Linksys 54 G and Sony WL-100: Still an issue?

[mj99]

OK, I could use some help. I just got my WL-100 card from Best Buy and installed it. After spending too much time to find out that it cannot find the office WAP when set to "Auto" for both IP Address and DNS address, I manually entered the IP address, subnet mask, gateway address, primary and secondary DNS, and disabling PowerSave Mode. Now it tells me that that it is "connected" to the network, but when trying to use AIM 1.1 or Blazer 2.0, I get timeout errors.

Obviously, something is still wrong. Any ideas? Is this problem related to the Linksys 54 G we're using at the office?

(On a related matter: Is anyone getting the "Auto" IP and DNS functions to work? I'd sure like to sit down at Starbucks and get on the network easily!)

Any assistance would be enormously appreciated!

[n2ifp]

According to Linksys, the 54g is NOT compatible!

Starbucks requires subscribing to T-mobile service, but there may still be issues there.

Sorry!

[musicjesus]

Thanks, Larry. You're always a terrific source of information.

So, have you ever gotten the Auto IP and Auto DNS functions to work?

[GenoG]

the wl-100 is not compatible with the 54g or airport extreme?!
I hope sony fixes this!

[n2ifp]

Originally posted by musicjesus
Thanks, Larry. You're always a terrific source of information.

So, have you ever gotten the Auto IP and Auto DNS functions to work?

Your welcome!

No, auto in the Clie would not connect with any reliability using the Linksys equipment. The auto seems to work fine for those users who have the Netgear MR814 unit.

[n2ifp]

Originally posted by GenoG
the wl-100 is not compatible with the 54g or airport extreme?!
I hope sony fixes this!

Congrats on your Senior status!

[GenoG]

haha thanks! :)
It happened so fast because i love posting here. Everyone is always so helpful and funny. plus the fast responses i get are great!

Plus the fact that i spend hours on end parked in front of this monitor doesnt hurt !

[Akolbes]

The Linksys 54G and the Wl-100 are not an issue. I have both and have set them up without any problem. I just needed the new firmware available for free from Linksys. I even enabled 128 bit wep and have the clie way out on my porch, and it still works fine.

[n2ifp]

Very interesting as we had a lot of frustrated members who tried to update the firmware that Linksys suggested and didn't work. Then Linksys finally said it wasn't compatible with the Clie.

Anyway, congrats and enjoy!

[ClieMarty]

alkobes, n2ifp:
could you confirm whether linksys 54g is working or not; i have quite a good offer for that device which makes only sense if that works with my clie wlan card

[n2ifp]

I have heard reports that the Linksys 54G works now if it has the latest firmware.

[GenoG]

really? cooL!

[Akolbes]

Originally posted by ClieMarty
alkobes, n2ifp:
could you confirm whether linksys 54g is working or not; i have quite a good offer for that device which makes only sense if that works with my clie wlan card

I have it right here in my hot little hands. Sync, e-mail, web surf and the like with 128bit encryption as well. Works like a charm!!

I have the WRT54G and all of the associated cards. The networking portion leaves alot to be desired as far as speed is concerned, but that's another problem.

Cheers!!

[Reggie]

Just got the Linksys Wireless-G router (WRT54G) and just upgraded it to the latest firmware. The WL100 connected the first time with no issues.

Now, the start of a wireless home.... :D

[randy_m]

The WAP54G sure didn't work for me...and the firmware that is currently downloadable for this particular device is the same one that didn't work for me.

Obviously the WRT54G has different firmware than the WAP54G.

[ClieMarty]

Thanks Reggie, will try to get a WRT54G today.

[chazzz]

Well, after reading this thread I decided to go wireless! I bought the WRT54G, a WPC54G PCMCIA card for my Vaio, and the WL-100. The notebook and wireless router are working just fine (even with my existing Linksys Cable router). BUT, I can't download the stinkin' firmware update. :( Minor set-back, but still... I was ready to go. Even got NetFront installed... [bummer] :(

[ClieMarty]

chazzz, could you keep my posted? i'm planning also to get a WRT54G (probably next week) with PC-Cand and PCI-Card; already have the WL-100 from a product bundle.

[chazzz]

WOW! Man oh man, is that cool!

Linksys' FTP site was offline (I figured as much), but came back up this afternoon. So I downloaded the firmware update for the WRT54G and got that installed. Having already gotten the Clie ready to go, I ran NetFront -> Preferences and bang I was connected. Browsing is a little weird, but relatively cool.

