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    Dell's WiFi Locator - what's it really for?

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by SoundsGood, Apr 22, 2007.

  1. SoundsGood

    SoundsGood Notebook Virtuoso

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    I'm expecting a newly ordered refurb D420 to arrive this week, so I'm looking over some documentation on Dell's site.

    I see that the D420 has a WiFi Locator, which tells you if a WiFi signal is present without having to boot up the computer. I got excited at first, since this could really come in handy... until I found out that it does NOT tell you if the network is Secured or Unsecured.

    If a user already has the password to a Secured network, they would already know it's there -- so they wouldn't need the WiFi Locator. It's the free UNsecured networks that most people would be trying to locate with a WiFi Locator. With this Locator they would still need to boot up their computer to see if the network is Secured or Unsecured.

    Therefore, what exactly is the point of this WiFi Locator? What's it really for?

    Maybe I'm missing something?? :confused:
     
    SoundsGood, Apr 22, 2007
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  2. aan310

    aan310 Notebook Virtuoso

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    who knows.... it's dell
     
    aan310, Apr 22, 2007
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  3. SoundsGood

    SoundsGood Notebook Virtuoso

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    Ha! Funny... :)
     
    SoundsGood, Apr 23, 2007
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  4. Shang

    Shang Notebook Enthusiast

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    Well, some secured networks are fairly large. For instance, my school's campus is roughly 350 acres, served by one secured network. There are some places with wireless coverage and some without. I can't imagine that many of the 50k people on campus know exactly where there is and isn't coverage. I haven't used mine yet, but I can imagine the WiFi locator would come in handy when I'm exploring campus looking for a new place to study.
     
    Shang, Apr 23, 2007
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  5. SoundsGood

    SoundsGood Notebook Virtuoso

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    Hmmm, interesting. I guess the WiFi Locator would help in that type of situation.

    But I still wish it was able to distinguish between Secured and Unsecured networks. ;)
     
    SoundsGood, Apr 23, 2007
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