Help, I just got gifted an older laptop from my step sister, and I got most of it figured out, but the wireless will not turn on.
It is a HP Pavilion ZE5300, and it has the wireless button right on the front of the case.
Keith
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Help, I just got gifted an older laptop from my step sister, and I got most of it figured out, but the wireless will not turn on.
It is a HP Pavilion ZE5300, and it has the wireless button right on the front of the case.
Keith
HP Pavilion ~ ZE5300 (actually a torpedo)...are those made by Oliva?Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
I do not want to sound like I think your completely not getting it but lower left conner go to
start
connect to
wireless and or show all connections
is all that working?
I do appreciate you being frank, those are the things that are most often overlooked,but all that does work. When I search for a wireless signal, it tells me that there isn't one and that maybe my wireless switch is off.Quote:
Originally Posted by cinda
I know that there is a signal, because4 I did this right next to someone in the coffee shop who was surfing on free wireless.
I then tried to turn the wireless on, but no reaction when I push the button.
Ok I am far from being a tech but things I would do
Shut it down..take out the battery reboot
Turn off the fire wall (just to check)
are you sure its free? some shops make you at least buy something there and then you have to register and get a password
when the last time your sister used it? Are you up to date on your service package?
Try another location
last resort..Sit at a table by a window wrap a metal coat hanger in tin foil and tape it to table making sure the hanger is a long as you can make it pointing the hanger east. stick one hand in side your neighbors large Mcdee's coke and put your foot on the chair leg across from you all the while sucking down a milk shake. If this doesn't work I am sure that someone will ask you if you need help...you might even get a ride to a place with great wyfy service .....trust me!
Wait....we're not talking about cigars are we? shit
hahahaha!Quote:
Originally Posted by cinda
Sure we are talking about cigars for he needs his wireless connection to be able to get on the web to be on the board to talk about cigars. You of all people should know...... all roads lead to cigars.Quote:
Originally Posted by badwhale
I'm not familiar with that model (my laptop cert's were IBM and Toshiba) but things I would check aside from the obvious (the wireless switch is in the On position - providing it actually has one):
1) Open Device Manager (Windows Key + Pause/Break key to open System Applet >> click on "Hardware Tab" ->>click on Device Manager) and check to ensure the wireless interface is working properly in there. If it has an exclamation mark, there's a problem and at this point you should go to Step 4 and try it.
2) If it shows the interface is working properly according to DM, I would next ensure the wired interface (or interfaces if it has more than one) are disabled. Go to: Start >> Settings >> Network Connections and right click on the wired interface (usually "Local Area Connection") and select "Disable" from the menu that comes up. If it starts working properly, you're done.
3) If that didn't fix it, check on HP's site for updated drivers for the device. You'll need the model number off the bottom for sure for this. If there are updated drivers, download and install them.
4) If updated drivers don't fix it (or there aren't any newer drivers) you may want to try uninstalling the device itself in Device Manager. To do so, open DM and find your wireless network interface again and this time right click on it and select "Uninstall" and reboot. Windows should "find" the device upon bootup and reload it.
5) If none of the above get it working properly the last thing I can think of trying is to unistall, then reinstall the TCP/IP stack on the device itself. To do this, go back to Network Connections (Start >> Settings >>Network Connections) and on the wireless connection right click and select "Properties" from the menu that comes up. In the window that opens scroll down to "Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)" and click on it to highlight it and select uninstall. Reboot, go back into the properties for the wireless interface and then reinstall the same TCP/IP Stack. Reboot again and see if it doesn't start working.
If none of the above works, the interface itself is either broken, or you'll need to take the unit in to HP to be fixed. If it's not under warranty, it's likely not worth it. It would probably be cheaper to buy a PCMCIA wireless ethernet adapter for the unit (providing it has a PCMCIA slot or two).
Capt, thanks for the info, I am going to check it out tomorrow, and I will let you know what, if anything, I find out.
Cinda, just to let you know, I tried the coathanger and hand in neighbors drink, and all I got from it was a free ride with a backwards sweater. the sweater was real nice, but it kind of hindered my typing.:smiley36:
And, I agree, I am trying to get this going so I can smoke while on a e-herf.
If you cant get the wireless to work you can always get one of the cheap USB wifi cards.
