User's Manual

Winmate Communication Inc. User Guide Feb 12, 2001

FAQ

Q1. What is an AP (Access Point )?

Ans: An AP is the bridge to connect two different protocols, Ethernet 802.3 and

wireless 802.11b. It can stand alone as the center of a wireless infrastructure,

providing connections to your wired networks. Or, it can act as a repeater, increasing

wireless communication range. The maximum communication range is based on how

you configure your wireless infrastructure. If your purpose is merely transferring files

between two nearby computers, you can connect these two PCs by two WLAN cards

through ad-hoc mode (explained below) without using an AP.

Q2. Please explain "infrastructure" mode and "ad hoc" mode.

Ans: The 802.11 standard defines two modes: infrastructure and ad-hoc. In the

infrastructure mode, the wireless network consists of at least one access point

connected to the wired network infrastructure and a set of wireless end stations. The

ad-hoc mode is a peer-to-peer LAN. It is a set of 802.11 wireless stations that

communicate directly with one another without using an access point or any

connection to a wired network. This mode is useful for quickly and easily setting up a

wireless network anywhere that a wired infrastructure does not exist or is not required

for service.

Q3. What is the maximum transmission rate among WLAN cards?

Ans. In 802.11b, the theoretical maximum transmission rate is 11Mbps. It also

supports 1Mbps, 2Mbps, and 5.5Mbps rates when the transmission condition is not

very good. If you have more than two wireless stations connecting on the same

channel, the 11Mbps rate would be shared by these stations.

Q4. What does the “channel selection” mean in your driver?

Ans: In 802.11 there are total of 14 channels within the 2.4GHz to 2.4835 GHz

bandwidth. If you are working under the “ad hoc" mode, you have to assign one of

the channel. All PCs in this group should be configured to this assigned channel so

that your group could form up. If you are using the infrastructure mode, the system

administrator would have set a specific channel for the AP, and the client stations can

auto detect that channel to associate with it. In the latter case, the channel selection in

the driver does not matter.

Q5. What OS can your driver support?