An ealier post described how to synchronize an iTunes playlist with a folder on my SE P910i memory stick. This approach uses a batch file and some javascript libraries, which sort of makes it belong in the *hack* category.

Today, while browsing the S60 blogs, I came across a post (look towards the end of the post) that links to a description of how the same thing can be achieved in a more streamlined fashion, using the open source tool iTunes Agent.

The iTunes Agent enables synchronization between an iTunes playlist (including smart playlists) and any USB "mass storage device".

ps. On the S60 blogs I also came across a link to a freeware DivX player for Symbian based devices (including S60 3rd Ed.)

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Now that I have the Asus WL-500g Premium hooked up and working, I have decided to do a little fine tuning of the wireless coverage. Because the wireless router is located in the basement, wireless coverage has always been a bit flaky in our upstairs office where we keep a desktop. I know it's a bad idea to place the router in the basement and that you're supposed to place your router high and in the center of the house. Unfortunately, with the telephone wiring in our old house, that's just not possible.

So, what to do to improve coverage on the first floor?

• I have decided not to mess with the radio output power on the WL-500gP. I don't want to boil the skin off another household member and besides, the default power setting on my WL-500gP appears to be at maximum (issuing the command 'wl txpwr1′ in the WL-500gP's hidden admin page reports 'TxPower is 127 qdbm, 31.75 dbm, 1496 mW Override is Off').
• I am going to check the different channels and see, if signal strength and noise varies between channels.
• I am looking into parabolic reflectors to use with router antennas. I have built a couple of DIY 6 inch reflectors, but I might also try the commercial Flatenna and a corner reflector.

The 6 inch DIY reflectors seem to work quite well. I have only tried them out in the basement between the main WL-500gP and my WRT54G wireless bridge, but I experience an improvement close to the "advertised" 9 dB gain. Before attaching the reflectors, the wireless bridge reported an RSSI between -66 and -72 dB and after attaching the reflectors RSSI went to between -55 and -64 dB. I have constructed the reflectors really fast and simple (printed reflector template on thick paper, to which I glued kitchen tin foil), but I might try to see if being more careful and using the foiled cardboard from a cut open Pringle's can yield further improvement.

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Anna is taking the walker we have bought her out for a little spin. The walker is great - with it Anna can get up and around even though she has not yet learnt how to crawl.

Video recorded on September 16., 2006.

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Although the Asus WL-500g Premium is equipped with 32 Mb of RAM, only 16 Mb are enabled by default.

Output from cat /proc/meminfo:

This thread (see post #6) in the wl500g.info forum explains how to enable the full 32 Mb RAM.

I have seen many warnings with regards to these commands - apparently they may potentially harm the router. I have yet to come across a report from someone who actually damaged their router, however, and it worked for me and some other guys.

Enter these lines one by one in the WL-500gP's hidden admin page (press 'Refresh' button after each line'):

WARNING - Do not copy paste the following code directly into your router admin interface. Why? See comments below.

Output from cat /proc/meminfo after change:

Jagshemash! Is nice!

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The official Asus firmware for the Asus WL-500g Premium wireless router does not support telnet'ing into the router. Other firmware versions, like Oleg's, DD-WRT and OpenWRT does. Without telnet (or SSH) support, it is impossible to mess with tweaks and fine tunings, since these are not available through the web interface, but can only be executed from a command line. This is probably the reason why Asus has equipped the WL-500gP (and other router models) with a hidden admin page that works like a router command line.

This hidden admin page is just a web page with a textfield for issuing commands, a text area for displaying command output and a button for executing commands. You'll find the hidden admin page at: http://$ROUTER_IP/Main_AdmStatus_Content.asp (replace $ROUTER_IP with the actual IP address of your router - if you have not changed the default setting, the IP is 192.168.1.1). As far as I know, the hidden admin page is not mentioned in any of the official WL-500gP documentation.

Since this admin page is basically undocumented, you have to piece together how to use if from forum posts etc. By browsing the wl500g.info forum, I discovered that executing the command 'wl cmds' will output a list of available commands: Type in 'wl cmds' in the textfield and click the "Refresh" to display the list. It's a rather long list and there are no descriptions of the commands, so it is difficult to know how to use them.

Executing the command 'wl -h' will output some help. - No, it won't!

