Pad, Netbook, or Laptop?

[explanade]

Yes, probably, but the only advantages I see are faster, smaller, lighter, forward camera, and most of those won't make a big difference for Lena's purposes.

There is Skype and FaceTime you can use with the cameras.

Maybe not now but later you may know acquaintences with iPads or iPhones and you'd be able to video chat with them.

Skype video calls are popular with families who are apart from each other.

 

[donheff]

Just read that HP will be fire sale'ing its Touchpad for $79 (16G) on its eBay site on 12/11. If you want a cheap wifi Android tablet to see what the hype is about this could be the way.

 

[TromboneAl]

Just read that HP will be fire sale'ing its Touchpad for $79 (16G) on its eBay site on 12/11. If you want a cheap wifi Android tablet to see what the hype is about this could be the way.

I think it's $99 ($79 is for the keyboard and other stuff bundle).

 

[Brett_Cameron]

The HP Touchpad is NOT Android and will not run Android apps. It runs on WebOS. It is a good tablet, though but there is only a fraction of the number of apps that Android and iPhone operating systems have.

 

[explanade]

Right but I think with the fire sale, it sparked enough interest that they're working on putting Android on it.

 

[Brett_Cameron]

Yes, people are working hard to get android working on the Touchpad hardware.

 

[arebelspy]

Further, now that WebOS is open source, it will see developments from the community.

 

[Gumby]

The young wife just received her Christmas present early - a Kindle Fire. So far, the biggest problem was getting it to sign on to our home WiFi network. That took so much time that she hasn't had time to try anything on it.

 

[REWahoo]

So far, the biggest problem was getting it to sign on to our home WiFi network. That took so much time that she hasn't had time to try anything on it.

That doesn't sound good. It took DW about 30 seconds to input the password and get her Fire on our network.

 

[Gumby]

That doesn't sound good. It took DW about 30 seconds to input the password and get her Fire on our network.

With the Apple Airport Express router, the password is not really what you think it is. Took quite some time to figure that out.

 

[Nodak]

I think I am going to wait for the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime to come out before I buy anything.

 

[donheff]

The Nook Color (predecessor to the Nook Tablet) just released a new operating system that provides all or most of the features of the Tablet (on a lesser processor and RAM). It included a Netflix app. I can stream Netflix on my daughter's account. Looks great but I am not confident I will use it much. I do like the book reading.

 

[rescueme]

The young wife just received her Christmas present early - a Kindle Fire. So far, the biggest problem was getting it to sign on to our home WiFi network. That took so much time that she hasn't had time to try anything on it.

Interesting. All I did was add the K-Fire MAC address to the allowed devices on our Linksys router and it connected immediately, with no other intervention required.

BTW, just to add to the discussion (since I've been using the K-Fire for almost a month), we have a desktop, laptop, netbook, and a "sub-tablet" (to me, that's what the K-Fire is; not all the features of what's on the market, but "good enough" for most things) and IMHO each device has it's positives and negatives.

I would be hard pressed to say one would replace all the desired features of all the other devices (ever try to carry a desktop through an airport?).

Luckly, each has its place to do the primary "job" it was intended to do.

Just my $.02.

 

[ERD50]

The young wife just received her Christmas present early - a Kindle Fire. So far, the biggest problem was getting it to sign on to our home WiFi network. That took so much time that she hasn't had time to try anything on it.

That doesn't sound good. It took DW about 30 seconds to input the password and get her Fire on our network.

With the Apple Airport Express router, the password is not really what you think it is. Took quite some time to figure that out.

Here is what I've experienced, using different OS devices on different wireless routers at home:

Some devices will get on my network easily with my chosen security 'pass-code' ( like 'ERD50-NETWORK'). Others will only get on if I use the HEX$ equivalent of that 'pass-code' (something like 'ddef31abcde31fe9dc.....'). It varies with the type of security you are using and the devices, there a few variations (WEP, WPA2, etc).