Ah, the first steps of wireless! :)

[ClieMarty]

what do you mean with "browsing is a little weired"? just regarding the fact that there is not much space on the pda screen or other strange things regarding WRT54G. thanks

[sonycrazie]

HI Chazzz,
I'm new to FTP site. I get into there and there are different folders. I found a FIREWARE folder under INTERNATIONAL folder. And there are 2 zip files and 2 other files under Fireware folder. I'm wondering if this is the correct folder to look at and which one is the correct file to download?
Cheers

[chazzz]

To ClieMarty: Yes, "weird" refers to the screen... the things I generally browse aren't constructed for the tiny screen. But it's cool to see the PalmGear logo show up. :)

To sonycrazie: Why didn't you go to linksys.com -> Support -> Downloads then select the product & OS? That's all I did. The links to the files are to an FTP site. Besides, the WL-100 is not firewire.

[sonycrazie]

I know someone will come after me for my typo!
Yes, teacher. It should be FIRMWARE instead. I went to the FTP site just because I thought that you'd downloaded it there from your previous post.

[ClieMarty]

To Chazzz: Thanks, will see whether i can grab my WRT54G tomorrow; I might get the combo with the PC-Card; I would like to add a PCI-Card for my desktop as well but i think I stick with at least some cable in the beginning - at least till prices drop further ;-)

To sonycrazie: Think you meant "firmware", right?

[chazzz]

How funny... If "firewire" hadn't been a real word, I might have picked up on that... Oh well. :) The file I got was "WRT54G_1.02.1_US_code.exe" just for reference sake.

[ClieMarty]

HEEEELP!

Got my WRT54G today; together with a G-PC-Card and an old 802.11-PCI-Card.

> The router is not working; shows constantely the red diagnoses light; tried loading the latest firmware but could not connect to router (was not found). anybody having the same problems or is my device potentially damaged?

With regards to the PC-Card (54g). Was anybody able to establish a working peer-to-peer conection with Clie NX70. That would be really nice.

And a final one: Is it true that the whole network is going down in speed once a 802.11b component is applied to the .

[BL4KKAT]

juss wondering.... is 54g those wireless-g 54mbs router you guys keep talking about?and if it is, is the wl100 compatible with those kinds of routers? cause im thinkning of getting a Belkin Wireless-G 54Mbs Router thingy

[ClieMarty]

BL4KKAT,

yes, but the discussion was mostly on the Linksys WRT54G-Router; I've got one and since I did a firmware update the WL100 is fine with the router. Sure, it's still a 802.11b card so whenever you use it, your whole wlan goes down to 11b whether or not you use other G-(11g)devices.

Btw. the Linksys has at least enough power to get me some signal once i'm on the balcony -> the router is placed one floor further down with some 10m distance and some walls to take care of; so no direct line of sight; don't know whether the connection is fast but for browsing some pda-friendy web pages and checking sport results it's fair enough ;-)

[n2ifp]

Originally posted by BL4KKAT
juss wondering.... is 54g those wireless-g 54mbs router you guys keep talking about?and if it is, is the wl100 compatible with those kinds of routers? cause im thinkning of getting a Belkin Wireless-G 54Mbs Router thingy

Make sure you can return it, if it doesn't work out. As ClieMarty states, it will only run 802.11b 11Mbps speeds for the whole system.

[BL4KKAT]

thanks alot for all the info guys.

Gosh i juss love how fast people respond to questions :D

[Phuzz]

Earlier this evening I purchased a PEGA-WL100 CF card to use w/ my NX70V. Unfortunately, I didn't read this thread before buying it. That's right -- my WAP/router is a WRT54G. And...as you've likely guessed by now...I can't get the PEGA-WL100 to work properly!?!

I've updated the firmware on the router to v1.02.1 and have updated the PEGA-WL100 driver on my NX70V to v1.20 -- still no luck. If one of you fine folks who have been lucky/sharp enough to get this working would be so inclined, I'd greatly appreciate it if you could post a list of detailed operating parameters/settings for your WRT54G/PEGA-WL100 here. Either that or slip 'em to me in an e-mail. TIA

Regards,

Neil J. "Phuzz" Sleep
njsleep@gt.rr.com

[n2ifp]

Make sure you use 802.11b single mode only. 54G will NOT benefit fit you! It will all be a 11mbps WLAN if you need the Clie to function.

As to settings, you have not mentioned the PC's operating system, ISP, or Connection type.

Typing the settings can be extensive and there is a myriad of setups.

Did you try Sony's new wizard yet? I believe it's the first link in my post pinned at the top of this forum.

