Problems with wireless bridge! HELP!

[ravenvii]

I hope this is the right place - the problem isn't really Mac-specific, but does involve Apple products

I bought a ethernet-to-wireless bridge, the NetGear ME101. I hoped to use it on my PC running Linux. I'm having problems trying to access the internet with Linux and the USB adapter I was using. Since a ethernet-wireless bridge is platform-independent, I thought it would make my life much easier with Linux. Plus I can finally feasibly go play online with the PS2.

Ok here's the setup... I have four computers, two Macs and two PCs (one using Windoze, and the other Linux). They're connected to the internet via a wireless router (AirPort Extreme). The router uses 128-bit WEP encryption.

So now I set the ME101 up on the Windoze machine. All seems to go fine, and I set up WEP, and tested it. Works like a charm. But then I tried it on one of the Macs. No worky? WTF? It doesn't work on the Linux PC either. PS2? Forget it. ONLY the first Windoze PC!

When I connected it to the Mac, it recnogizes that an ethernet cable is plugged, and I could access the ME101's web browser configuration. I re-entered the WEP password on the web browser configator as well. No luck. The Mac just couldn't get any IP address from the router via DHCP. When I told it to get the address from DHCP, there's nothing to get through the stupid ME101, so it couldn't access anything.

I even tried disabling WEP. Doesn't help a bit.

I'm hoping solving this problem with the Mac would allow it to be used with the Linux box and the PS2 without problems.

What's the problem here? Why does it work fine only with Windows, but nothing else? Can anyone help?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Westside guy]

Before disconnecting it from the Windows box (where it worked successfully), did you release the DHCP address? I'm wondering if the bridge is having trouble with the fact that the MAC address is changing.

(Yeah I'm grasping at straws)

 

[ravenvii]

I doubt the MAC address is the issue, since I'm able to access the bridge with the Mac (via the browser). Basically it's the deal where I change my network prefs to manual )not DHCP) and put in the IP 196.168.0.50, then I'm able to access the bridge config by http://196.168.0.200. So the communication between the Mac and the bridge is fine. But the bridge wouldn't communicate with the AirPort. It detects the network, but couldn't go on the internet.

 

[Westside guy]

Actually I was thinking about the other half of the connection. Basically if the bridge is presenting your end device's MAC address as its own ("cloning" the MAC address of your Mac, PS2 or whatever) to your router I thought this could be worth a shot.

Whether or not your laptop (or whatever) can access your bridge would not really be applicable in this case.