[X4U] re: wireless network

[Allan Hise]

On Thu, 16 Sep 2004, [WINDOWS-1252] Donna Ellis=95Mitchell Senft wrote:

> Thanks for all the quick responses. However, they somewhat miss the
> mark, maybe because I didn't emphasize the most perplexing thing which
> is the wireless network issue. That is, in no particular order:
>
> What cards do the iBook G3 and 4 year old iMac take, if at all? Are
> they still available? It looks like the iBook takes an Airport card,
> but not Airport Extreme. The iMac I'm unsure about.
>

The iBook G3 takes a standard Airport card. I'm not sure about
availability. The iMac, if it has an airport slot, will take a standard
one. Airport Extreme card work only in macs that specifically say they
take them.

> Does this "original" Airport card work with the Airport Express unit?
> If so, how well? Or do I have options?
>

Yes. But only at the original airport speed (11 MB/s).

> For that matter, is this Wi-Fi stuff generic enough that I don't need
> Apple hardware? If so, again, what "generic" cards would be
> recommended?

Yes, in theory. They should all be IEEE 802.11b and/or 802.11g compliant,
which are international standards for wireless networking. That's why you
can use wireless hotspots with your airport equipped iBook or PowerBook &
the wireless hardware isn't apple's. The only problem you might run into
is in Mac drives for cards and/or USB dongles.

Allan