphone causing the problems, switch to one with another frequency like 2.4 ghz. If your router or cards don't handle g, you'll have to buy new gear, but prices are relatively cheap nowadays. Also some cordless phones employ spread spectrum, which can use a range of frequencies and still overlap your channel changing.
Originally posted by Chip Chanko:
#2 may be due to someone in the house or a neighbor getting a new cordless phone, which may interfere with the wifi. Another cause could be someone else's router being on the same channel as yours (the channel can be set in the router settings...usually by plugging in 192.168.1.1 into your web browser).
[/b]
damn, bill gates . . . but thanks for the great info. yours is the first post i've ever cut and paste and print.
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Have you considered moving your wireless router to the first floor of your house so that whatever floor you're on you're never more then one floor away from the router?
It seems obvious to me that if you have a problem connecting on the second floor (when you're 2 floors away) and much less of a problem when you're on the first floor (only one floor away), that your real problem is the distance (which has become an issue because of electrical interference, phones, etc, as everyone else has commented on).
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Originally posted by Julian, good manners AFICIONADO:
The short answer to both of your questions is no.
Technically, the answer to #2 could be yes, but not likely. An easy way to check is when you're struggling with the wireless, turn off your wireless devices and see if the wireless light on your router is still flashing. If it is, then you might have someone stealing the signal and slowing your broadband down (if you have a low limit DSL, for example).
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Originally posted by vansmack:
If it is, then you might have someone stealing the signal and slowing your broadband down (if you have a low limit DSL, for example).
I read his question to mean he's having a problem staying connected, not his connection being slow. If he was talking about his connection slowing from time-to-time, my immediate thought would be someone's stealing his bandwidth, but someone leeching on your wifi shouldn't shut him out altogether.
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Originally posted by Julian, good manners AFICIONADO:
Originally posted by vansmack:
If it is, then you might have someone stealing the signal and slowing your broadband down (if you have a low limit DSL, for example).
I read his question to mean he's having a problem staying connected, not his connection being slow. If he was talking about his connection slowing from time-to-time, my immediate thought would be someone's stealing his bandwidth, but someone leeching on your wifi shouldn't shut him out altogether. [/b]
Ooooooh... a geek fight, I love it!
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wait til you read my Steve Ballmer.
#2
http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-6346_11-5206675.html (http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-6346_11-5206675.html)
Originally posted by walkonby:
damn, bill gates . . . but thanks for the great info. yours is the first post i've ever cut and paste and print. [/b]
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Originally posted by tigers scare me:
2) we have wireless internet here at the house that is not locked.
why the hell have you not implemented encryption? get on that, will ya? it will stop 99% of bandwidth thieves, so that should help you determine if that is the source of your probs.
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my roommate put a lock on the wireless interwebs.
thanks one and all for the advice.
for what it's worth, it's made an improvement.
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Cat5 is the official medium of board patrol TCP/IP packets.
Originally posted by sweetcell, board patrol captain:
Originally posted by tigers scare me:
2) we have wireless internet here at the house that is not locked.
why the hell have you not implemented encryption? get on that, will ya? it will stop 99% of bandwidth thieves, so that should help you determine if that is the source of your probs. [/b]
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Originally posted by 930rebelliousteenageclubber:
Cat5 is the official medium of board patrol TCP/IP packets.
WPA is an officially-sanctioned alternative.
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Unfortunately I have to slum it with WEP due to the DS.
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I went to TGI Fridays for dinner, ya dig?
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WTF
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WPA2
Originally posted by sweetcell:
Originally posted by 930rebelliousteenageclubber:
Cat5 is the official medium of board patrol TCP/IP packets.
WPA is an officially-sanctioned alternative. [/b]
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IOKIYAR
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There is some inaccurate advice given here... 2.4 ghz is the frequency that tends to interfere with wi-fi, not 900 mhz. If your phone is interfering with wi-fi, moving away from 2.4 ghz to eiher 900 mhz or 5.8 ghz will likey solve your problem.
And yes, encrypt your wi-fi one and all, do you really want random strangers in your neighborhood doing whatever the hell they want on the internet under your name?
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Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
There is some inaccurate advice given here... 2.4 ghz is the frequency that tends to interfere with wi-fi, not 900 mhz. If your phone is interfering with wi-fi, moving away from 2.4 ghz to eiher 900 mhz or 5.8 ghz will likey solve your problem.
And yes, encrypt your wi-fi one and all, do you really want random strangers in your neighborhood doing whatever the hell they want on the internet under your name?
No acronym? GTFO.
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Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
do you really want random strangers in your neighborhood doing whatever the hell they want on the internet under your name?
YES
I haven't paid for internet in years, thanks to wifi, prosperous neighbors, and close-to-each-other rowhouses. If all y'all start putting passwords'n'shit on your accounts, I'll have to start paying for it.
Fortunately, the people in my neighborhood that do have passwords have ridiculously easy ones and I've cracked about half of them (why does everyone use their dog's name as a password?).
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Originally posted by Relaxer:
Fortunately, the people in my neighborhood that do have passwords have ridiculously easy ones and I've cracked about half of them (why does everyone use their dog's name as a password?).
I read an article on yahoo about the 10 most common passwords on myspace once, and #1 was "password," #2 was "secret," and #6 was "blink182."
I officially felt stupid for kids.
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I lock down my computers, but not my wifi.
I believe in free wifi for all.
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I remembered something ironic like that, moving up to 2.4 ghz only to find it clashing with my Wifi. But then who uses cordless anymore at home?
Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
There is some inaccurate advice given here... 2.4 ghz is the frequency that tends to interfere with wi-fi, not 900 mhz. If your phone is interfering with wi-fi, moving away from 2.4 ghz to eiher 900 mhz or 5.8 ghz will likey solve your problem.
And yes, encrypt your wi-fi one and all, do you really want random strangers in your neighborhood doing whatever the hell they want on the internet under your name?
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WPA2 is now required for Wifi Certification.
Originally posted by sweetcell:
Originally posted by 930rebelliousteenageclubber:
Cat5 is the official medium of board patrol TCP/IP packets.
WPA is an officially-sanctioned alternative. [/b]
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One last thing while we are on the topic of encryption to plug leaky wireless communication, make sure your cordless phone is truly hard to scan.
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Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
And yes, encrypt your wi-fi one and all, do you really want random strangers in your neighborhood doing whatever the hell they want on the internet under your name?
depends on what you're doing on your computer, plausible deniability is always nice ;)
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heh... Hoya, I hadn't thought about it that way before, that's an interesting perspective. :)
I have this burning desire to give my Wifi network an obscene name, but I think it would be too easy for my neighbors to figure out it was me. :(
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Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
I have this burning desire to give my Wifi network an obscene name, but I think it would be too easy for my neighbors to figure out it was me. :(
For a friends network that wasn't working with encryption due to a firmware problem with his network card, I simply called his network:
virus_infected
I think it was an effective deterrent while he waited for a replacement wireless card.
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Originally posted by They call me Doctor Doom.:
I have this burning desire to give my Wifi network an obscene name, but I think it would be too easy for my neighbors to figure out it was me. :(
I change the name of mine frequently, usually ridiculing my neighbors by name ... ah, the things I do to amuse myself .........
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we should rename ours 'pick up your effing dogs dukes'.