need some help re: wireless networking

ok, network gurus:

what's the difference between an N and an N1 wireless router.

with an N or an N1 router can i broadcast a signal from one house to another house about 75 to 100 yards away? these are cinder block houses, so i'm wondering about the signal passing through the walls. i'm assuming i'll need a router and an access point on the other end.

some belkin routers talk about G+ frequency which is supposedly a G router with greater coverage. would this be adequate for the distance i need to go and will the block walls interfere with the signal?

any preferences on brands? i like linksys but the belkin N1 vision looks too cool.

Most wireless is good for about 1200 ft stock. On level terrain you should be ok.

i can't pick up the signal from about 250 feet away when i'm in the street with only 1 concrete wall between me and the router. is it possible that the rebar in the block wall is killing the signal?

i'm afraid to invest $300 in an N1 router and access point for fear i'll just be wasting my money. $300 is a lot of cash down here in the third world.

would directional antennas on the roof on my office and the roof of my house be the best solution? will my linksys G router suffice if i use the directional antennas or will i need an N1 router for that? are these home-made coffee can directional antennas as good as one i can buy?

thanks,
m

Use a can no bigger than 4 inches in diameter. (3.5 is about optimal if you canfind one long enough. A big chicken broth can is about 4 inches. A peperich farm cookie can is 4 inches. (the lid on the cookie can is a better reflector than the bottom of the can)

use the measurement formula here:
http://www.gawth.com/index.cgi/DirectionalWaveguide

If you use a 4 inch can, you can add a 4" to 6" vent size changer as a funnel for an extra dB or so--a large plastic coffee can lid fits over the 6-inch end of the funnel for a bit of weather proofing.

The linksys is actually prett good for what you are going for--especially if you have a version you can flash with dd-wrt firmware. -- you can crank up the broadcast power for more distance (you'll get more noise, but the cantenna waveguide will help limit that.)

If your current router is not the right version don't despair -- you only need two of the four routers to run dd-wrt -- they will talk to each other over the cantennas. (they may have two antennas, but it doesn't work as intuitively as you would think) dd-wrt allows you to set one antenna to send and receive--that would be the one you hook the cantenna to. Then run a cat 5 between it and the one that will broadcast in your office.

In an ideal world, you could use both antennas ands two routers, but this isn't an ideal world.

The setup will be like this:


(router 1)---wired---(router 2)---wired---cantenna1 ~~~~~~radio~~~~~~ cantenna-----wired-------(router 3)----wired----(router 4)

Router 1 and 4 serve as access points and presumably one of these has internet access. router 2 and router 3 act as wireless bridges.


You MAYBE could get away with 3 routers if the source had a good enough omni antenna and was high enough, or even two if both met that condition.