"There was an error joining AirPort network" - HELP

[agarfin]

As long as you not going to be doing any gaming a linksys WRT54GL wireless b/g router is good. I get a strong signal across the house threw 2 walls.
http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satellite?c=L_Product_C2&childpagename=US%2FLayout&cid=1133202177241&pagename=Linksys%2FCommon%2FVisitorWrapper

they cost about 60-70 US dollars. try amazon or tiger direct

for gaming get a netgear they do better with less port forwarding

this should handle your setup fine. also i would use a wpa password as it is easier than mac filtering and will keep out your neighbor. THERE IS NOT A SINGLE TYPE OF ENCRYPTION THAT CAN STAND UP TO A DETERMINED HACKER except of course the feds encrption

ps. if im wrong about please dont eat me but ive done alot of research and have come up with nothing. ive also hacked my neighbors wep with airsnort as a test. if you found somthing i didnt PLEASE LET ME KNOW

 

[HelixOmnimedia]

As long as you not going to be doing any gaming a linksys WRT54GL wireless b/g router is good. I get a strong signal across the house threw 2 walls.
http://www.linksys.com/servlet/Satellite?c=L_Product_C2&childpagename=US%2FLayout&cid=1133202177241&pagename=Linksys%2FCommon%2FVisitorWrapper

they cost about 60-70 US dollars. try amazon or tiger direct

for gaming get a netgear they do better with less port forwarding

this should handle your setup fine. also i would use a wpa password as it is easier than mac filtering and will keep out your neighbor. THERE IS NOT A SINGLE TYPE OF ENCRYPTION THAT CAN STAND UP TO A DETERMINED HACKER except of course the feds encrption

ps. if im wrong about please dont eat me but ive done alot of research and have come up with nothing. ive also hacked my neighbors wep with airsnort as a test. if you found somthing i didnt PLEASE LET ME KNOW

Thanks for anther reply.

Yesterday I decided to buy a Netgear RangeMax Next Wireless ADSL2+ Modem Router DG834N - any signal strength as been amazing, I crossed the road to my neighbors and still go an ok signal. Fingers crossed that nothing goes wrong from now on.

Just want to say, TOPIC CLOSED, and THANKS to everyone who posted to help.

 

[mudgee]

If your windows laptop can connect to the Belkin via WEP, it means that the router is working and receiving and processing the encryption. Belkin shouldn't have hung up on you, but this does mean that their product is working.

Really, unless you actually NEED to use WEP, please use a version of WPA, which is much less hackable. I had no problem using WPA-TKIP encryption with my mac, where I just configured my router for WPA-TKIP (not AES!), typed in the password, and then configured my mac to use WPA Personal (which is actually WPA TKIP with a different name), typed in the password again, and it worked just like that.

I'm completely new here and had exactly same problem as original poster BUT you have saved the day!!

You were exactly right about the WPA encryption! Why have I never thought of using this before - thank you so much for such simple advice!

Have now got the Belkin mimo working with 2 winXP machines and ,more importantly, one iMac G5, one intel core duo mac mini and a powerbook G5 with no problems!!

Thank you!

Mudgee

 

[blaster_boy]

Hey, you're welcome !

Glad to help out in this, the mac community here is great !

 

[cardiac dave]

On the Wireless Security drop down box - there are 3 types of WEP; WEP Password, WEP 40/128 Bit HEX and WEP 40/128 Bit Ascii.

Try each of the last two and type your generated password - one should let you in - i think the Ascii one.

I'll add another vote of confidence for this suggestion. I administer the network at a local club, configured with WEP as some members computers can't handle WPA. I've found that PC's connect without any issues, but on Mac's you need to specify the type of WEP encryption. I ensure that they use the 40/120bit Ascii, and that they get the password just right at 13 characters.

This has worked for me on D-Link and Linksys routers... haven't had any experience with Belkin's. FWIW, I've heard Belkin highly recomended for their new N-class wireless chipsets.

 

[4JNA]

my 2 cents... i have talked a lot of customers through something similar, and suspect the following. the OP mentioned 'passphrase' which i believe he took to be his WEP password. this in not correct. the belkin used the 'passphrase' to generate a 5 or 13 digit password, usually hex, and that is what was required to join the wireless network.

so, if the setup is wep 40 (5 digits) or 128 (13 digits) bit security, give it the passphrase of 'pleasehackme' or whatever, and it turns that into a hex password string. the idea is you can remember the passphrase very easily, but not the hex so much. before getting out of the router setup, look to find the actual password that the passphrase generated, again 5 or 13 digits long. to connect the mac, click on the drop down, click on wep 40/128 hex and enter the actual hex password, not the passphrase.

the kicker is that most xp systems can join using the passphrase due to shared key, and xp's lack of security or concern for your safety... so lots of 'windows works, but apple won't' calls end with this very conversation.

hope that helps someone.

 

[elzr]

Thanks!

Try putting 0x before the WEP key when you enter it on your PowerBook.

Sean

Had the exact same problem and unhelpfully overgeneral error message. This being my very first mac (a macbook), my very first mac experience, it did crush my excitement somewhat. Took me a good long while but the 0x prepending did it for me. Yey! I still think it *shouldn't* have need it, but, oh well, it's all (else) so impressive and exciting!

Thank you!

 

[d wade]

Wow.. while I've never had a Belkin product try and hold me down and do dirty things to me

i have!!

 

[igucl]

The number one rule with dealing with Belkin products is:

DON'T!​

I've had them blow out the PC card slot on one laptop, blow up my laser printer, laptop and explode a light bulb another time, and a third time the lady who I used to babysit for scorched her flood when her G router overheated and burned the 2-month-old hardwood.

This post causes me to wonder if it is my relatively new Belkin router that is frying my airport cards on my iMac G5. I've gone through two of them now. Maybe it's time to put that router on eBay.