Wi-Fi Survey Types and Methods

 

Wi-Fi Surveys can be performed in one of three modes. It can be operated in Planner mode (also known as Virtual Predictive Survey), or the default Passive Survey mode and lastly an optional Active Survey mode. Each of the specific modes are used for different purposes. The two most popular software brand packages for surveying are Ekahau or AirMagnet.

PREDICTIVE VIRTUAL SURVEYS
The Planner mode involves the process of creating and adjusting a virtual environment model, utilizing a selection and placement of simulated APs. To create a virtual model of the environment, the physical objects that affect radio wave propagation are input into the application and using the tools to draw the position, size, and type of building materials. Planner mode uses built-in or custom-designed walls, floors, attenuation areas, simulated access points, and a large selection of antenna patterns. The resulting WLAN model can then simulate coverage and output heatmap examples that can be analyzed for theoretical AP placements.

PASSIVE SITE SURVEYS
In a Passive Survey mode, the wireless network card does not associate itself with any particular AP or SSID (Service Set Identifier). Instead, it simply listens to the RF data moving through the site, detecting and recording all RF signals and noises in the environment. Passive Surveys do not have to be performed as AP on a Stick method. Passive Surveys are normally performed either during the pre-planning stage or post-installation stage. During the pre-planning stage Passive Surveys help to determine design around problem areas and working with rogue AP’s. Passive Surveys in the post-installation stage help to validate performance and detect actual coverage of all broadcasting AP’s in designated areas. By default, AirMagnet Survey opens in the Passive Survey mode and can be toggled to Active if needed. Passive Surveys are able to collect both 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz data at the same time. Passive Surveys should be used to test multiple AP performance and to detect Rogues.

ACTIVE SITE SURVEYS
In Active Survey mode the wireless network card actively associates itself with just a single selected AP (Wireless Access Point), sending and receiving RF (Radio Frequency) packets to and from the target AP. Active Surveys are normally performed as an AP-on-a-Stick survey. Active surveys are useful for scientific research, lab tests, and finding specific metrics of AP performance, and RF propagation through various types of building materials.

However, In Active Survey mode, surveys are strongly recommended to be conducted separately for 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz results.
While using Active mode for AP-on-a-stick surveys, it is possible to choose Dual-band which in theory scans both 2.4GHz and 5.0 GHz bands but results from such surveys are at the mercy of the end-client network interface card and its Wi-Fi choices. The NIC on the end-user device is what decides how to connect to either 2.4 GHz or 5.0 GHz which can leave gaps in survey data collection if Dual-band is selected. The NIC can swap between 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz depending on signal integrity using its own internal device computations without the surveyor or user being able to control it. That is why it is better to select one bandwidth at a time for more consistent and reliable results.

Additionally with Active Surveys, inconsistencies in results can arise if the environment is not controlled.
During active association, beamforming is created between the AP and end-client NIC and can cause some skewing of results.

Active surveys should only be used to test singular AP with singular end-client performance. Results will vary if there are multiple clients connected or multiple APs involved (roaming).

Using Passive mode for AP-on-a-stick surveys can collect data for both 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz at the same time without gaps in data collection. Results from Passive mode AP-on-a-stick surveys can be more consistent and is far more time-saving.

AP ON A STICK SURVEYS
AP-on-a-Stick (APoaS) methods are most often performed to test a specific predetermined AP model in an environment. This can be a long and tedious task if there are several planned AP placements. AP on a Stick surveys can be performed in either Passive or Active modes but usually have different purposes. AP on a Stick Surveys are typically conducted in the pre-planning stage to test the performance of the predetermined specified AP, and helps to identify the best locations for installation and deployment of wireless access points.

During an AP-on-a-stick Survey, the test wireless access point is usually suspended approximately three meters from the floor and placed on or near the ceiling. Typical installation locations of APs should be placed no higher than four meters and near ceiling height in a spot where it is most likely to give the best wireless availability. In most instances where the ceiling or rafters are unreachable or inaccessible, the AP’s are simply secured to the top rung of a step-ladder for testing purposes.

