Computer Comms: 'Net access while cruising?

[CapnK]

(Note: I expect this document to evolve as I get feedback on what I've written from the folks here. If you see changes in the future, that's why. :))

I'm the marinas resident Geek. I helped the guy who actually got *paid* to put in the wirless network, and now I am Johnny-on-the-spot when someone has trouble accessing our network.  ::) Based on my experience, people who claim that IT is a high-paying career are liars. ;) However, getting someone online who's been having trouble with it themselves has been a good way to get a free Scotch or a cold beer while talking with other boaters.

It is easier and works better than pretending an interest in their stinkpot while trying to think of what honest-sounding question to ask next. While "Hey, have any free drinks onboard that gorgeous stinkpot thingy there?" will work some times, "Whew, typing makes me thirsty, but you're online now..." gets 'em every time. ;D Anyway, here are some observations from my point of view...

My troubleshooting role puts me in contact with the larger percentage of 'net using transients who come through our marina, which advertises 'net access and is convienently located just off the ICW. I make it a point to ask these folks about their other 'net experiences as they've traveled, mostly out of plain curiosity.

Wireless access is fairly widespread, at least along the east coast ICW. I think that if getting online from onboard is a priority to you, you shouldn't have too much problem finding marinas with 'net access as long as you do a little planning ahead.

You'll run into 2 different kinds of networks out there: unsecured networks and secured networks. I won't get into real techy stuff here, but here is a basic description -

Unsecured networks use no "encryption" - that is, your data is transmitted in the clear. Whatever gets sent across the network is just out there winging through the air. This could be bad if there is a person with nefarious intent and a good bit of geeky techknowledge in the area. They would be able to read your data much as you would.

Secured networks use encryption to "scramble" the data that is out there winging through the air. Yep, it's the same data, it's still there for the bad guy to grab and mess with, but it is a little harder for him to make sense of it. Basically, that's all it is, and whatever others may say different, I personally feel that you should be *very* cautious about transmitting any data wirelessly, even on an encrypted network.

A discussion about encryption security could take pages. No need to get into it here, there are plenty of websites out there if you want to discuss it, or read the mind-bending technical terminology used by those who can discuss it with some bit of competency. What remains is that, encrypted or not, on a wireless network there is a time when bad guys can grab what you are receiving and/or transmitting, and so it behooves you to be caustious whenever using wireless.

OK, lets get past that, and on to what you need to know.

You'll need a computer with wireless capability. This requires either a built-in wireless networking card, or one that you plug into the computer. Either way, try and get one that is "802.11G" compatible. The "G" is important - it is the current fastest hardware. A computer with "802.11B" capability will also work, it's just slower (and usually cheaper because of that).

OK, you've got the hardware. That means you should be able to connect. Connecting to an unsecured network is really easy. It involves turning on your computer, and then waiting a bit. Have a drink while it gets all booted up, then go ahead and start surfing. It's about that easy. Have fun, and don't send any bank account login info.

To use secured networks, you will need to be a bit more of a Geek. I'm not going into the subject in depth, except to say that life will be MUCH easier for you if you learn a little bit about how to set your system up to use encryption *before* you get out there away from a connection that you know works for you (ie; the one you are using to read this :)).

Their are 2 standards of encryption you'll be dealing with: they are named WEP and WPA.

WPA is more recent, and I think less places are using it at the moment. Mor e on that in a bit. First, WEP...

WEP encryption has been broken - that means that there *are* tools out there for bad guys to use to take your encrypted data and *de-encrypt* it. Yikes! But WEP is better than nothing, and is compatable with more hardware and operating systems, as well as, in my experience, being quicker. Most of you will be using a Windows operating system, and as far as I know, any and all versions of Windows since Windows 98 can handle WEP encryption.

Not so with WPA encryption. In fact, the only Windows you'd be likely to be running which has built-in support for WPA would be Windows XP *with Service Pack 2*. <- Pay close attention to that. No Service Pack 2, no dice. That said, you should be able to download a program which will allow you to use WPA if you don't have this one particular version of Windows. Again, this is something you would be best off researching and taking care of now, before you get Out There.

OK, so that is what you are likely to run into as you travel. Based on my informal surveys of transients, about 50% of marinas are using some form of encryption. This means you have to learn some stuff *before* you leave about how to enable your computer to use encryption. As far as I can tell, my marina is one of the few which has a Geek who will come to your boat and help you out (if he is available and feels like it). So you should learn about wireless encryption and how to make it work on your computer before you leave. Lots of people don't, much to their chagrin when they try to connect to an encrypted network. If you take the couple of hours (at most) it will take for you to learn how to use encryption on your computer, you will save many more than that once you start traveling.