Good luck and all the best :)!

[Phuzz]

Actually, I can't find a way to set the router to 802.11b ONLY; there're "Disable" (as in no wireless LAN), "Mixed" (802.11b/g), and "G Only" (802.11g only -- no 802.11b) settings, but nothing that would allow me to set the WAP to 802.11b only. Doh!

And, while I don't see what bearing my OS could have on things, I am fully aware of the fact that I don't know EVERYTHING and will therefore humor you (don't mean that in a negative way, so please don't take it as such -- I am, after all, the one in need of help here), I have PC s running both Linux and Windows XP (SP1) on my network -- I'm using one of my Windows XP boxes to configure the router. ISP is Time Warner, connection type is Cable.

TIA -- again.

:D

- N

[n2ifp]

It's all very relevant. Windows XP has features that the other OS's don't have. Some ISP's like AOL DSL have been impossible to get working as far as I know.

First thing is setup up everything DHCP in the Linksys.

Everyone says mixed mode won't work and the Clie only works with 802.11b. Hopefully someone will come along and tell you how they did it.

In the Clie creaate a new profile with any name you want to give it. Leave the WEP Key blank until it's up and working. When and ever you do enable it, make sure you use the HEX Key format, as that is what the Linksys recognizes.

Use infrastructure mode.

SSID: pick a short name, remember it's case sensitive.

Under advanced, DNS and IP checked auto.

PowerSaveMode(very important) unchecked.

If it says connected, you at least are connected to the LAN side and hopefully it will itself over to the WAN side where it goes to the cable modem.

Use the latest WL100 driver from Sony support.

In some setups, the settings needed to be static or set manually.

I hope this helps some.

Good luck!

PS: I have Linksys equipment, but not the 54G.

[X Gear]

Phuzz-
I have the WRT54G and the WL100 Lan card. I have Windows XP and DSL without a static connection. I've got them working seemlessly together. It's been a few days since your last post... Hopefully you're up and running.

I'll try and share a few points.

- Don't use the setup CD. I wired the PC to the router initially to rule out problems in that area. (PC NIC card to router port #1 using CAT 5 networking cable.)
- Follow the quick setup instructions from the router. Ensure that you can browse the internet at your PC through the router.
- I didn't use DHCP. I used PPPoE and entered my User Name and Password. This has to do with your internet connection. If you can browse from PC, you're fine. Start with WEP disabled to eliminate ruling this out as a problem if things don't go right.
- There is no 802.11b only mode. Mixed mode works fine.
- Update firmware.

At The Clie'
- Update Lan drivers

Follow set up instructions from Lan card setup manual with the following details and/or exceptions.
- Profile name: Anything. I have two profiles: Home DSL and T-Mobile.
- SSID: Same as in router setup (case sensitive)
- Infrastructure Mode
- Advanced:
> IP Address: Auto- checked
> DNS Address: Auto- checked
> PowerSaveMode: Disabled- unchecked

When all is working good: You hit Connect at the network screen. It says CONNECTING WIRELESS.......... CONNECTED............. CONNECTING NETWORK.............. CONNECTED.
If it only connects wireless, it's not working yet.

Notes:
- I was not able to connect using the mobile connection wizzard. It worked for Bluetooth, not Wireless LAN for me.
- I was not able to connect the same router and Clie' to my girlfriend's Cable modem using windows 98. I will soon take my computer to her house to find out if the problem was with her cable modem or Windows 98.

Hope I helped.
James

[n2ifp]

Interesting, others have mentioned an 802.11b mode and that it wouldn't work in mixed mode. I am not doubting you, it's only the mixed reports can add to the confusion.

Thanks for the feedback and demonstarting that an ISP connection is relevant by using PPPoE for DSL.

[X Gear]

n2ifp- Other routers may have an 802.11b only mode and it may be a neccesity for those. but the WRT54G has three selections: Disabled / Mixed / G Only.

Sidebar: I've been trying to figure out what "n2ifp" means or could stand for. It may be so obvious, I'll never figure it out. Little' help plz.

[syarost]

I am using the WRT54G Wireless G Router, a WPC54G Wireless G Notebook adapter on my win2k notebook, and the wl100 in my nx70V. I have been able to do a network sync to the notebook and my winME desktop , no problem, in infrastructure mode. In addition, I was able to do a network sync to my Notebook PEER to PEER in Ad-Hoc mode by adding a new profile to the clie and the notebbook for ad-hoc.

I have no problems connecting. I have the latest firmware upgrade from Linksys and the Sony WL100 update, and am running in mixed mode.