I haven't seen anyone suggest this yet. Take a look at your function keys (top row) and look for an icon that looks like a triangular tower with a dot on top and radio signals emanating from the dot. If you have one, hold the function key down (fn) and press it. It will toggle your network connection on and off. Look for a network light somewhere on your laptop. It should be lit.
Good luck.
hummmmm never new that was there mine is on f8 kewl!
That's what I'm talkin' about!!! :smiley20:Quote:
Originally Posted by cinda
Finally got it to work, I had to uninstall, then reboot, then update the drivers....Whew.
After soliciting all the advice, and doing all that, the signal is very anemic unless you are sitting on the router. I did a little google searching, and found out the my particular wifi modem is only good out to about 50 feet from the router, and that was when it was brand new. So, I might go with an after market card after all.
Anyway, thank you to all that responded with suggestions.
Keith
Hit newegg.com and pick up one.
If i was getting one for my self this is the one i would pick.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833156267
It is small and don't get in the way like the larger usb ones and the range is not bad at all its listed in meters not feet so its 160 ft indoor and 320 outside give or take a few ft.
Sweet, thanks for the link. With that kind of distance, I could just about steal my neighbors wifi :smiley36:.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mangyrat
If you're looking to steal the neighbor's signal, you might want to look into one of these...Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
http://www.danets.com/photos/turbote...07gt%20pro.jpg
I meant my neighbor next door, not the neighbor in DC :smiley36:
Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
Keith,
I use a G-SKY USB wireless adapter here in the sandbox. I had to get a 9dbi antenna with a 15 foot antenna cable because of the distance to the access point and to keep the USB transceiver indoors, but it works great. Here's the one I've been using for the last year:
http://gsky-link.com/en/product_Deta...0USB%20Adapter
I figure that if I ever did some wardriving this would be the perfect wireless adapter to use with a can to nab signals with.
Great, you just had to go and give me a second choice :smiley29: I thought it was going to be an easy decision. :smiley2:Quote:
Originally Posted by MarineOne
Really though, I thank you for the input, it really does give me somethings to ponder.
Keith
You wanna get a clean signal, donthca??? :smiley37:Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
Okay, I now have the wireless bug... I want to install a wireless router in the house.
I am boggling my mind with all the choices out there, and was wondering if anyone would give me some feedback on what they are using.
Thanks
Keith
I use a linksys. I don't have the model number with me, but it was like $60 and works like a champ. I get coverage on my porch, in my garage, on the patio.....etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
...the one that AT&T gave me with my internet service - 3wire... Works perfectly fine for me! :smiley20:
For router information start here.
http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/compo...rt/Itemid,189/
The 3rd highest rated one on that chart is also the cheapest router. :smiley4:
Thanks for all the replies, funny thing though...I posted this yesterday, and got home to see a router sitting on my porch.
My Step sister that gifted me the laptop, had her old wireless router sitting in a closet, so she figured I could use it.
I am going to try and hook it up tonight, and if it works...cool, if not, I will be checking into the link that Mangy posted.
Thanks again.
Keith
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mangyrat
Never heard of EnGenius, but I would be very wary of D-Link routers. I have tried using them for years, and they've never served more use than a doorstopper (and a pitiful one at that). They seem to hold down paper reasonably well, as long as the fan isn't on high.Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
I second this. For added convenience, I'd recommend you get the wireless router with the 4 additional ports in the back. I don't know about now, but the non-wireless routers with 4 ports used to be more expensive than the wireless routers with 4 ports. Was the wireless technology really that cheap? Sure, it's $50, but I've had the same one for years, always used them when I was in IT, and I've only seen one not work in years of work experience. I also like how easily they are programmable.Quote:
Originally Posted by ashauler
But if the router your sister gave you seems to work, you're good to go.
That's nice of her and saves you a few $$$Quote:
Originally Posted by mail man
If you need a hand, I have a fairly wide experience with a wide variety of makes/models and would be more than happy to help you get it setup.
I like both Linksys and D-Link and have found them to be fairly reliable. My ISP provided me with a 2wire brand combo unit (combination modem/router/wireless access point) when I upgraded to a 6 Mbps package a couple years back and it works pretty good too.
