Wireless Hacking: Projects for Wi-Fi Enthusiasts [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Lee Barken (Author), Eric Bermel (Author), John Eder (Author), Matt Fanady (Author), Alan Koebrick (Author), Michael Mee (Author), Marc Palumbo (Author) "Welcome to the world of "wireless magic..." (more)
Key Phrases: community wireless networks, captive portal, solar node, Performing the Hack, San Diego, Service Set (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Wherever You Go, There You Are!

Build, Deploy and Maintain a "Homebrew" Wi-Fi Network Create a Low-Cost/High-Yield Development Roadmap for Wireless Enthusiasts, Households, Small Businesses and Community Groups Customize Wireless Operating Systems, Install Antennas, Build Solar-Powered Access Points and More

A few years ago, wireless internet access was just a glint in the eyes of the IT industry. Today, most notebook PCs ship with built-in Wi-Fi capability, and Wi-Fi access points have become as important as the espresso machines at the neighborhood Starbucks. Wireless Hacking provides a low-cost/high-yield blueprint for wireless enthusiasts, households, small businesses and communities. After reading this book, you will be able to build, deploy and maintain a "homebrew" Wi-Fi network. And if you just want some geek fun, Wireless Hacking won't disappoint. You will be challenged! Written by members of the pioneering SoCalFreeNet Wireless Users Group, Wireless Hacking delivers a series of interrelated projects, with full integration of both hardware and software hacks.

Some of the wireless hacks in this book include: Use existing Ethernet cables to provide low-voltage power to Access Points with no additional source of electricity. Install Linux and FreeBSD on low-cost (under $150) Soekris single-board computers. Modify the firmware of your Linksys WRT54g. Construct Solar Powered Access Points and Repeaters for your Wi-Fi network. WarDrive for wireless access points with tools like Kismet and NetStumbler. Install an antenna without killing yourself or changing the earth's orbit. Expand your Wi-Fi network beyond one box and 50 users with MESH network topology.

...Many more hacks and modifications inside!

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Syngress; 1 edition (November 25, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 193183637X
• ISBN-13: 978-1931836371
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #97,658 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #15 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Mobile & Wireless Computing > Programming
  #34 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Business & Culture > Security
  #34 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Hardware > Peripherals

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The title is somewhat deceptive..., February 12, 2005

By	Thomas Duff "Duffbert" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

If you're highly interested in hacking together wi-fi networks and such, you'll probably enjoy Wireless Hacking Projects for Wi-Fi Enthusiasts by Lee Barken and the SoCalFreeNet.org Wireless Users Group. I personally had hoped for something a little different, however...

Chapter list: A Brief Overview of the Wireless World; SoCalFreeNet.org: Building Large Scale Community Wireless Networks; Securing Our Wireless Community; Wireless Access Points; Wireless Client Access Devices; Wireless Operating Systems; Monitoring Your Network; Low-Cost Commercial Options; Mesh Networking; Antennas; Building Outdoor Enclosures and Antenna Masts; Solar-Powered Access Points and Repeaters; Wireless 802.11 Hacks; Index

OK, to be fair, there's a lot of technical information in this book. SoCalFreeNet.org is a group committed to building community access wireless networks in order to offer free wireless coverage for everyone in the range of the network. They go into great detail on the hardware to use, how to configure it, the reason for setting up an access portal, building a firewall for the network, and so on. If this is your interest or if you're interested in starting this type of a network in your area, I don't think there's another book out there that would help as much.

Having said that, I'd probably be a little less harsh if the book had been titled How To Build A Community Wireless Network Based On The SoCalFreeNet.org Model. Someone who is looking to play around with wi-fi in their own house, build cantennas, or possibly control devices over the wireless network will have to dig hard in the book to find what they are looking for. The information is there, but it seems to be secondary to the primary purpose (or what I perceive it to be), which is to spread wireless access to the masses.

So, depending on what you're looking for, this may or may not be a good match for you. I was expecting something different from the title and cover, and was somewhat disappointed...

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great book with great ideas, August 16, 2005

By	Tom Wolfe (Illinois) - See all my reviews

I have been wanting to build a community wireless network for a long time now, but digging through google and looking for books turned out to be difficult to find someone else doing something like me, until I found this book. Read the first 30 pages of it in the bookstore and I was hooked, I had to have it. The only problem I see with it is that they seem to do things in a cookie cutter way allowing little flexablity (the 802.11a backhaul is a good idea, but there are other ways than using hardware that is no longer being made and having to do cheap 'hacks' to get things going. I guess thats why it is called wireless 'hacking'. It assumes a good deal of prior knowledge, which for me is great since I am familiar with vi and unix, etc. but a newbie might be a bit confused. They should have made it a bit more friendly for newbies, at times I felt the whole book was somewhat of a hack, like they rushed to throw something together that people could use since nothing else exists like this book. They also seem to focus too much on configuring windows stuff which I find annoying since I use OS X/Linux. Many times it felt like hey were reading my mind, everything I have wanted to do for years, they did. It is a wee bit overpriced though, I would say it's worth $20-25.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just right for me!, September 30, 2005

By	Trevor G. Doust "LT" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book sets out to educate, inspire and be a resource for building community wireless networks. For me the book lives up to my expectations. When dealing with the elements of building a wireless networks, some topics are difficult to get clear information on. Configuring m0n0wall is a good example. Try looking in the forums!
The step by step guides on specific hardware and specific releases of software may make it difficult to keep the book current but has infinitely more value to me than any attempt at a generic explanation. To illustrate this point, it is a long road to install Cacti as a network monitoring tool. You have to install Apache, PHP, Perl, RRD and Mysql before you can even start. I would never have made it, but Michael Mee's step by step guide made it a snap. Some of the software had been upgraded since the book was written but you could choose the same release as in the book. However, I found that the methodology in the book made it sufficiently clear that I could use the latest release in each case.

The fact that the book has many contributors means that each chapter is written by an expert in that particular field. These people have done it and are sharing it to the best of their ability.

There are many photographs and screen shots to make comprehension easier.

If you are interested in WiFi you should have this book on you bookshelf or closer. The word hacking in the title gives me that same feeling as when I am being followed by a State Cop! However, I suppose that others will feel different.

I hope the contributors and editor will endeavor to keep the book up to date as hardware and software evolves.