Setting up your AirBears Wireless LAN Connection
- Make sure your wireless functionality is turned on. This may be controlled by a function key or by a physical toggle button of some sort.
- Go to START => Control Panel => Network and Internet Connections
- Choose Network Connections
- Right-click Wireless Network Connection. Choose Properties.
- Scroll down and highlight Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). Click Properties.
- Choose Obtain an IP address automatically and Obtain DNS Server address autmatically. Click OK.
- Choose Wireless Networks tab. Highlight AirBears (Automatic). Click Advanced.
- Choose Access Point (Infrastructure) Network Only. Click Close.
- Highlight AirBears (Automatic). Click Properties.
- Set Network Authentication to Open. Set Data encryption to Disabled. Click OK.
- Close all open windows. Launch your web browser.
Many wireless cards come with software to administer the card and connect to available networks. However for PCs, it is worth considering allowing Microsoft XP to handle the wireless card itself. Our experience with XP in this regard has been generally positive. The righthand side of the XP toolbar on the bottom of the screen is called the System Tray. There is normally a network connection icon for each network connection (wired connections look like a tiny pair of computers; a wireless connection looks like a tiny computer with radio waves coming off of it). One should be for your wireless card, and it may offer a little popup informing you of the signal strength for a nearby access point, such as AirBears. Right click on the icon, then view available networks. Select AirBears, then agree that traffic may be unencrypted. Then click Connect.
The details of configuring individual wireless cards and their software utilities are widely varied. Feel free to email studentcomputing@law.berkeley.edu us for help.