In situations where there are very high vaulted ceilings more than four meters, AP installations should consider wall-mounting as a primary locations while the AP’s are using their default Omni antennas. The distance from AP to end client will affect connection quality and stability. If proceeding with vaulted ceiling installations, please consider using APs with diversity antennas that can be swapped. Certain types of directional or higher dBi output powered antennas can be used for focusing signals downward or in the proper direction.

The information gathered from multiple readings and surveys can assist in determining the optimal positions for each AP.

Top 5 Mistakes People Make When Blaming Wi-Fi
https://phreshdigitalarts.blogspot.com/2021/12/the-top-5-mistakes-that-people-make.html

 

Compartmentalized Wi-Fi Design and Me
https://phreshdigitalarts.blogspot.com/2021/09/compartmentalized-wi-fi-design-and-me.html

 

Extending Wi-Fi @ Home
https://phreshdigitalarts.blogspot.com/2022/04/extending-wi-fi-home.html

Extending Wi-Fi @ Home

 

[UPDATED 2022-04-08]
[originally posted 2015-11-24]

Almost everybody is already using Wi-Fi but countless amounts of people want more coverage at home. Maybe your Wi-Fi works great in your living room but not so great once you carry your device to into your kitchen or some other room and suddenly you lose the internet connection.

Many people think that by going out and buying a brand new wireless router and adding it onto their network will solve their Wi-Fi problems. In theory they want to extend the wireless coverage but in actuality, adding a router can cause major havoc to your home network. What you really want to do is add a Wireless Access Point, and NOT a Wireless Router or at least disable the routing DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) features on the new router.

Adding an additional router to your network will cause problems. When you sign up for your internet service your internet service provider company, (whether it be Telus, Bell, Shaw, Rogers etc.) will always provide you with a hardware router and will have one of their technicians install it on premises for you. It is important to only have ONE single router on your home network. It is completely senseless to have more than one router on your small home network. Having more than one router on your home network can potentially cause a network loop and will create internet connectivity problems. The routers will compete with one another to try and hand out IP addresses to devices detected on the network and will cause errors. Some devices won't connect because of IP address conflicts and in some cases, the device may not even get connected to the outside internet. This network loop problem will affect both wired and wireless devices on the network.

There are a couple of solutions to this. If you already went out and bought and installed a router then, the first solution is to disable a feature called "Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol" or "DHCP" or "DHCP Server" within the new router. You would access this by logging into the newly added router and changing it's configuration. Reference your Instruction Manual on how to do this. By turning off the DHCP settings in a router, you are essentially turning the layer-3 network router into a layer-2 network switch. This will alleviate any network conflicts with any existing router. If you want to know about networking, there are actually 7 layers called the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Model.

The second solution, if you did not already buy a wireless router, is to just go out and buy a Wireless Access Point. It can be plugged into the network and should work automatically without creating any network problems. You will still need to log into the device and change the Wireless Security Settings to your preferences. Don't leave it at the default state or you could be giving free and open internet access to any Wi-Fi device.

My Thoughts on Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock

Everybody saw how Will Smith went up on stage and slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscar Awards Ceremony.

https://youtu.be/myjEoDypUD8

I don't have anything against Chris Rock. I don't have anything against Will Smith. What people fail to see is both angles of it. They will always take one side and not consider the grey areas or factors in-between.

Will Smith was defending his wife's honour as a result of a distasteful joke. I believe that Will was justified for defending Jada Smith and demanding respect.

I think an important issue in this day and age, is that many people with children, have forgotten to teach them about respect. Social Media apps have enabled and wrongfully empowered kids to disrespect everyone without any recourse or repercussions.

On the other hand, Will might have overreacted with his actions. But do you think more people will disrespect his wife while in his presence now, or will less people do it?