Not to mention that your Scotch will last longer. :)

[Captain Smollett]

Kurt, coupla comments:

(1)

Have fun, and don't send any bank account login info.

Most 'respectable' banks do logins via ssl, which is encrypted.  As a matter of fact, I think banks are now required by law to use SSL.  This means it is no less secure to login via wireless than over any other network since the underlying protocol is providing the security.  A much larger danger is the passphrases being stored/cached on the local computer (to be read by worm, virus, spyware, etc).

The danger in using unsafe wireless is bad guys reading net login info, reading emails, seeing web sites surfed, or anything done on an open protocol.

On a related note, Win XP Home Edition, even Service Pack 2, has a few very serious flaws.  Among them is the inability to set a policy to delete the page file when Windows is shut down. This means someone could steal your  laptop (or just the hdd out of it) and read everything that was paged out during the last session (or last several sessions).

If you have Win XP Pro, you need to set the policy to delete the page file upon shutdown.  This is serious flaw in Windows default behavior.

(2) You might want to suggest that your marina use IPSec over the wireless link.  It's pretty tight (modern IPSec implementations can use AES, for example, and 3DES is 'standard' for everything except Microsoft, which can be configured to use 3DES).  A IPSec/L2TP box acting as the router for the network would work and would require only that Windows clients use a VPN connection rather than a 'standard' net connection.  (I prefer straight IPSec, without the L2TP layer; L2TP does not add any security but for some reason MS uses it standard).  There are IPSec-only free clients for Win XP, but that would require an extra config step on the Win clients.

If they really care about securing the link, IPSec is the way to go.  I would not trust the wireless-only protocols, but that's just me.  ;)

(3) Delete this post if you don't want technobabble clogging up the thread.   ;D

[CapnK]

Catching Geeks is waaaaay easier than catching fish - just simplify some security stuff, or make some overbroad generalizations, you'll get *at least* one, every time! ;) LOL

* CapnK pulls John's leg

Yeah, I know that there are some arguable things in what I wrote (even said that in there somewhere I think :)), but in the interests of brevity and ease, I tried to keep it as simple as possible. :) I didn't want to get any more techanickal than I did. :)

Besides, do you think that if SSl is/were cracked (however probable or improbable that may be, I don't know much about it)

1) whoever cracked it is talking about it, or are they sipping drinks on their megayacht off of Fiji?

and

2) if it is cracked, the *banks/CC companies/Feds* would say so? Can you say "lost faith" and "market crash"? ;D

Wait, don't answer that, or we'll go farther OT. ;D LOL

[Zen]

Great info Capt(s). Thanks

Any info on how to connect say mid Atlantic or Pacific...?

[s/v Faith]

Yea,

  Actually, there is new hope.  "SCAMP" is a new way of transmitting data across HF (HAM) without expensive equpment.  It is just getting started, but the prospects look good.

  Ham should be within reach to even the most lazy cruiser now that he code requirement is being removed (easy way to start a fight is to bring that up at around a bunch of hams).

  Just google SCAMP HAM for more info.

[CapnK]

As far as connecting via satellite, the info I have been able to glean by asking cruisers is that while it is possible, you are gonna hate the data rates - think very slow dialup - 9600 baud, or, IIRC, about 1/4 the speed of 56K (John, correct me if I'm wrong on that). That would be *painfully* slow, for me. :) Might not be to bad, if all you are sending/receiving is text data, like email, but for any graphics at all, no thanks...

(Hey! This is my 100th post! I need a life, but, lacking that, I'll settle for a cold brewski... :) )

[s/v Faith]

Satellite access is getting better, at $699 for Globalstar, .99 a minute, $39 a month (40 minutes free a month) and with the compression they say the data tranmission is 'ok'.

Still (IMHO) for email Winlink across an HF set is probably the best option. I have looked at sets that would fit my boat, (Icom, manual tuner, backstay antenna, TNC, for around a Grand.

Tempting, but still not in the range where I am ready to do it.

[djn]

Thanks Capnk, this is great information.  My wife and I are just reeling for the possibility of selling our home and living on-board.  We are going to take this summer and get the C25 ready for sale and start looking for a bigger boat.  Thanks again for the info. Cheers.

[Captain Smollett]

you are gonna hate the data rates - think very slow dialup - 9600 baud, or, IIRC, about 1/4 the speed of 56K (John, correct me if I'm wrong on that).

I don't know about the sat services suitable for offshore, but I have researched the sat internet access via direct TV.  It's my understanding that the issue is not bandwidth (bit per second) but latency.  Either way, slow is slow.

I'll have to agree with the others and say probably the best (most reliable) option is HAM based.  And the beauty, since you already have the HAM gear on board, is if you are proficient with code, it is the BY FAR the most reliable method of getting word out in an emergency.  Down side is getting license to cover useful DX bands.

