Wifi modules

[Charles Lindsey]

I am trying to add Wifi capability to an embedded box I am trying to
design. Every offering that I can find of a hardware wifi module insists
on providing a full internal TCP/IP stack, an integral web interface for
configuring, maybe two internal arm processors, and every other Bell and
Whistle imaginable (and with a price to match) :-( . A huge overkill, in
fact.

Since my box will already have built-in TCP/IP capability, and everything
else up to a 100BASE-T socket, plus full linux inside and plenty to spare
cpu capacity, all I really need is something to take whatever drives the
100BASE-T (a simple UART on the main computer chip, plus maybe a few extra
components AIUI) and add to it whatever is needed to do WEP/WPA encoding
and configuration, channel searching/hopping as needed, and feed it into a
simple module to do the wireless bit. Indeed, XBEE will supply such a
module, but no sign of any software to drive it.

And there seems to be no open-source software to do the job. I looked on
Sourceforge, and someone has indeed started a project ('wifree' IIRC
correctly), but he is only 2 months in, has no other members on his group,
and no contributions in his forum.

So what are my options?

Yes, I could use a USB dongle (or better a 100BASE-T dongle if such
exists), at a fraction of the price of the full modules on offer, but I
prefer something internal, and may need to control my antenna placement to
get the best signal.

--
Charles H. Lindsey ---------At Home, doing my own thing------------------------
Tel: +44 161 436 6131 Web: http://www.cs.man.ac.uk/~chl
Email: c...@clerew.man.ac.uk Snail: 5 Clerewood Ave, CHEADLE, SK8 3JU, U.K.
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