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Date:      Sat, 23 Feb 2002 04:00:48 -0500
From:      Pete Fritchman <petef@databits.net>
To:        John Reynolds <johnjen@reynoldsnet.org>
Cc:        mobile@freebsd.org
Subject:   Re: recommendation not to purchase DWL-1000AP
Message-ID:  <20020223040048.A42166@databits.net>
In-Reply-To: <15479.20563.424313.788279@whale.home-net>; from johnjen@reynoldsnet.org on Sat, Feb 23, 2002 at 01:18:27AM -0700
References:  <15479.20563.424313.788279@whale.home-net>

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++ 23/02/02 01:18 -0700 - John Reynolds:
| 
| Hello mobile,
| 
| Just to add my $0.02 to the fray, I'll volunteer some information that people
| (including myself) ask for from time to time on this list--what wireless
| "stuff" to buy.
| 
| While the price of the D-link DWL-1000AP seems attractive I must say you should
| avoid this access point unless all of the following are true:

This is what I got a few months ago.

| 
|  1) you have a Windoze machine handy to configure the AP

If you can manage to get the new firmware onto the AP, you can use
web-based configuration (but you'll need a windows machine to do
that...)

|  2) you intend on hanging this AP off another D-link "all in one" router/natd
|     boxes -OR- you intend on hanging it off a hub (not switch).

I currently have it hanging off a switch right now with no problems.

|  3) you have lots of patience for very shotty setup software and manufacturers
|     who put the wrong MAC address stickers on their hardware (not kidding).

Yep, same here... I ended up getting the MAC address by looking at the
latest lease on the DHCP server after plugging the AP in.

| Making a very long story short, their Windows software that configures the AP
| "down the wire" is hopeless. I mean Charlie Brown hopeless! Having yourself a
| cross-over cable so that you can connect your computer directly to it for
| configuration is probably the most painless thing you can do.

Agreed... the software and upgrade stuff leaves much to be desired.  The
window title for the upgrade software is "TestDLL" :-)

| Once you actually get an IP address assigned to the bloody thing and get the
| rest of the parameters established it seems to work OK (at least with the
| DWL-650 NIC). I have yet to get WEP working, but I haven't tried too much.

I generated a random WEP key on the AP, and that seemed to work OK.  But
I opted to use the mac address access list, as it's more secure.

--pete

--
Pete Fritchman [petef@(databits.net|freebsd.org|csh.rit.edu)]
finger petef@databits.net for PGP key

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