[UK-CONTEST] Wireless networking

[Jim Martin - MM0BQI]

Hi Clive
I have installed a broadband wireless router at the point broadband enters
the house and have eliminated all the network cables. The two desktop have
internal PCI wireless network cards and I use a PCMCIA card and a USB
wireless network card for the laptops. Less problems in the shack than when
I used wired networks.
The only untuned antennas I use are a random wire fed with an SGC tuner and
strapping the 40m dipole legs together and tuning that with an ATU in the
shack. Apart from causing telephone interference I could only run 20 watts
before the PC crashed. Having removed the wired network I have eliminated
phone interference and can happily run 50 watts into the wire antenna.
I have also field tested the wireless network at 100w with a Butternut
vertical beside the tent and the legs of the 80m dipole running over the
tent. CW on the MP was a bit of a nightmare (RFI lock-up) but the network
worked perfectly.
Jim


-----Original Message-----
From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com]On Behalf Of Clive Whelan
Sent: 15 June 2004 00:23
To: uk-contest at contesting.com
Subject: [UK-CONTEST] Wireless networking


Hi men (& girls?)

Sorry that this is a weensy bit off topic, but is germane to contesting
anyway.


In a recent quest to reduce the general level of digital hash that I was
getting on an antenna using tuned feeders, I discovered that my ( wired)
network hub ( Netgear), was putting lots of discrete carriers ( as opposed
to hash per se), all over 15m ( at least). Thus I disconnected it forthwith,
leaving me without a network between the two shack computers, an
inconvenience, but not insurmountable in a single op ( albeit SO2R)
environment.

At the same time I shifted the computer which does all the email and other
work, across the other side of the shack ( all of 6ft!)to minimise its
contribution. However, the major components of the "hash" were the network
adaptor( as mentioned above), and the on-board graphics adaptor on the PC
Chips ( budget) motherboard of the dedicated radio computer, replaced by a
PCI card which is virtually clean.


Now I would like to reinstate the network in due course, and next month will
get broadband. My current thinking is to use a wireless router to share the
broadband connection, and also to share files across the shack, and mebbe to
the laptop downstairs. Now I have little doubt that the 2Ghz part will be
RF/RFI proof, but I do wonder if it might suffer from the same problem as
the wired network hub ( who knows if the QRM was coming from the UTP cable
anyway?). Of course no computer nerd knows the answer to this, and so I
wonder if anyone here has first hand experience of such a set-up,
particularly in the harsh environment of tuned feeder antennas.


Advice appreciated.


Thanks for the bandwidth.



73


Clive
GW3NJW


_______________________________________________
UK-Contest mailing list
UK-Contest at contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/uk-contest


---
Incoming mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.706 / Virus Database: 462 - Release Date: 14/06/2004

---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.706 / Virus Database: 462 - Release Date: 14/06/2004