Quicksilver 2002 - wireless options

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Quicksilver 2002 - wireless options

Ok, I have a Quicksilver 2002, as per the subject. A couple months ago, we had a near-miss lightning strike. My ethernet port is now dead.

Currently, I connect to the cable-modem via USB cable. Altho the documentation says it will handle USB & ethernet connection at the same time, it seems to be flaky since then, disconnectiing us several times a day. Plus, I'm moving soon, and the wireless route looks like what I'll need there anyway. But money is rather short.

I see I can get an old Airport card, but those are becoming expensive.

In researching, it seems like many PCI adapters won't work with OS X (Broadcom chipset seems to be important). I tried one card, and the System Profiler didn't even recognize that a card was plugged in. I'm wondering if modern PCI cards won't handle my 33 MHz PCI slots, or if maybe my PCI controller got fried by the lightning too.

There are also some USB wireless adapters, but since Quicksilver only has USB 1.1, I'm essentially limited to 802.11B (slow). G would be better.

So, the question(s): Have I missed any major options? Does anybody recommend a particular route here? A particular brand?

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some ideas

The USB2 thing might be cheap enough. If you've got a spare PCI slot, USB2 PCI adapters are very affordable (under $10.)

Depending on how much you mind slicing and dicing your QS's chssis, another alternative is to buy a lucent-chipped silver or gold PC card (which look to the system just like a pukka AP card) and chop the chassis so the side will close with the card in place. Needs a piece taken out of the front side edge, a little sheetmetal work so the card's antenna will clear.

How about a plain old ethernet PCI adapter? There are plenty that work in Macs. If you need wifi, you could then attach an ethernet wifi client adapter (like those sold for gaming consoles), will set you back maybe $50.

dan k

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re: some ideas

Of those ideas, I like the PCI ethernet the best, even if it calls for a wireless adapter too. Then I could still hook up to other ethernet stuff.

This leaves me wondering if there is any way to test my PCI slots. Altho nothing indicated the one adapter I tried was even in the machine (like *anything* showing in System Profiler), an article I just read indicated that an unsupported wireless card might do exactly that. So, maybe my PCI is OK and I just need the right card.

Do modern PCI cards generally work with old PCI slots? The Quicksilver has PCI 2.1, 33MHz, 64 bit, 215 Mbps (apparently an odd mix of features). All the generic PC boards I see in store say PCI 2.2 and/or 2.3.

Will the ethernet to wireless adapter work on a ethernet hub? Or should I just make sure the ethernet board has 2+ ports?

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You could also replace your l

You could also replace your logic board for under $100 off ebay.

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