[Joe Pyrat]

Ok, CapnK, let me see if I can make  you a rich IT dude...    ;)

First a little technobable translation for the uninitiated.

VPN = Virtual Private Network.  Basically a VPN creates an encrypted tunnel through which you transmit and receive your data.  It is decrypted on the other end.  Bad guys can see the encrypted data but it would be extremely difficult for them to crack the encryption.

CapnK, you setup a company that provides a VPN service.  Sell access to your fellow cruisers.  They can then use any wireless network (encrypted or not) to securely connect to the Internet through your VPN.  Result, our fellow cruisers are safe, you have an eternal cruising kitty.

BTW, I like rum.  :)

[NANP]

Okay, I'll confess . . . I'm a bit of a net junkie.  I keep two blogs, admin a forum, and have a regular round of boards I frequent.  Like most, there's places online that would worry about me if I disappeared for weeks at a time . . . lol.  ::)

Now, part of the attraction of taking up sailing is, for me, getting away from all that; the kind of peace and quiet and contemplation I currently get on out of town trips, or when camping. 

But . . . extended trips, like the ones I'll be able to take during the summer (I'm a high school teacher) it'd be nice to be able to get online---what are the options? WiFi, cable access uplinks, cellular networks? Is anyone using any of these?

Thanks, NANP

[s/v Faith]

NANP,

  I thought you might get some of the info you wanted here.  I started to just post a link but thought a merge would help keep everyone on the same page....

  Hope this helps.

[NANP]

Ah hah . . . I see I should have used the search function FIRST, lol.  ::)

Thanks for merging my post with the appropriate thread!  ;D

NANP

[CapnK]

NANP -

Ahhh, another Geek in our midst... ;D

Hope the info is helpful. As you know, its a safe bet that access is only going to get more widespread and easier. Barring a massive EMP, of course. ;D

[NANP]

That's my thinking . . . I've been seeing ads for those satellite TV pods in Cruising World and, while TV is the LAST thing I'd want onboard . . . I do know you can get internet through your dish on land, although sending still requires a landline, AFAIK.  Not too many pieces left in that puzzle!

Marina WiFi will probably be sufficient to my needs for quite some time, though.  By the time that changes, I'm sure the technology will have to.  ;D

NANP

[djn]

Hi Nanp, when you say Marine WiFi, are you reffereing to the HAM system?  I am still a little confused about how I can get internet over HAM.  I just called Verizone because I heard a commercial that said they offer high speed internet by cell phone.  What it is, is a link to a local highspeed internet and you have to be in the location where the link is.  They said that if I were docked on the Detroit River, I could get it, but as soon as I sailed into the middle of Lake Erie, I could not get it......that just does not comput in my small mind. 

What kind of baud rates does HAM provide and is there a link to a Internet/HAM for dummies site?  Cheers.

[NANP]

No, no, MarinA WiFi . . . just another term for wireless access; they probably call it something else now. It was mentioned earlier in the thread that a lot of marinas have it now, like coffeehouses do.  I understand that in a lot of cities there are parks and such where it's provided as well.

I thought I was all tech-savvy when I finally switched from dial-up to DSL, lol. HAM I know absolutely nothing about, somebody else'll have to fill in the blanks on that one.

NANP

[djn]

Hi NANP, yep I have WiFi at my slip.   I think in a couple more years, it will be available anywhere.....that is my hope at least.  Sorry for the confusion. Cheers.

[Rockdoctor]

My parents are cruisers, only they have a land yacht. They travel all over the country and have net access anywhere they get a cell signal. They use a laptop with a connection to their cell phone, and their cell company has free nights and weekends. He has an account with ISP in Pennsylvania and since he has free long distance, it doesnt cost extra. He uses it for all of his banking, messenging the grandkids and keeping up with his clubs and activities. Being the "frugal" man he is, I am sure it is very inexpensive, and he never complains about it.

NANP good to have another teacher aboard

[Adam]

No, no, MarinA WiFi . . . just another term for wireless access; they probably call it something else now. It was mentioned earlier in the thread that a lot of marinas have it now, like coffeehouses do.  I understand that in a lot of cities there are parks and such where it's provided as well.

I think the generally accepted term is now "hotspots" or "wifi-hotspots"...

Basically just an area where you can get free wireless highspeed. Here's a handy link: http://www.wi-fihotspotlist.com

Pretty common around marinas and touristy places (ie- Key West)

I think I'm going to go with a cell-phone dialup adaptor as a backup for when I can't get a wi-fi signal... won't work in the bahamas, but I plan to be busy... any work I do on the computer, I'll archive and upload at a later time anyway..