Jim Carrey made some comments how he thought Will's actions were sickening and that he would have sued him for 200 million dollars. Let's take a look at Jim's view though. From his standpoint as a very famous and funny accomplished comedian, Jim is used to disrespecting others to get laughs out of bystanders, and also getting paid for it (getting away with it). That's a common trait he shares with all comedians including Chris Rock. Let's not forget how much more severe controversy there would be if the situation had been a black man slapping a white man on national television.

Why I Stopped Playing Destiny 2

I've been a loyal Destiny player since its inception. I was given the opportunity to play the Alpha and Beta versions of the original Destiny as early as April, 2014 before it's official release in September, 2014. I have been playing Destiny and Destiny 2 since then all the way up to January, 2022 when I ceased playing. Just shy of 8 loyal years with hundreds and thousands of hours spent and with well over 1.2 million confirmed enemy kills.

Many players of Destiny games dropped off after finishing the story and didn't even want to put up with the grind of every new Season over the years. Each new season did provide new weapons and new armour sets, and variations of combat arenas but was mostly the same game. Rinse and repeat. I went through several years of it, because it was enjoyable and stress-relieving.

What put me off recently though, was the following. In November, 2021 Bungie had sent me an email asking to participate in a survey. If you filled out the survey and were chosen as a candidate you could be given a $450 gift card. Then, you would be interviewed by a researcher, and given a 7-day set of tasks within game. Here is an exact screenshot image of the wording. [click image for sharper view].

I went and filled out the survey which was much more substantial and in-depth than I had imagined and it took quite a while to fill out. I submitted the data, but I was never contacted again...

I felt like I was suckered into giving all this information with no reward of any kind or with any consideration. The next few times I booted up Destiny 2, I felt like it was monotonous work and all the fun had been sucked out of it. It no longer felt enjoyable. To me, it felt like having someone dangle a piece of crispy, delicious bacon in front of my nose in order to get all of my information, but only to give the bacon, and other goodies to someone else. Maybe the chosen individuals had put more effort into the game or maybe they were just more famous and had more followers/subscribers on their streaming and social media accounts. Either way, it demotivated me, and I effectively quit the game after that.

Maybe I set myself up for disappointment but it soured my view of the game. I realized that Bungie (and all game developers) were just like any other company out there, finding out what people want so they can exploit money out of them. Did I shell out over $100 dollars for the new Witch Queen expansion? No I did not.

Reviewers are saying that The Witch Queen expansion is the best version of Destiny 2 yet. This created some mixed feelings with anger and disappointment, but with some hope as well. I will eventually go back to the game to satisfy my curiosity and see what people are talking about, but for now it has freed up some of my spare time so that I can play other games that I've had on my radar for a long time.

Here's some Destiny 2 clips that I captured as an elite veteran.

https://youtu.be/RJfyviS5GSo
and
https://youtu.be/DqYPVQqLWP4

My Experience Catching COVID-19 in 2022

For 33 months I had been so extremely careful not to catch any illnesses. I had nearly made it three years without becoming sick with any kind of cold or flu. Unfortunately this year on January 14th, I tested positive for the current Pandemic flu. It was estimated that on January 7th, 2022 for when I contracted the COVID-19 Corona virus Flu and started feeling symptoms. It was in one of the least expected places.

I had caught COVID-19 by going to my dentist. How do I know this? Well because my appointment was the absolute only public place that I visited and therefore is the absolute only possible source. Normally it would be a process of elimination by determining what places I visited but the noteworthy evidence that there were no other places visited before, or after just completely and utterly keeps pointing at the fact that it was from the Dental Office. I work from home so I went directly from home, to the dentist, and then back home again. No other stops or locations were visited at all.

Usually Dental Offices are known to be quite clean and sterile. This leads me to believe that somebody either knowingly infected or unknowingly infected, came into the office and left some of their germs within the vicinity where I was being treated. Perhaps he/she did know they were carrying a mild version of a cold and assumed it would still be okay to go to the dentist.