When it comes to running a wireless network in your home you definitely want to secure it. WEP encryption sucks and our security guy here at work can crack it in under 30 min's so you'll want to use WPA encryption. When you create a password for your SSID, make it complex (at least 8 characters and include upper/lower case, numbers and symbols) and if need be, write it down or store it in a file on your PC.
The encryption will prevent war drivers (usually hackers or child pornographers) from using your wireless network for their nefarious purposes.
If you, or anybody else in your home is an online gamer, you'll want to use a wired connection for the gaming. Wireless is a convenience and you pay for that convenience with inherent bandwidth issues and a lot of lag and latency.
So far the best router i have ever owned was a belkin.
The only reason I'm replacing it is it chokes to death on the new DOCSIS 3 modems.
The LinkSys WRT54G wireless router is the way to go. Depending on which model, you can load either of the aftermarket firmware versions like TOMATO or DD-WRT to increase power output on the antennas or add features that aren't in the default firmware from LinkSys/Cisco.
That is without a doubt one of the best routers made, especially the earlier versions. I have an original v1.0 and a 2.0 I believe. Not too sure how the current versions stack up nowadays. I picked up a D-Link DGL-4500 a few months back, so I'm gona throw the DD-WRT firmware on my WRT54G here soon to mess around with.Quote:
Originally Posted by MarineOne
I was going to mention that but I frequently go off all techie and people's eyes tend to glaze over. We have a project pending to provide in-house enterprise level wireless here at work but because of budget constraints due to the economic situation it's been pushed back.Quote:
Originally Posted by MarineOne
In the mean time, we're using SOHO level equipment to provide a "guest" wireless network. Which is to say, there's no encryption enabled and all you get out of it is internet access, no internal access, for obvious reasons.
I've gone through several D-Link wireless access points and had little or no luck with most of them and we finally settled on the Linksys WRT54GL router running Tomato firmware which can be found here:
http://www.polarcloud.com/tomato
There's also a version of tomato that has VPN capablity which can be found here:
http://tomatovpn.keithmoyer.com/
I've used both versions of Tomato and really like it a lot. Being Linux based, if you know Linux, you can write, and run scripts on the routers.
I've yet to look at DD-WRT or any other but if you go to the first link (Polarcloud) and scroll to the very bottom of the page you'll see it actually provides links to DD-WRT and several other 3'd party firmwares.
I personally recommend any Linux based Linksys router, especially if you know Linux/UNIX. This makes them so much more flexible than any non-Linux based SOHO Router.
But, if you already own one, or are considering buying one in order to run 3'd party firmware, you definitely want go to the Polarcloud website first and read the "Routers that are known to work with Tomato: " portion of the "NOTES" in order to ensure you have, or buy, one that's compatible.
Wow, y'all are making my head spin :smiley11:...sorry, I am not very good with the tech, at all. :smiley36:
I do appreciate the advice, and if I do decide to delve any deeper than just user level, I will refer back to this.
Looks like that cheap EnGenius router is going to work out fine. :smiley20:
http://www.speedtest.net/result/805061093.png
Now if i can just get some decent wireless cards for my other computers ill be all set.:smiley4:
http://backecto22.tripod.com/puke.jpgQuote:
Originally Posted by Mangyrat
:smiley36: I take it your not a fan of belkin routers.
I have always used a Linksys but I have heard that Belkin is good as well. The most important thing I have found is placing the right router for the right situation.
We live in a walk out two story, so my wifes studio/loft is about 60' from the router. So we had some problems when we had a wireless "b" router, once we upgraged to w wireless "n" here recently we have had no problems.
Point being, if you have about 20-30' to go to your computer or anyplace in your home for that matter, any router would be fine. If you have to "reach" some distance, then you might want to go with a better brand and make sure you get the latest technology for security.
http://www.speedtest.net/result/804130524.png
Jeez mangy, I wish I had that kinda speed. I have the cable company coming this weekend to check out my line, somethings definitely awry.
You pay line maintenance and modem rental to your internet provider so make them work for it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tdre977
I had all the lines removed from my house and put under ground then i redid all the lines in the house my self. 20 year old cable lines are crap.
Depending on what your cable company sold you your not going to get anywhere near the speed im at.
I'm on a 50 meg line :smiley4: