Climbing on the roof or taking my desktop for a Sunday drive is not feasible :) Any ideas on changing the setting in the Quicklink Mobile/dialup/TCP/etc? Or is that necessary?
Main Topics
Browse All Topics
Loading Advertisement...
Question
wireless internet card (QuickLink Mobile-Alltel) and dialup
WinXP media ctr edition 2002, SP2, Dell Dimension desktop, P4
Use dialup connection (live in the boonies) for internet and email; bought a UTStarcom UM150 USB wirless internet modem today from Alltel; installed program (Quicklink Mobile) - 2 bars outta 4
connection is slower than dialup (w/dialup connect at 42.6)
I want to keep dialup (for email) for about another month. I called Alltel customer service - all they can say is you have a 15-day warranty - return it for a refund. Also, there is a $60 per month fee for 'wireless' service - this 'wireless' is no better than dialup; in fact, it appears even slower.
Under internet options, my dialup is the default (I've changed it to alltel wireless as a test, but that didn't change anything); in LAN settings in internet options, no box is checked. Alltel told me I wouldn't have to change any settings to use the wireless card and dialup - but for some reason, that just doesn't seem "normal". Is this the best there is, or are there "setting" changes that need to be made in order for the wireless card to work properly AND keep the dialup for email? Or am I expecting too much?
This Question has been solved and asker verified All Experts Exchange premium technology solutions are available to subscription members.
Subscribe now for full access to Experts Exchange and get
Instant Access to this Solution
- Plus...
- 30 Day FREE access, no risk, no obligation
- Collaborate with the world's top tech experts
- Unlimited access to our exclusive solution database
- Never be left without tech help again
Trusted by hundreds of thousands everyday for fast, accurate and reliable tech support.
- "The time we save is the biggest benefit of Experts Exchange to Warner Bros. What could take multiple guys 2 hours or more each to find is accessed in around 15 minutes on Experts Exchange." Mike Kapnisakis, Warner Bros.
- "Our team likes having a resource that is more secure than just using Google and most experts using this service really know their stuff. It's nice to look here first versus using Google." Dayna Sellner, Lockheed Martin
- "Anytime that I've been stumped with a problem, 9 out of 10 times Experts Exchange has either the accepted solution or an open discussion of the potential solution to the problem." Kenny Red, eBay Inc.
See what Experts Exchange can do for you.
Got a question?
We've got the answer.
Experts Exchange has been collecting answers to technology questions since 1996…3 million and counting! If you have a question, chances are we already have your answer.
Need individual assistance?
Our experts are ready to help.
If you can't find the exact answer you're looking for, ask our exclusive community of 50,000 experts. You’ll get a personalized answer from a trusted professional.
Want to learn from the best?
Read articles from industry experts.
Thousands of free tech tips, tricks, how-to’s and tutorials are available in our peer reviewed articles section. See for yourself how smart our experts are, no login required.
Working on a long term project?
Store your work and research.
Save solutions to your questions, answers you’ve discovered through searching plus helpful articles in your personal knowledgebase for easy future access.
Access the answers to your technology questions today.
30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.
What Makes Experts Exchange Unique?
Members of the expert community talk about why the experience at Experts Exchange is different than what you will find anywhere else.
Trusted by the world's most respected brands.
Faithfully serving IT professionals since 1996.
Try it out and discover for yourself.
30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.
Free Tech Articles
-
WARNING: 5 Reasons why you should NEVER fix a computer for free.
It is in our nature to love the puzzle. We are obsessed. The lot of us. We love puzzles. We love the challenge. We thrive on finding the answer. We hate disarray. It bothers us deep in our soul. W...
-
SCCM OSD Basic troubleshooting
SCCM 2007 OSD is a fantastic way to deploy operating systems, however, like most things SCCM issues can sometimes be difficult to resolve due to the sheer volume of logs to sift through and the dispe...
-
Migrate Small Business Server 2003 to Exchange 2010 and Windows 2008 R2
This guide is intended to provide step by step instructions on how to migrate from Small Business Server 2003 to Windows 2008 R2 with Exchange 2010. For this migration to work you will need the fo...
-
Create a Win7 Gadget
This article shows you how to create a simple "Gadget" -- a sort of mini-application supported by Windows 7 and Vista. Gadgets can be dropped anywhere on the desktop to provide instant information, ...
-
Outlook continually prompting for username and password
There have been a lot of questions recently regarding Outlook prompting for a username and password whilst using Exchange 2007. There are a few reasons why this would happen and I will try to cover t...
-
Backup Exchange 2010 Information Store using Windows Backup
There seems to be quite a lot of confusion around the ability to backup Exchange 2010 using the built in Windows Backup feature. This stems from the omission of this feature prior to Exchange 2007 s...
Cloud Class Webinars
- Avoiding Bugs in Microsoft Access
Alison Balter takes and in-depth look at avoiding bugs in Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the immediate window to debug your applications, invoking the debugger, using breakpoints to troubleshoot, stepping through code, setting the next statement to execute, ...
- Top 10 Best New Features in Visio 2010
Scott Helmers gives live demonstrations of the top 10 new features in Visio 2010. This webinar will teach you how to create compelling diagrams by adding shapes to the page with a single click, linking the shapes in a diagram to data in Excel (or SQL Server, or SharePoint), ...
- IT Consultant Business Secrets Revealed
Michael Munger, Experts Exchange tech pro and IT consultant, pulls back the curtain on his very successful businesses and answers question on every IT consultant and business owner should know about. He shares secrets on what he did to solve the 5 most common problems in IT, ...
- Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
Quest CTO, Mike Billon, gives an overview of the steps involved in building a dunamic disaster recovery plan. Through case studies and an examination of software/hardware tooles for monitoring and testing, you'll gain a better understandin of where you are, where you want ...
- Organize Your Visio Diagrams with Containers and Lists
Scott Helmers uses cross functional flowcharts, wireframe diagrams, data graphic legends and seating charts to teach you: how to ustilize all three new structured diagram components in Visio 2010, the best practices for organizeing shapes in previous version of Visio, how to organize ...
- How to Us Objects, Properties, Events and Methods in Microsoft Access
Alison Dalter gives an in-depbth look at objects, properties, events and methods in Microsoft Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the object browser, referring to objects, working with properties and methods, working with object variables, understanding the ...
Join the Community
Give a Little. Get a Lot.
Join the community of experts here and help other tech pros by answering question in your area of expertise. You can earn FREE access to all Experts Exchange's premium features and resources.
Answers
Is it possible to at least change the position in your home? e.g. if the nearest tower is north of you, does using it near a window on the north side increase bars/speeds any?
Typically there's a place in the connection utility where you can view signal strength besides just 'number of bars'... like a percentage or in dB of signal strength.
If being in a certain location makes it lots better, consider getting a wireless router to plug the UM150 into, then you can leave it where reception is best and roam where you want with your laptop. Check out http://evdoforums.com too - they have a section just for USB modems, plus many reviews/tips for different EVDO routers. It's free to register if you need to post, but you might be able to flatten the learning curve just reading there. Most of the EVDO modems have connections for an external antenna, so that might help also. If none of the EVDO routers support your modem, you might consider swapping for a different one before your trial period is over.
Once you get a good connection you might benefit from tweaking the TCP settings on your laptop too. I suggest using DrTCP or the free TCP Optimizer from SpeedGuide (http://www.speedguide.net
If reception is the problem, then no change to the settings will help much at all. Another possibility is that a high speed network is not available in your area. Those devices will support the newer base stations fine, but if none are available, they will fall back to the old GPRS edge network instead - which will give you not much better than dialup speeds. Usually the modem monitor/driver interface will tell you if it's an edge network or not.
Cheers.
I've moved the desktop tower to several locations in the room - closer to a window, facing north (tower is north), etc etc - not a small task. Still at 2 bars (72%). You are correct in stating highspeed network is not in this area - hence, the wireless card purchase. My intention was to buy a laptop when traveling and using the UM 150 wirelss card, then with the desktop at home. If this experience with the desktop is any indication of performance with a laptop, think I've just saved myself about $1000. I don't understand your last sentence "...modem monitor/driver interface ...edge network..." - where do I find that information and once found, what does it mean? I'm still trying to decipher 50% of the above comments :) See above - beginner on this subject.
If you decide to give up on Alltel before you're locked into a 2 year contract, you should check the coverage maps before you switch services... 'cause there might not be anything better in your area... e.g.
http://content.alltel.com/
http://www.wireless.att.co
http://coverage.sprintpcs.
http://www.verizonwireless
And any other carrier's site you can find... look for a 'Coverage' link, and double-check that the map's showing you data coverage (i.e. not just cell phone).
Do check out the evdoforums.com site to see if there's any advice posted for improving reception with your particular card, too.
3 Ways to Join
Business Accounts
- Perfect for organizations
- Multiple users
- Save over 36%
- Create a Business Account
Answer for Membership
- Earn free access
- Showcase your knowledge
- No credit card required
- Sign Up to Answer
Loading Advertisement...
by: meverestPosted on 2008-02-24 at 02:11:05ID: 20969417
There are many factors that affect the performance of a wireless connection, not the least is terrain, buildings and trees etc. The first thing you can try (may sound silly, but worth the try) is to sit on the roof of your house with your computer (hopefully it's a laptop) and try connecting.
If you know where the nearest base station is, drive closer to it (not necessarily directly beneath it, but at least to somewhere that you can clearly see it, and see how the connection goes.
If you get a better result when you are in a better position, but it still performs poorly inside your home, then you could try an external antenna if the device supports it.
There are lots of different model devices, from PCI card, to PC card, to USB. Ideally, you need to find one that best suits your location.
Cheers.