There's so many surfaces I could have contracted it from. Was it the entrance door handle? Was it the dental chair or maybe the bib? Was it a single instrument that might have been missed for sterilization? Was it the fancy computer touchscreens or keyboards, that the hygienist kept touching with her fingers and hands? Was it the Debit card machine, and the publicly touched number pad? I was trying to let it go but having my careful 1000-plus day health record broken so easily by someone's reckless behaviour still bugs the shit out of me.

I knew I was sick so I wanted to find out if it was COVID-19. I live in the Greater Vancouver Area and I registered to get tested at one of the registered test sites by using this website for Fraser Health. (https://fraserhealth.secureform.ca/index.php). From all of the instructions and demo videos, I had the notion that I was going to be tested onsite with the PCR test which involved swishing a saline solution in my mouth and then spitting it back into a test tube. However, when I showed up to the test site, they were not allowing anyone inside the facility and instead were handing out Antigen Rapid Tests for taking home. I asked why and they said it was due to the number of outbreaks and this test was safer to take at home. If I tested positive, I was instructed to quarantine at home. I took the rapid test kit home and used it. It involved using a long Q-tip device to swab up and into my nasal cavity for both nostrils, then dipping it into a solution. Then I would drip the solution onto the testing unit that looked like a pregnancy test, and after 15 minutes, it ended up testing positive with two-lines displaying on the unit.

I suppose another reason, is that I'm still upset is because of how badly this COVID-19 flu hit me like a semi-truck and made my entire body suffer. Here is the timeline and list of symptoms I experienced which were pretty terrible.
    - Day 1 - mildly itchy throat, almost like a very slight allergy.
    - Day 2 - mild sore throat, came and went throughout the day.
    - Day 3 - more sore throat, slight cough came and went throughout the day.
    - Day 4 - very evident cough, constant headache for the whole day.
    - Day 5 - constant migraine, extreme chills, fever, sweating, fatigue.
    - Day 6 - nausea, fever, chills, sweats, massive fatigue, sore muscles.
    - Day 7 - cough and nausea dissipated, fatigue, fever and chills present but less extreme.
    - Day 8 - most symptoms gone, first day of normal feeling.

I am very fortunate and thankful that I have had 2/3 vaccinations against COVID-19. It definitely reduced my chances of being mortally sick and I did not have to go to the hospital. It saved me from having breathing problems, and it saved me from losing my sense of taste and smell.

It did however cause me to spread the sickness to my family at home, even though I tried my hardest to quarantine myself in a private room in my house for days. Eventually my wife Marie and my 8-year old son Xavier soon also caught COVID-19 and each suffered their own set of significantly bad symptoms.

Since all of us are now infected, we are quarantining together. We aren't leaving the house, and we have found ways to order our groceries, ordering food for takeout, and overall, just comforting each other and spending quality time together. We are hunkering down, staying warm, eating snacks, and watching lots of movies and television shows together. Sickness can be much more comfortable when we are all there for each other. Even our dog is a bit out of it because he is still recovering from recent surgeries as well.

The sad irony of it all is that about four days into my symptoms, I got the government notice that I was eligible to book my third booster vaccine...talk about kicking someone while their down, or rubbing salt in a wound. GEE THANKS A LOT!

6 Best Tips to Destroy Ads and Protect Your Identity

 

[UPDATED 2021-12-10]
[originally posted 2020-09-25]

With COVID-19 and it's variants still running rampant throughout the world, millions or even billions of people are using the internet more than ever before.

There are several steps to ensure that your online activity is safe. There are a number of things that you'll need to change to ensure online safety to the highest degree. Some steps are easier than others and some will take huge amounts of discipline and will power to be able to accomplish.


