What could be wrong with my wireless connection?

What is wrong with my wireless connection?

• I have a router and software from D Link Plus. The router is downstairs in my living room and I have my PC up in my bedroom. The "D Link Airplus" usually receives good signal. It's the "Wireless Connection" icon in the toolbar that keeps fading out. It starts out with the speed at 54mbps, stays there for about 1 minute, then drops to 24mbps, then to 11mbps, then to 0. Sometimes is automatically finds a signal again in about 1 minute and is reconnected and the whole cycle just repeats itself. After the cycle repeats itself about 3 times it won't reconnect at all. I usually end up unhooking my USB Wireless Stick (my computer doesn't have a wireless card b/c its old) and then reinserting the stick usually allows it to connect again, but after I do this process about 3 times, then this process doesn't work. My brother in the room next door has a laptop with a wireless card and whenever he is home with his computer, his works fine. If I am on AIM or Yahoo Messanger is just signs me offline when this happens but it keeps showing me as still being online to others. Also I always check to see if other people are on our router but noone ever is. So I think I have one of three solutions... 1) Get a "signal booster" 2) Get a new computer with wireless card 3) Get a new router . Let me know if you know what the problem and solution are.

• Answer:

  You do not mention what your brother will get if he comes into your room and tries the connection. An even better test is to bring his laptop into your room and you PC into his room and try both. If the problem stays with you PC then I would suggest that maybe you have a problem with the USB Wireless Stick, you could try taking it to the place that you purchased it and having them test it. If you have a friend with a USB Wireless Stick, try it in your computer and see if it works, if it does then it is definitely your Wireless Stick. Now I have never tried this, but there should be one USB port that supplies more power than the others, if you have your USB stick in one of the lower power ports then, if you plug something into the higher power port, it might lose power. You might consider borrowing a USB Hub that powers the USB ports from an external power supply, make sure that all ports get power equally. If the computer works and the Laptop stops responding properly, then there is an issue with the signal between the router and your computer. That could be caused by a number of things, microwaves, portable phones, mirrors, pictures, etc. You might get better results by moving the PC and the router a bit, but then you may work and your brother stop. After some of these tests you might have a better idea, whether to get a new USB Wireless Stick, a new router (suspect not as your brother does not have problems), a new computer with built in wireless card. Without doing some testing, I would never say that this is definitely the problem as there are too many variables.