Interesting. All I did was add the K-Fire MAC address to the allowed devices on our Linksys router and it connected immediately, with no other intervention required..

It sounds like you are not password protected, but instead using MAC filtering. That's probably fine, but if a guest comes to your house, and wants access, you have to get their MAC address (they probably won't know it), then type that MAC address into your router config file. Pros/Cons.


edit/add - for those who may not know - MAC refers to Machine Address Code, nothing to do with the Apple OS at all.


-ERD50

 

[donheff]

Here is what I've experienced, using different OS devices on different wireless routers at home:

Some devices will get on my network easily with my chosen security 'pass-code' ( like 'ERD50-NETWORK'). Others will only get on if I use the HEX$ equivalent of that 'pass-code' (something like 'ddef31abcde31fe9dc.....'). It varies with the type of security you are using and the devices, there a few variations (WEP, WPA2, etc).

What settings cause the router to demand a hex equivalent of the password? How would "normal" people even figure it out? And can that situation affect only some devices on the same router? (E.g. I have, on occasion, been able to log on with one laptop but not someone else's even though both supported WPA2 or whatever I was using.

 

[ERD50]

What settings cause the router to demand a hex equivalent of the password? How would "normal" people even figure it out? And can that situation affect only some devices on the same router? (E.g. I have, on occasion, been able to log on with one laptop but not someone else's even though both supported WPA2 or whatever I was using.

Good questions/observations. To answer you fully, I'd have to go re-create the process and try some things and document it all, but I gotta run. But in general, YES - different devices on the SAME network would only log with one or the other form of password. And nothing but trial and error led me to figure this out. After 10 tries entering the passcode, figuring it was my problem, I tried the $HEX and I got in (but it is a pain to try to type that in w/o error). My (limited, but not zero) knowledge of networks did not help me one bit, other than the fact that I was aware there were two 'types' of password.

IOW - I don't think it is the router making the demands - it will accept either. I think it is the device that only properly works with one or the other.

Even though I'm a techie, and usually dig into this stuff just for the 'fun' of learning - when it comes to routers and networks, I pretty much just do/learn enough to get it working the way I want, then walk away.

Two reasons for that I think - one, these things are so 'black box' that sometimes I don't think the knowledge is all that useful, and a FW/SW upgrade on either end might change what you thought you 'knew'. It all depends on what the programmers did in that black box. Second, for many years I worked with equipment on various internal company networks, and they often ruined my day, night, weekend, week and/or month. I think I just have an aversion to networks at this point! The networks seem to feel the same way towards me sometimes.

I only know about the passcode/$HEX thing because at least one WL router either required the long HEX$, or maybe it showed it to you as you created the passcode, and maybe it told you to write it down or something. I really don't recall. But it works.

Hopefully, someone here can add to that, and maybe explain (if it is explainable), why some devices might work with the passcode (ASCII char) and other devices on the same network seem to only work with th $HEX.


-ERD50

 

[Texas Proud]

I recently bought a Samsung Tab on the recommendation of my BIL and sister...

So far.... not that impressed... does not seem to do that much and it is hard to get from 'here' to 'there'... it is still new and I hope that using it as a reader or something easy it will be OK... but so far when I hit the screen, it seems to pick the selection above or below what I want...


It could be that I am just 'old' and not ready for the new kind of device... we will see....

 

[rescueme]

It sounds like you are not password protected, but instead using MAC filtering.

I use MAC filtering plus WPA2-Personal (double bagger).

Better yet, I have no "friends or family" that come to my house (triple bagger) ...

 

[HFWR]

I use MAC filtering plus WPA2-Personal (double bagger).

Better yet, I have no "friends or family" that come to my house (triple bagger) ...

+1

 

[M Paquette]

Hopefully, someone here can add to that, and maybe explain (if it is explainable), why some devices might work with the passcode (ASCII char) and other devices on the same network seem to only work with th $HEX.

