lmacmil
join:2001-01-26
South Bend, IN
| Why does the signal come and go?
Currently on vacation, staying at a Manhattan hotel. The hotel does not have free internet but my laptop can see 20+ networks, several of which are unsecure. I have logged on to 3 different ones to check email but often during a session, the connection will drop to local access only and I lose the internet connection.
What causes this? My laptop hasn't moved and presumably these routers haven't moved either but the connections can come and go without warning. (Please don't lecture me about stealing bandwidth. I'm not proud of this but my connections are brief and I'm not downloading anything except email or webpages so I doubt these folks with unsecure networks are missing anything due to unknown sharing of their bandwidth.) |
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lmacmil
join:2001-01-26
South Bend, IN | Just noticed another message with a similar question. If anything else to add beyond interference from other nearby wireless devices, then please respond. Thanks. |
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punker
deleted by moderator
Premium
join:2004-06-21
Palmdale, CA
clubs: | your hotel might be using an jammer |
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LLigetfa
join:2006-05-15
Fort Frances, ON
| reply to lmacmil
There are two answers. Interference is one and multipath is the other. While the AP presumably does not move and your laptop purportedly didn't, the path the signal took did change as objects in between move around.
I have a stationary radio receiver in the kitchen that we often listen to but as we move about, it affects the reception. Again, the transmitter doesn't move and the receiver is stationary, so the obvious explanation is the path is affected by our bodies.
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Strange as it seems, no amount of learning can cure stupidity, and formal education positively fortifies it. -- Stephen Vizinczey |
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stevech0
join:2006-09-17
San Diego, CA | reply to lmacmil
make the hotel's SSID be the top of the list in your choices on your laptop. Else the laptop will try top auto-change SSIDs for a stronger signal. |
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jefe
Premium
join:2001-05-19
Northport, NY
| The OP said the hotel doesn't have free Ineternet stevech0 and he's obviously not willing to pay to check his email.
I like LLigetfa  's answer. |
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pandora
Premium
join:2001-06-01
Outland
 ·Comcast
|  reply to lmacmil
Personally in an urban area, I wouldn't trust an open AP to be safe for anything important which is not encrypted. Are you using secure email? Do you have a personal firewall enabled?
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"People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use." |
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stevech0
join:2006-09-17
San Diego, CA | Totally agree. When I travel, I normally use Verizon EV-DOrA rather than hotel/public WiFi. Seems more secure. Some WiFi isn't setup to block peer-to-peer connectivity within the W-LAN. |
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lmacmil
join:2001-01-26
South Bend, IN
| reply to pandora
said by pandora :Personally in an urban area, I wouldn't trust an open AP to be safe... Are you using secure email? Do you have a personal firewall enabled? Yes and yes. I don't log onto any site that requires me to type in a password. |
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stevech0
join:2006-09-17
San Diego, CA | and have no folder/printer shares on your laptop. |
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Thorne anon
@teksavvy.com | reply to lmacmil
never forget that people moving around can effect your signal.
hotels are full of ppl moving @ all hours. |
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