Comments on: Cable Internet Woes

By: landlord building insurance

landlord building insurance — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:18:03 +0000

just don't get wireless connection specially if your planning on using VoIP like skype or something.

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By: Cable Woes Resolved – Random Musings

Cable Woes Resolved – Random Musings — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 23:26:35 +0000

[...] December 13th I wrote about my long-standing cable Internet woes. At the end of that note, I mentioned that I would update everyone if my solution [...]

By: hadar

hadar — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 17:03:42 +0000

The next time we are in the apartment I'll know if my new change has worked. If it hasn't, then it probably is Time Warner.

By: Laura

Laura — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:58:56 +0000

Hm, interestingly we've been having a fair amount of internet “drops' – although since we obviously use our internet in the apt much less (only for brief periods at night), it's difficult to know if the drops go on as often as ya'lls. But maybe we can then just blame Time Warner?

By: hadar

hadar — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 13:23:51 +0000

All great suggestions! I definitely have some long cables, but I should have just thought to move into the room with the cable modem and wire myself for a few hours just to be sure. Great idea.

As for the radio spectrum, that too is a good idea. I already run my phones at 5.8Ghz. I thought about getting one of the higher-end dual-band N routers, but I doubt that many laptops with built-in N have 5.8Ghz available, including my new one. So, I opted for ubiquity...

I own an old A AP (not a router, just a bridge) just for that purpose, but I haven't plugged it in in years. If I could find it, it would be a good test too, since I believe that our laptops have ABGN. Of course, when we have company, I'd need to also plug in an old G (of the current N).

I could look into the key stuff too, but I don't think that's my problem.

In any event, you've given me some great suggestions, thanks! I did swap in the N router to be the only router, connected directly to the cable modem, but we left 5 minutes later, so I have no idea whether that in itself will solve the problem.

By: thingles

thingles — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 04:48:43 +0000

Given that your SIP-based phone calls are working I think you are safe in assuming that your wired infrastructure works, however, it would be worth stringing a 50' or 100' Cat 5 cable to the laptop just to make sure that it works fine if it is wired.

I would look at the radio spectrum. What channel are you on? You are using N but it sounds like you are still down at 2.4Ghz? Any option to jump up to 5Ghz N? I've had a switch from channel 6 to 11 or 1 make all the difference in the world with some devices (notably my Nintendo Wii which even with real open spectrum here would only be happy on channel 1, totally clear of everyone else).

Given the proliferation of WiFi noise in NYC, it would be great if you could jump out of the 2.4Ghz spectrum but it isn't easy. You end up running two AP's like I do, one for B and G at 2.4Ghz and another for N-only at 5Ghz. But they don't interfere obviously.

The other possibility I would look into is your key rotations for WiFi encryption. Perhaps there is something going screwy with those PKIP (?) rotations? That gets into unknown territory for me, but it's possible.