1. Use a computer, not a mobile device. This is the most important tip of the six listed.

    Besides emails, all internet activity should be limited to full computers. The biggest reason is that with computers like PC, Mac, or Linux etc, are more fully capable of blocking AI (Artificial Intelligence), Ads, and identity tracking types of software with Adblocking plugins, VPN software, overlay blockers and other tools. Another reason is that pretty much all mobile apps are designed to track your usage, and are submitted to software that uses AI to determine what you might like or might do next.

Do you want to see what I'm talking about? On any Android mobile device, go to the Google Play Store and pretty much every single app that exists will usually state that it contains ads. Even when it doesn't say "contains ads" that app will probably force you to pay for the App and spend money. The same could be said for the Apps in the Apple AppStore.

Just a couple of quick examples would be common apps like Facebook, or YouTube. The mobile versions of these apps were designed to try to subject you to advertisements based on your tracked internet activity. One time I was trying to watch a video clip on YouTube, and I tried tapping the back button, and then tapping the video again to try and skip ads but, YouTube just kept cycling the ads. This happened up to twelve times before I could watch my video. I could have waited for two ads to play fully through, but I prefer not to be brainwashed.
They do not prevent blocking of ads and purposely don't have mobile tools to block them. For years I've tried. The blocking tools are just not as available or not available at all on mobile platforms. So if you are using any kind of internet activity on a smartphone, tablet, or mobile device, the chances are very high that you will be subjected to advertisements while you use the app whether you like it or not.

However, browsing the full-site versions of Youtube, and Facebook on a full computer grants the ability to install security features on the internet browser. Only on a full computer can you block advertisements via Adblocking plugins, VPN software, overlay blockers and other tools.


2. Use Mozilla Firefox as your main internet browser on the computer.

    There are several other comparable browsers but Mozilla Firefox will allow you the security you need to block ads and tracking.


3. Install Security Plugins and extensions for the Firefox Browser.

The list of plugins or extensions that you will need are as follows:
    A.) Adblock - Firefox version.

    B.) Adblock Plus - Firefox version. 

    C.) Adblocker for YouTube - Firefox version.

    D.) Poper Blocker - Firefox version. 

    E.) Adblocker for Facebook - Firefox version. 

    Each of these plugins requires a tiny bit of configuring, but they are pretty straight forward as soon as you click and install them.

The biggest challenge here is switching all internet activity over to a computer and not using our super convenient handheld devices. This is just one way to help minimize our online presence and keep our information safe.

Every time you sign up for a mobile app with your email and username, you are potentially setting yourself up for getting more ads and are sharing your personal information to each app and the AI that is behind them.


4. Use a VPN. 

    A Virtual Private Network is a service that hides your original IP address, and geo-location. There's a tonne out there that usually cost a monthly or annual subscription. Just search the internet for "personal use VPN". Some people will work for companies that can share their corporate VPN to remote workers so that when they use internet, the internet traffic gets funnelled back to the company network, which is usually backed by several more layers of security.


5. Use Qwant Lite instead of Google.

    Qwant Lite (https://lite.qwant.com) is an internet search engine that does not track usage. It is very important to choose the "Lite" version so that it does not hijack your homepage. Qwant Lite will not keep a history of your user account, it will not keep your history of searches, it will not track you. It will not leave any digital footprints that make it easier for AI to access your personal usage statistics or information much like how Google search does.

    - Qwant Lite - Firefox extension. 


6. Use NewPipe instead of YouTube on Android mobile devices.

    On an Android mobile device then NewPipe is the best ad-free alternative for YouTube content. It uses the YouTube API, which essentially means that it is actually YouTube, but without commercial advertisements and interference. If you have NewPipe, you won't need to pay for YouTube Premium to get rid of ads. NewPipe also has some awesome features like 'Background Play" which allows you to continue to listen to just the audio portion of videos, while you press the power button on your phone to turn off the screen and save battery life. It is absolutely amazing for music playlists from YouTube. Unfortunately Apple iPad and iPhone users are out of luck here.

