It's a good laugh

[umrdad]

My son just sent me the necessary steps to connect to his university's wireless network . . .looked pretty complicated till I looked at the last 3 lines (why anyone would buy windows system is beyond me)

802.11b/g INSTRUCTIONS


* You need to obtain a wireless Ethernet card that is 802.11b/g and WiFi
compatible (most WiFi cards will have WiFi physically printed on the card).
Wireless Ethernet cards from the following vendors have been tested and are
known to work on our wireless network:

* Cisco Aironet
* 3Com
* Orinoco (Silver and Gold versions both work)
* Zoom
* Xircom
* US Robotics
* Linksys
* Apple Airport

* You must register the card on the UMR network using the online registration
for Residential Housing and Wireless connections. This form can be found off the
Helpdesk page <http://campus.umr.edu/helpdesk> . You can also access this page
directly <http://campus.umr.edu/it/refcenter/connect/ethernet/ethernet_reg.html>
. Without registration, your card will NOT work on our wireless network.

* Configure your networking properties on the card to use DHCP to obtain an IP
address. (Each card is configured slightly differently.)

* You will need to bring up the client encryption tool to install the proper
utilities for your card (the specifics of these vary from card to card) and
input the following information:

* Configure the system to use DHCP for WINS resolution
* Client name: the name of your machine (sent to you with your registration)
* SSID: UMR_Campus (this is Case Sensitive)
* Access type: set this to infrastructure
* Access Point Authentication: Open Authentication
* WEP: Enable this (Wire Equivilancy Privacy)

* Set the 40 Bit Crypto key
<https://campus.umr.edu/it/refcenter/connect/ethernet/protected/crypto_key.html>
You will need this in order to be able to access the UMR wireless network. Note
that on Macintosh computers you will need to put a "$" in front of the key.


802.1x configuration for Mac OS X


1. Select the wireless configuration tool on the top bar. Click Other.

2. Enter "UMR" for the Network Name, select "802.1X WEP". Enter YOUR login
credentials for User Name and Password. Leave 802.1X Configuration as
"Automatic".
3. If you receive the following window, click Continue.

4. You're done! Start enjoying wireless networking with the 802.1x security
standard.

 

[SummerBreeze]

Ha, that's great! If I had to do all that just to get on a wireless network, well, I'd be pretty annoyed. I love how Macs just work.

 

[dmw007]

Ha, thats great umrdad! Thanks for the laugh!

That is pretty much how it is to connect to the wireless network where I go to college. Thank goodness I use a Mac!

 

[1hot5.0]

That's funny!

I'm so glad I switched to a Mac.

 

[NYmacAttack]

lol Thats great talk about simplicity.

 

[sushi]

why anyone would buy windows system is beyond me

Because it is a challenge to use!

Thanks for sharing.

Another area that the Mac is so simple compared to Windows is sharing a Wireless connection with a LAN network. It takes about 5 seconds on the Mac. With Winders, it could take a lifetime depending on how it goes...

Note, sharing the other way is easy with Winders, LAN to wireless. Same with the Mac. But going from wireless to LAN is the tricky one. With the Mac it is easy either way.

Sushi

 

[mad jew]

I find AirPort gives a better connection too. I get significantly less dropouts and a stronger throughput with my Macs compared with my PC.

 

[SummerBreeze]

Because it is a challenge to use!

Thanks for sharing.

Another area that the Mac is so simple compared to Windows is sharing a Wireless connection with a LAN network. It takes about 5 seconds on the Mac. With Winders, it could take a lifetime depending on how it goes...

Note, sharing the other way is easy with Winders, LAN to wireless. Same with the Mac. But going from wireless to LAN is the tricky one. With the Mac it is easy either way.

Sushi

Ah, so true. I attempted to share wireless to LAN on my old PC tower and the thing didn't work at all. Took me hours to try to figure it out and I finally gave up and decided it wasn't worth it. Now, with my PowerBook, it's so much easier. I was at the library the other day with my friend who doens't have a wireless card in her ibook. In two seconds I broke out an ethernet cord and had it all up and running for her, worked like a charm. I love Macs.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Aah... another one of those 3 pages of Windows instructions vs 3 lines for the Mac... priceless...

And I've never understood why people want to infilict themselves with the pain of getiing and having a PC, either. Never understood it...

 

[katie ta achoo]

And I've never understood why people want to infilict themselves with the pain of getiing and having a PC, either. Never understood it...

Ohh, I hear that.. I'm installing linux on a friend's PC-formatted iPod, so I'm having to do it on the windows machine.

So much headache.
*smashes iPod and windows machine*

OS X HAS A SIMPLE INSTALLER, WHY DON'T YOU??


sorry about my angry tangent..

 

[bursty]

Is that University of Missouri-Rolla? I just transferred from there this year. Good school. Funny instructions though!

 

[Kobushi]

You know, it's for reasons like this (and obviously my own experiences), that I just can't understand the number of people I've met that somehow have the notion that Macs are supposed to be harder to learn to use. Hmmm. Every time I hear it I just laugh and tell the person they've got bass ackwards.

 

[dmw007]

So much headache.
*smashes iPod and windows machine*

Whoa, hold on there katie- smash not the iPod, just the windoze machine!