Besides the 'wl' commands, it is also possible to execute basic Linux commands. For instance, memory (RAM) usage can be checked by typing in cat /proc/meminfo and press "Refresh":

total: used: free: shared: buffers: cached:
Mem: 14635008 12939264 1695744 0 2437120 5214208
Swap: 0 0 0
MemTotal: 14292 kB
MemFree: 1656 kB
MemShared: 0 kB
Buffers: 2380 kB
Cached: 5092 kB
SwapCached: 0 kB
Active: 3704 kB
Inactive: 5460 kB
HighTotal: 0 kB
HighFree: 0 kB
LowTotal: 14292 kB
LowFree: 1656 kB
SwapTotal: 0 kB
SwapFree: 0 kB

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I had to put the Topcom SKYR@CER WBR 254G router to sleep after its exposure to electro shock therapy. I'll keep it, of course. It may be completely useless as it is now, but with tomorrow's technology, I may be able to revive it. To replace the Topcom, I opted for a Asus WL-500g Premium, which I received this evening.

I chose the WL-500gP over another WRTG54G because the WL-500gP has more juice (266 MHz CPU, 8 Mb flash, 32 Mb RAM vs. 200 MHz CPU, 4 Mb flash, 16 Mb RAM), plus several neat features that I'm eager to try out:

• Two USB ports for connecting external drives, a webcam or a printer.
• Built-in BitTorrent client
• External drives can be accessed by FTP or Windows shared drive

My only initial beef concerns the WL-500gP manual, which does not appear to cover more advanced configuration settings. For instance, the WL-500gP is being hyped as featuring Afterburner (speedbooster) and BroadRange (increases wireless signal coverage), but the manual mentions neither. The hyped features may just be marketing mumbo jumbo, but this forum post suggests otherwise…

A couple of links:

• Brief rundown of Asus WL-500g Premium specs at Melbourne Wireless
• Download different versions of Asus firmware
• Official Asus WL-500gP forum
• (Un?)official WL-500gP forum
• Asus' list of printers supported by WL-500 series devices
• Lists of compatible hardware as reported by users (webcams, printers, HDD's etc.)

I have just finished setting up the WL-500gP and it was no biggie. My Linksys WRT54G running DD-WRT firmware in client-bridge mode hooked up with the WL-500gP without any problems and my home network is now fully functional again, w00t!

I'm running Asus firmware on the WL-500gP and it seems to work well despite the clunky web interface. I must be spoiled from working with the slick Linksys interfaces.

I bought the WL-500gP from Proshop and it was an altogether pleasant experience: shipping was fast and I received several emails with updated information on my order, including shipment track 'n' trace.

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Five years ago, I was staying in Brisbane, Australia - working as a visiting scholar at the Distributed Systems Technology Center (DSTC) at University of Queensland.

The time difference between Denmark and Brisbane is a bit inconvenient with Brisbane being eight hours ahead of Denmark. This meant that if I was to talk to Ida, I would either have to call her very early in the morning to reach her before she went to bed, or very late at night to reach her just when she got home from work.

I called Ida to say hello around 11 PM on September 11th. Ida had just got home from work and told me she was watching a special news broadcast about events unfolding in the US. Denmark is six hours ahead of New York, so when I called Ida, the time in New York was around 9 AM. Ida told me that the US was being hit by air strikes. I remember lying on the bed in the small room I rented, listening to Ida's recount of the news story and getting this surreal feeling. For a brief moment, I honestly thought Ida had completely lost it, or was drunk, or on drugs. The US was not a country hit by air strikes - it was just something that did not happen. If anyone would attempt to do so, they would be intercepted by US fighter aircraft and shot to smithereens. And if the US was hit by air strikes, the consequences would be unfathomable…

I cannot remember that much else from the conversation Ida and I had, except for the bit about air strikes. I do remember we talked for a long time and when we hung up, I sat in my room with this strange feeling. I wanted to go and turn on the TV, but the rest of house was sleeping and I did not know what to make of this story.

The next morning I hurried to work and checked out the story on the net. I recall that all through that day, co-workers would huddle up in small groups and watch the images of the planes hitting the twin towers. When I returned to my lodgings later that day, I found it in a state of chaos. There was an American boy lodging in the same house - I cannot remember his name, but he was part of a group of high school kids on a longer stay in Brisbane. I think they came from New Jersey, because some of them had parents working at, or around, the World Trade Center.

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