As the topic states, im wanting to run usb outdoors, and would like to know if im going about it the right way. What im planning on doing is using a usb wifi card, in a sealed inclosure, right on my antenna, (for connecting to a community wireless network. Im looking at buying this http://www.trademe.co.nz/Computers/Printers/Other/auction-68331021.htm (its in NZ money) and on one end (the outside end) cutting the usb plug and socket off, and replacing it with ip65 rated rj45 connectors. Will this cause any problems with usb, or is it just a crazy idea. Because im trying to do it on the cheap, (im a uni student) and the next cheapest way is to buy wireless bridge, and put it on the antenna, which drives the price up a fair bit, and I already have a spare usb wifi card. Thanks Nick.
Usb isnt rated to go as far as you want it to go. Ive found that usb devices wont work past around 12' of extention cable. (had a 10ft extention+3ft on the device) There are other options avaliable. I saw on my last trip to the computer store a device that would let you extend usb 150ft with 2 powered adaptor boxes but it was $160 Why do you need the usb wifi dongle so high? Or you could build one of these (woot for tooting my own horn ) http://www.instructables.com/id/EQARE4I72GEPUCHTHU/ With that setup I was able to connect to an AP over 1,000 feet away.
I like the hightech cooking utensil antenna. But I think you could just buy a couple of those usb hubs and just run one every like 5 feet and that would give enough power to boost the signal. Cheap as dirt too.
TBH, Usb extension cables work better than most people think. I have a 1m cable, cheap as anything which works, and the device is a dvb-t tv tuner card which needs high bandwidth. I also cut it in two places and extended it with some cheap cable and it works fine.
Well, I can understand what he is trying to do, makes sense, as exending the antenna on a wifi device is just degraded signal waiting to happen, exending the actual device closer is the best method, just keep in mind that those cables are rated for usb 1.1 which will have no real effect on 802.11B devices as they are right on par with the usb 1.1 specs, As usb 2.0 requires much higher throughput it has much tighter specifications on how long a cord can be and how strong the signal must be, plus with those amplifiers on each end to clean up the signal it looks like it will work, if the cable is shielded and it sure looks like it, I certainly see no issues with that setup. After all whats a good project if you are not willing to push the specs a little bit anyway, when has voiding a warrenty ever stopped a good modder, when should specifications ever stop you either.
I should have probably pointed it out, that cable is active, and has a repeater at each end (warrior rocker picked up on that). And it will only be 802.11b, so usb 1.1 is ample for bandwidth. And the reason I want the cable so long is my room is on the wrong side of the house, for where I want the antenna. And what about using rj-45 connectors instead of a usb plug, for connectors, as I can get ones that are externally rated. tm36usa: The thought of doing it the way your link showed had crossed the mind a while back. But seeing as I have sitting in a mates shed a wifi antenna (proper dish style one, 20ish dbi gain off memory) and my usb dongle is the wrong type (its not really a dongle, it sits on your desk, and has a antenna that swivels (its the dlink dwl-120) I would have had to get creative anyway).