    - NewPipe (note: You will need to enable the option "Install from Unknown Sources" in your mobile browser.)
    - Whenever Newpipe stops working, there is usually a version update that you will need to install to make it usable and start playing videos again. This can happen quite frequently.

Top 5 Mistakes People Make When Blaming Wi-Fi

 

[UPDATED 2021-12-07]
[originally posted 2018-04-28]

When connecting to Wi-Fi, people will sometimes experience slow or bad connections. That's not to say that the actual Wi-Fi is bad, but there are many other things to consider. This is my list for the top 5 mistakes that people always make when blaming Wi-Fi.


#5. Too many people using one hotspot.

     A Wi-Fi router or Access Point is a true bottleneck. Multiple users will be using the same hotspot. Take a look around and if there are more than 5 people using Wi-Fi, then chances are the connection speeds are going to be limited. These days, each person can have 4 or more Wi-Fi devices on their person at any given time. This includes all IoT (Internet of Things devices), smartphones, tablets, laptops, cameras, and video game systems. Divide a single Wi-Fi connection by the number of users, times the number of devices they are currently using and the shared bandwidth speed of the internet connection speed keeps getting smaller and smaller. In other words, the size of the slice of the Wi-Fi pie shrinks for every device connected. The optimal number of devices on one AP/router should be kept at 15 or less.



#4. Distance.

     People often connect to the Wi-Fi but they don't even try to look at where the router or access point is. The farther away you are from it, the worse the connection will be. Let's say you walk into a building whether it be an office, or shop or a restaurant of some kind, and you connect to the free Wi-Fi but you are only getting 2 out of 5 bars of signal strength. You automatically say, wow this connection sucks. But did you ever take into account where the Wi-Fi is coming from? Can you see the actual access point?


#3. Noise A.K.A Co-channel Interference.

     I'm not acutally talking about audible sounds type of noise. Noise in Wi-Fi terms is talking about co-channel interference from other radio frequency devices. Co-channel interference and noise most often comes from other Wi-Fi devices. So you're connected to a specific Wi-Fi network SSID but, when you were connecting to it, did you see the list of all the other Wi-Fi SSID network names in that list? Those ones are most likely interfering with your current connection. How about your neighbor next to you. Are they using their phone to create a tethered Wi-Fi hotspot for their other devices? Any other Wi-Fi network SSID name, other than the one you are trying to connect to is called a Rogue network, and can potentially cause noise and interference.



#2. Battery Life.

     How low is the battery on your device? If you are using a mobile device, like a smartphone or tablet or something compact, it usually means, the device is likely optimized for lower voltage to extend battery life and also that their Wi-Fi antenna won't be very strong to begin with. What that also means is that there is far less electricity to power the Wi-Fi antenna. As the battery drains past 50% or more, most devices will go into a power saving mode that will likely decrease electrical power and may also reduce the effectiveness of it's Wi-Fi. Some devices will turn off Wi-Fi entirely at a certain point.
 


#1. The age and Wi-Fi standard on their device. (802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax ?)

     Is your device dual-band capable and is it using the latest standard? If your device is less than 4 years old, then the answer is most likely yes. The 5.0 Ghz band on 802.11ac and higher, is the optimal way to use Wi-Fi as it will experience far less noise interference, and has a much higher connection speed. If the device can only use 802.11n or lower, then those connections will be much poorer and susceptible to interference almost always, and will have a much lower connection speed.



Conclusion.

People can be very quick to determine that the Wi-Fi sucks, but in reality it actually doesn't suck at all. All five of the things mentioned above need to be taken into account when troubleshooting. The Wi-Fi router/Access Point could be the absolutely newest, fastest-speed one on the market, and people will still blame it for bad connections, rather than taking a minute to assess their own device and how it connects.

There are also other things to consider, such as the layers past the Wi-Fi router/AP, like "how fast is the actual internet connection?", and "are there any problems on the rest of the wired network?"