 

[dmw007]

You know, it's for reasons like this (and obviously my own experiences), that I just can't understand the number of people I've met that somehow have the notion that Macs are supposed to be harder to learn to use. Hmmm. Every time I hear it I just laugh and tell the person they've got bass ackwards.

True, I can't help but chuckle when I hear people's misconceptions about Macs.

One time I was talking to someone about Macs and the person said they would use one if it were not for the fact that you can not run M$ Word on a Mac. I of course enlightened the individual, but he has yet to switch.

 

[CompUser]

At my sister's school (Tufts) they are sensible and they give you a CD that automatically programs in your network settings.

 

[joepunk]

Thanks for the laugh.

One of my roommates used to use a Mac but then when OSX came around it was too compicated for him to understand and so he switched. Heck, he had guts to even ask me if I needed help connecting to the University ethernet system.

 

[umrdad]

Umr

yep son's at Univ. MO Rolla got in at 16 . . . .long story. . . but now it's all better . . . . trying to get this pismo upgraded to the level he won't need another one before graduation getting closer all the time the original G3 400 runs osx 10.4 perfectly have dvd, floppy, firewire ext hdd, firewire cd burner always looking for extra goodies like an expansion bay hdd (that would be way cool) anyways glad to provide a laugh

 

[Spock]

yep son's at Univ. MO Rolla

Thats funny,I wonder if CMSU-Warensburg has the same instructions? I have never tried to connect thats great I love my Mac

 

[generik]

To be fair the instructions are just being anal?

Configure DHCP? Each card configured differently? Only cards from those vendors are tested to work?

What is the sysadmin.. some moron?

Unless the user has explicitly configured for a static IP, DHCP is obviously the default? Similarly I can use my el cheapo Xinghua wifi card and as long as the router and card are standards compliant I fail to see how it shouldn't work?

And what's with the nonsense about different cards being configured differently, just use Windows' configuration tool instead of the one that came with the card!

 

[Seasought]

why anyone would buy windows system is beyond me

Why it's because so many tech support jobs depend upon it.

 

[generik]

Why it's because so many tech support jobs depend upon it.

Nah, because it is cheap. Same deal with VHS vs Beta, the cheap standard won instead of the good one.

 

[eXan]

Because it is a challenge to use!

Thanks for sharing.

Another area that the Mac is so simple compared to Windows is sharing a Wireless connection with a LAN network. It takes about 5 seconds on the Mac. With Winders, it could take a lifetime depending on how it goes...

Note, sharing the other way is easy with Winders, LAN to wireless. Same with the Mac. But going from wireless to LAN is the tricky one. With the Mac it is easy either way.

Sushi

I use ethernet/wireless connection at home

eMac---ethernet---AirPort Base Sattion---wireless---iMac. iMac is connecting to the internet via AirPort's built-in modem, while eMac has ISDN plugged in USB port.

 

[adk]

Ah, so true. I attempted to share wireless to LAN on my old PC tower and the thing didn't work at all. Took me hours to try to figure it out and I finally gave up and decided it wasn't worth it. Now, with my PowerBook, it's so much easier. I was at the library the other day with my friend who doens't have a wireless card in her ibook. In two seconds I broke out an ethernet cord and had it all up and running for her, worked like a charm. I love Macs.

Haha I love doing that too. I feel like God. If anybody pisses me off, BAM there goes their internet connection.

 

[Mikael]

Don't want to piss on your parade here, but it isn't harder to connect to a WLAN with a Windows machine. As said, those instructions assume that someone has tampered with the default settings on the Windows machine. They also seem to assume that noone has tampered with the defaults for the Mac.

I'm going to tell you how hard it was for me to logon to my university's wireless network the first time, using a WindowsXP machine:

- Wait for computer to find network (a few seconds)
- Click the "Connect" button
- Open web browser and fill in username and password (logon screen appears automatically)

That's all. This procedure is of course only necessary the first time. Only the last step is now required each time you log in.

Let me just tell you, it doesn't really get any simpler than this and it sure wasn't neither simpler nor harder on my friends Ibook. You people really need to learn the basics about Windows before bashing it. I realise Macs are great and all, but if you're going to bash the "opposite side" you should atleast find relevant things to pick on..

 

[cblackburn]

Let me just tell you, it doesn't really get any simpler than this and it sure wasn't neither simpler nor harder on my friends Ibook. You people really need to learn the basics about Windows before bashing it. I realise Macs are great and all, but if you're going to bash the "opposite side" you should atleast find relevant things to pick on.

The difference is that *theoretically* this is how easy it is to get a windows system to work with wireless. However the sysadmin obviously knows that in 90%+ cases windows finds some way to be an arse about it and not do what it's supposed to.

For example in our uni network the place is crammed with Access Points all just in reach of each other. My mac always connects to the strongest one and gives me reliable access. My friends PC connects to the strong one and lets him log in over VPN, then about 30 seconds later it goes "oh wow, a new access point. I'll ignore the fact it has almost no signal and connect to it". Then the connection says "extremely low signal" and dumps the connection, kicking you off the VPN. Then about 3 seconds later it connects to the strong access point again and so the whole cycle starts again.

Chris