Wi-Fi in the UK - Advice about roaming Broadband, please

[Robusto]

Gentlemen

I know the DAWG uses wi-fi on a stick for his laptop, but I'm not conversant with the systems.

My laptop very often sets up here at home to BTOpenzone wi-fi, but I have wireless in the house so just click on to my own system. It has irritated me to have the external wi-fi present and sometimes blocking my own domestic wireless Broadband system, but I can see the possible benefit of wi-fi now.

I can't get a wireless signal in my smoke shack at the bottom of my garden and reckon that if I got a wi-fi dongle (sic?) that I'd be able to use it down there. And anywhere else, if necessary.

If any of you chaps use wi-fi for your laptop(s), could you tell me of providers you would recommend, please?

I use Orange for my mobile and wonder if a wi-fi package might tie in with them.

I'm being a bit lazy as I could research this myself, but would prefer BOTL preferences and opinions first.

I'm also looking for an inexpensive deal because I think the monthly cost of our Broadband, TV Broadband service and contract mobiles is already OTT.

Communications are EXPENSIVE in the UK!
But I love them.

I do have proper writing to do apart from the cigar sex clinic stuff on here - and I want to do it in my man shack!

Many thanks.
Bryan

[Boss Hog]

Hi Bryan

How far's your man cave away from the house? my first option would be to suggest you invest in a new wireless router with a decent range on it. for example a basic belkin g series can reach up to 400ft. That way you would be able to use your domestic LAN. I'm guessing your with BT? Do you have a home hub? black or white? not that it matters as they are both crap but the white one is worst and has a crap range. positioning of your router within your house can have an effect sometimes to.

As you are already a orange customer, you might want to look at this link. They do a usb type stick which you just plug in to your laptop and you have instant internet anywhere you like. you proabably get it cheap as a orange customer anyway

http://shop.orange.co.uk/shop/mobile-broadband

Finally the latest scariest futuristic invention is to use Broadband over your electricity wall sockets. yep you heard me! you can actually run a broadband internet / network connection via your plugs. you simply buy a set of adapters to which you plug in the wall and then plug in your laptop. There are a variety of products on the market for this, of which the best one has just jumped out of my head. I know a few people that use this method that have home offices at the end of the garden etc.
Need anything else let me know.

Mark

[cohibaIV]

Bryan

Since I started commuting to London last month, my company kindly got me a Orange USB 3G card for internet access...and all I can say is 'it's bloody brill!!!' Use it all the time on the train for work and play.. (Like now)

Don't know how much it costs with it being works, but you see them being sold by all the mobile companys now and not for that much either...

GET ONE MATE...

[nicwing]

Robusto

Do you have mains power in your shack?

I had exactly this problem in my Cybershed and I now use Ethernet over power.

Let me know if you have mains power and I will post more details.

[Robusto]

Hi Boss / Dale / Nic

I have mains in my shack and was going to look into the plug-in thing, but I'd heard it is very expensive. Is that so, Nic?

Boss - I agree. I have a white router AND a black router. Both seem to have a puny range, and the black (better) one doesn't reach down there. It's not very far to the shack. Maybe 20 to 25 metres.

The walls of my house are rock solid. It was bombed in WW2. When rebuilt, they made it a sort of Fort Knox. I have massive problems hanging pictures for starters, so I imagine signals for wireless must be affected.

Dale - That wireless thing sounds spot on, and Boss - I will be investigating that Orange link, therefore.

All of this will be looked at from Monday when I start two weeks off.

Great pointers, men. Thank you, brothers.

[Stevieboy]

Robusto - Nic's idea is probably the easiest way to go...in fact it's a piece of piss to set-up and relatively cheap as well - AMAZON . One plug connects to the PC then is plugged into a dosmestic wallsocket in your PC's room. The 2nd plug is then plugged into the mains in your man-cave and connected to the laptop via ethernet

I have the 200MB version for streaming hi-def to my XBox and it works perfectly

[Robusto]

Stevieboy - Cheers.

Only ?40! I thought they were about ?100!

I may be sorted very soon.

[nicwing]

Robusto
Just one word of warning, Ethernet over power is great, extremely easy to set up and has the added advantage that it's fast and secure (no one hacking in to your wireless signal) however... In order for it to work all your power sockets must be on the same ring main.

If you have to change the power around it can be an expensive option!

Mine works brilliantly, no signal loss or drop outs when someone farts down the road.

[Stevieboy]

Robusto
In order for it to work all your power sockets must be on the same ring main.

Good point Nic!

Robusto - do you have a mate you can borrow a set of plugs from to try it out?

[Robusto]

Good suggestion, Stevieboy. I'm not sure, actually, but I'll tout around.

The power down to the shack is wired up to the mains ring. I'll contact my builder to see if it is - but I'll just get a couple of those plugs, try them and bung them on eBay if they don't work. It's not too dramatic a mistake at that cost.

[nicwing]

Good suggestion, Stevieboy. I'm not sure, actually, but I'll tout around.

The power down to the shack is wired up to the mains ring. I'll contact my builder to see if it is - but I'll just get a couple of those plugs, try them and bung them on eBay if they don't work. It's not too dramatic a mistake at that cost.

I think we should change the name of this forum to the Brains Trust, ask us another!

Great new piccy Bry, great guffawing Kentman batman!

[Robusto]

I persuaded a non-smoking bud to try my Petit Edmundo this afternoon. He took one draw, turned purple and nearly died.
I reacted with appropriate sympathy.

[Stevieboy]

Good suggestion, Stevieboy. I'm not sure, actually, but I'll tout around.

The power down to the shack is wired up to the mains ring. I'll contact my builder to see if it is - but I'll just get a couple of those plugs, try them and bung them on eBay if they don't work. It's not too dramatic a mistake at that cost.

An unscrupulous sort of cove might....ahem......buy them from PC World or somesuch then.....ahem.....return them aand claim they don't work ...but I'm sure we're all gentlemen of high moral fibre on the UKCF

[Stevieboy]

I persuaded a non-smoking bud to try my Petit Edmundo this afternoon. He took one draw, turned purple and nearly died.
I reacted with appropriate sympathy.

I get my wife to try a puff now and again and she does the same. I absolutely piss myself laffing...so cruel but them's the breaks

[Robusto]

Fuck me! I should have thought of that Stevieboy!
I'm Comet's greatest rebounder at present.
I'm sure they can cope with IT JUST FELL APART one more time.
Excellent, my friend. Thank you!