[ale] Slightly OT: PI/Raspian Mesh Network Strategy?

[SpaXpert, Inc.]

If you want to test the concept before game day, take your phone to a glass
window where you would position a wifi repeater.  Turn on your phone's wifi
hotspot.  Have someone else in the parking lot with their phone connect to
your hotspot, and see what kind of signal they get.  Beats the heck out of
running a hard line to the shed out back!  As long as you have LOS
available between the two, you should be seeing at least 4 bars+
Best of luck and let us know what you find out.  BTW, you're in my backyard
almost... if you want help I'll be happy to come to the church there and
help you out. RF stuff is my primary background.

Doug.

On Fri, Jun 25, 2021 at 9:46 PM SpaXpert, Inc. <spaxpert at gmail.com> wrote:

> So you're covering the parking lot where the vendors will be located, not
> the green grass area behind it (to the north east?).  You should do with
> wifi there...
> Gorilla Tape this sucker to the church glass window:
>
> https://www.microcenter.com/product/451439/netgear-ex3700-wifi-range-extender
>
> On Fri, Jun 25, 2021 at 9:35 PM Jim Kinney via Ale <ale at ale.org> wrote:
>
>> Run the cable through 1/2" pvc. Cars can drive over it with a tapered 2x4
>> flanking it to keep it pinned down.
>>
>> On June 25, 2021 9:15:48 PM EDT, Neal Rhodes via Ale <ale at ale.org> wrote:
>>>
>>> Again, got to get over a parking lot which WILL be in use.  Pavement
>>> goes all around the building.  Once we get across the parking lot, we
>>> could run cat5 along the tree line to the tent.
>>>
>>> On 2021-06-25 20:04, SpaXpert, Inc. via Ale wrote:
>>>
>>>> Cat 6 is up to 300 meters?  That's over 900 feet, with good quality
>>>> cable.
>>>> https://www.belden.com/blogs/smart-building/real-cat-6a-cable-distance-limit-and-why-it-matters
>>>>
>>>> On Fri, Jun 25, 2021 at 8:39 PM Neal Rhodes via Ale <ale at ale.org>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> I should have mentioned that cell coverage in the back field the
>>>>> tent
>>>>> occupies is lousy and intermittent.
>>>>>
>>>>> On 2021-06-25 19:09, SpaXpert, Inc. via Ale wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> This seems like a lot of overkill for a simple task these days.
>>>>>>
>>>>> All
>>>>>
>>>>>> you need is a wifi hotspot from a cell phone, and use a device
>>>>>>
>>>>> like
>>>>>
>>>>>> this:
>>>>>> https://squareup.com/us/en/hardware/terminal
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Fri, Jun 25, 2021 at 7:16 PM Neal Rhodes via Ale <ale at ale.org>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> So considering the following Physical layout:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Business Comcast
>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>> regular untinted Window in Building we can get Cat6 to
>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>> 100 feet of parking lot
>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>> Storage Building with power and overhang to protect from rain
>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>> 150 feet of grass/trees - could run Cat6 wire easily
>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>> Tent selling German beer with credit card readers needing Wifi
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> (do I
>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> have your attention now?)
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> And assuming we'd like for people to be able to buy beer, and we
>>>>>>> have a
>>>>>>> modest budget for networking, are there reasonable mesh
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> networking
>>>>>
>>>>>> products that would work?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I have never put in a mesh network; if you read the fine print,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> they
>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> seem to assume all the nodes are clustered around a central node,
>>>>>>> not
>>>>>>> strung out in a line.   (i.e. no backhaul)
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I was initially advised to research ESP32 boards, but the paint
>>>>>>> doesn't
>>>>>>> seem quite dry on those.  More of a Proof-of-Concept than a real
>>>>>>> internet sharing strategy.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> OTOH, efforts to do that with Raspberry PI does seem like a real
>>>>>>> thing,
>>>>>>> eg
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> https://github.com/binnes/WiFiMeshRaspberryPi/blob/master/README.md
>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Which is extra handy for us, since we put up about a dozen PI
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> units
>>>>>
>>>>>> a
>>>>>>> people's homes for the Virtual Studio music thing, and aren't
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> using
>>>>>
>>>>>> them
>>>>>>> as much now.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Has anyone does this and have results to report?
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> regards,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Neal
>>>>>>> ------------------------------
>>>>>>> Ale mailing list
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>>>>>>> https://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
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>>>>>>> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
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>> --
>> Computers amplify human error
>> Super computers are really cool
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