-ERD50

As someone who used to program the support for user interfaces, I can say with some confidence that devices that require odd things like $HEX entry of a password probably have a user interface designed and coded by a network engineer. The $HEX and ASCII versions of the password both turn into the same batch of 1s and 0s inside the router/wireless access point. The $HEX version is popular with network engineers because that's how it (and everything else) shows up on Ye Olde Protocol Analyzer when they're trying to figure out why the new prototype widget doesn't play nice with the rest of the network.

This is, of course, another fine reason why human interface designers exist, and should be able to have the last word on Things You Have To Type At.

 

[ERD50]

As someone who used to program the support for user interfaces, I can say with some confidence that devices that require odd things like $HEX entry of a password probably have a user interface designed and coded by a network engineer. The $HEX and ASCII versions of the password both turn into the same batch of 1s and 0s inside the router/wireless access point. The $HEX version is popular with network engineers because that's how it (and everything else) shows up on Ye Olde Protocol Analyzer when they're trying to figure out why the new prototype widget doesn't play nice with the rest of the network.

This is, of course, another fine reason why human interface designers exist, and should be able to have the last word on Things You Have To Type At.

Right. I suspect (but do not know) that the problem is in the various computers/devices trying to access the router. For some reason, they don't expect the passcode in that format for accessing that type of security, and/or don't convert the passcode to 1/0s properly.

Oddly enough, IIRC, it seems to be the Apple products that I have to resort to the HEX$ to get to work. My Linux computers, and things like Roku box, and WII (I assume those run Linux also) get through with just entering the passcode. This is with fairly generic routers, not the Apple-branded routers.

-ERD50

 

[mh]

Right. I suspect (but do not know) that the problem is in the various computers/devices trying to access the router. For some reason, they don't expect the passcode in that format for accessing that type of security, and/or don't convert the passcode to 1/0s properly.

Oddly enough, IIRC, it seems to be the Apple products that I have to resort to the HEX$ to get to work. My Linux computers, and things like Roku box, and WII (I assume those run Linux also) get through with just entering the passcode. This is with fairly generic routers, not the Apple-branded routers.

-ERD50

As a data point..
my linksys routers work w/ my apple stuff ok. no hexology necessary on the passwords..

 

[WanderALot]

edit/add - for those who may not know - MAC refers to Machine Address Code, nothing to do with the Apple OS at all.
-ERD50

Actually, I believe it's "Media Access Control".

MAC addresses can be easily spoofed, but it does provide one extra layer of security since the would-be attacker would have to know what MAC address to imitate (the address of your laptop) before gaining access to your network.

 

[ERD50]

Actually, I believe it's "Media Access Control".

MAC addresses can be easily spoofed, but it does provide one extra layer of security since the would-be attacker would have to know what MAC address to imitate (the address of your laptop) before gaining access to your network.

Ahhh, you are correct, thanks for setting me straight (now, if I can only remember that!)-

MAC Address (Media Access Control Address) Definition

Stands for "Media Access Control Address,"

Oh well, I knew it didn't refer to Apple Macintosh. Half credit?

As a data point..
my linksys routers work w/ my apple stuff ok. no hexology necessary on the passwords..

I don't doubt you, but at some point, some combination of the Apple SW/HW and my router security modes required me to type in the 128bit HEX$ (26 HEX digits) to get in. I actually found my notes, so I know it was only the Mac OS systems and the Wii that required it at the time (my Linux systems got in with the ASCII passcode), but I don't have complete notes as to which OS version, but I noted that the router was using WEP 128bit 26 Hex digits (at least that is how I noted it).

I switched to WPA2 - Personal AES a year ago, and the Apples seem to get in with the passcode OK. So maybe this was a WEP problem only?

Lots of variables, and things may have changed since then, but it was an issue for me with that set up.


-ERD50

 

[TromboneAl]

Lena's computer just has to hold on for a few more days.



The arrow points to a loose wire that's sticking out with it's insulation stripped.

Today the laptop dropped off the top of the entertainment center while she was printing something, and now the wireless connection is a little flaky. I've taped everything in place and told her not to move it.