Re: [PLUG] Home Networking Question

[Tom <tom.hornberger@verizon.net>]

<snip>
> There are two main components to signal strength -- the transmitter
> power and receiver sensitivity. The transmitter can output the same
> power and be viewed with different signal strength by two different
> receivers who have different sensitivity.
>
> Pay attention to antenna orientation, and the construction of the
> material "covering" the antenna of your receiver. (I'm assuming that
> the transmitter on the antenna is in the clear, ala the Linksys.
>
> I have an original tangerine iBook. Its antenna is in the edge of the
> top, which is of plastic.  It has far greater signal sensitivity than
> -- shows greater signal strength -- than a friends Titanium PowerBook
> sitting right next to it.
> Why? Because the TIpowerbook has the antenna hiding behind a titanium
> shell!
>
> Similarly, with the antenna in the iBook vertical, the "polarization"
> is much different from that of my iPaq which with an 802.11 card that
> is normally horizontal! The reason that the Apple Airport Base Station
> is shaped like a Hershey's kiss is not only pretty design it is also
> quite functional. The antenna in the base station is along the 45
> degree slope, thereby "optimizing" the signal strength presented to
> either a horizontal or vertical receiving antenna. Change the
> orientation of the unit, and the signal strength at the receiver
> changes.
<snip>

The other major component of RF propagation is the antenna.  The ever popular 
"rubber duckie" antenna sucks as a radiator of RF.  It has a gain of -3dB.  
3dB of RF power is a change of 2 or 1/2.  A change of 2 (+3dB) means you 
double your power, a change of 1/2 (-3dB) means you lose 1/2 your power.  A 
piece of wire, cut to the wavelength of the RF signal should radiate better 
than a rubber duckie.

YMMV,
Tom

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