Hi, I have a two part question:
First what card do you guys recommend to go wireless with my PB 1400c?
and after I get the wireless card for my 1400 (I have an Airport card in my PB Tibook) I want to try the free WiFi route (e.g. Panera Bread). Is there a good site for new users that shows how to connect, where to get the network connection info and security issues, etc.
I have never connected to a wifi network or seen anyone do it. So I am clueless.
Thanks.
The AirPort menu will show you what networks are available in the area. You simply select the name from the list. If there is no key/encryption then it just connects automatically. If you need the key it propts you for it, and you can set it to rememeber the key for connecting later. WiFi on a Mac is quite simple compared to many setups I've seen for Windows. You don't get some of the power-user control features, but you also aren't bombarded by them to just get a simple connection going. Lucent/Orinoco/Agere/Proxim/whoever-has-the-chipset-this-week are usually considered to be quite good. I've got a Dell TrueMobile 1150, which is a rebranded and OEMd Lucent Orinoco Gold. Apple Airport cards in APB are Lucent cards. There is a website that details getting WiFi going on a 1400, which is Googleable I'm sure, or someone here already has the link stowed away.
Here's some good sites for info:
http://www.macwireless.com/html/support/faq.html
http://www.powerbookwireless.net/
http://www.freshfiltered.com/MacFAQ/PB1400FAQ.html
Definitely get an orinoco card. Get a cheap silver version off eBay, then flash it up to gold. I've tried this, and it works fine. Then, you'll need at least OS 8.1 or 8.6 (i forgot which) to run the latest orinoco drivers. Otherwise, i've been able to browse in OS7 with the version 6 drivers, which are a bit hard to find.
Make sure you have a lot of RAM, though. I tried it with 16 MB ram, and it's slower than dialup! A proc upgrade won't hurt, either.
As a nubus-based Mac, PBs 1400 cannot use the AP drivers. Anything PCI based can use AP drivers, though AP may not install on early PCI Macs. See Drew Kershaw's "Installing AirPort on an Unsupported Mac" page.
I also recommend using some version of the original Lucent Silver or Gold wavelan cards.
dan k
Jon, MacTrash_1, h3ch4 and Dankephoto, thanks for all the great info. I appreciate it.
Just for clarifaction, I will the Airport in my PB G4 and will buy one of the cards you guys recommended for my PB 1400c. My main objective is to get on someone elses wifi (like at Panera Bread). Second would be to go wireless in the backyard.
Thanks again.
I'm currently at my fave coffee shop on my G3PBook. I'm using the IOXPerts drivers for my card. Any PRISM 2, 2.5 or 3.0 card should work fine with the IOXperts driver. You do have to buy it, but it snaps into the System Preferences app in OSX and the same registration code works in OSX or OS9. So you can pull the card out and use it in any machine. The registration code is tied to the card's hardware address so the license follows the card instead of requiring a license for each machine. I'm using an old D-Link DWL-650 card. No cardbus for the 1400, so stick to plain PCMCIA cards.
Check the sig link below - hasn't been updated in a while, so it moslty covers older stuff - but that's what you're using anyway right?
Thanks axon and drbunsen. I appreciate the great info.
MaxTek