I connect to the Internet from my boat via wifi. I have a USB wifi adapter, a 500mW amplifier and a 12dBi omni antenna as well as a 15 dBi directional patch antenna.
For several months, I have been paying $60 per month for a somewhat unreliable connection to the wifi at Geminga boatyard. After moving the boat and tweaking my antenna positioning I find I can now get a good connection to the free wifi at the JMC boatyard.
There is only one fly in the ointment. Everything works just fine, except my e-mail program can not connect to the SMTP server in Norway. POP3 from my account in Norway works fine. I have been able to use SMTP from every other location I have connected with wifi, but not the JMC boatyard. (At the TTSA moorings in Trinidad everything worked except for Telnet, but that’s a different story).
Any ideas?
Yes, I can log on to my Internet provider’s webmail site and send from there, but I like to have all my messages archived on my computer.
I’ve had the same e-mail address for a decade AND have managed to keep it almost spam free. As a traveller, my e-mail address is often the only means people have of contacting me, and I could list many happy reunions, both virtual and real life that came about because I still had the same e-mail address.
Also, when cruising, there have often been many situations that my wifi connections have been very shaky. Situations where I was able to get through with POP3 on a wing and a prayer, but never managed to log onto any websites. Not everyone has piped broadband!
I already have a Hotmail address for situations where I don’t want to give my “proper” e-mail address.
Where I am now, I can switch back and forth between the Geminga boatyard wifi and the JMC boatyard wifi. (I have paid for Geminga until the end of the month, JMC wifi is free.) I can SMTP and ping the SMTP server when I’m connected to Geminga, but not with JMC, so the problem is definitely local. I’ve never had an issue with SMTP with any other wifi connection.
Well, I know who controls it, but my guess is it’s supposed to be free for their customers, not for me anchored outside and freeloading… Also, my guess is the staff at the boatyard know sweet fa about configuring anything which means they would have to get some support person to come by which someone would have to pay for.
Well… I haven’t tried to ping the rest of the Internet, but everything else seems to work fine, just not SMTP.
Hopefully, you are about to tell me how to locate a friendly proxy server and how to use it…
I"ve never had to, but there are networks of folks, for instance, setting up systems which make it possible to get past the great firewall of china, and that’s basicly a proxy address. You’ll have to google for some help.
Proxy server is the way to go. Since these are not strictly legal, it’s likely that any proxy server you choose will suddenly disappear for no obvious reason. You will then have to find another one.
See above, fourth post for why I don’t want to switch to a web based account. There is also the possibility that I will add a satellite phone to my arsenal of communications equipment some time in the future. Web based e-mail through a satellite phone is definitely not a good plan.
