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To create a new
project, click Project => New.
A wizard window will appear.
Step 1
Specify
the Name, Description (optional),
and Project
path. The name you
give to the project is used as the file name under which your
project will be saved in the folder specified in
the Project
path field.
Step 2
In this step,
you should Select
an environment. The Environment
panel allows you to configure some of the very important project
parameters that affect the way data visualizations are computed.
Because different environments have different characteristics in
terms of signal attenuation, diffraction, reflection, etc., you are
asked to select the environment that best describes the site you
plan to survey. For each environment, the application recommends
a Guess
range. A guess range
is the diameter of the circle for which the application predicts
the WLAN characteristics with a high degree of certainty. For
passive surveys, TamoGraph can also compute WLAN characteristics
outside the guess range zone, although such computations have a
lower degree of accuracy. Check the Extrapolate
data beyond the guess range box to enable
such computations. Enabling this option means that
data visualizations will cover
the entire map rather than the areas that you actually surveyed.
Enabling this option is not recommended unless you cannot survey
some areas of the map for whatever reason. Finally,
the Measurement
units control can be
used to choose the preferred units (feet or meters) for displaying
distances and coordinates throughout the application. See
the Environment chapter
for more information.
Step 3
Select
the Channels
to scan. The
application scanner sweeps through the channels supported by the
wireless adapter to collect and analyze packets being sent on the
selected channels. You may want to modify the channel selection if
you know that some of the channels supported by the wireless
adapter are not used in your WLAN or in your country. For example,
if your WLAN does not use the 5 GHz band, you may want to turn off
all 5 GHz channels; this will shorten the scanning cycle and,
therefore, increase the data accuracy. However, please keep in mind
that skipping some of the channels may result in the application's
inability to detect sources of interference, such as neighboring
APs that work on the channels that were skipped. It is recommended
that you not modify the default Scan
interval and Use
the same interval for all channels settings
at this stage. See the Scanner chapter
for more information. You can use the Select channels button
for selecting or deselecting all channels, as well as for selecting
channels based on the country- or region-specific allowed channel
lists (e.g., choosing United
States will
select channels 1-11 and deselect channels 12-14 in the 2.4 GHz
frequency band).
Step 4
In the final
step, you should add an image file that contains the floor plan or
site map of the facility or area that you want to survey (you will
be able to add more images if your project includes several zones
or floors later.) A floor plan or site map is required for accurate
data analysis. If no image file is available, you may want to scan
a plan, if it exists on paper, create one using a drawing program,
such as CorelDraw, or even make a sketch using a ruler and pencil
and then scan the sketch (be sure to follow the proportions). The
image file should be between 250 and 2,500 pixels on a side. Larger
images will slow down the application. The following image file
formats are supported: BMP, PNG, JPG, GIF, and WMF.
If you plan to
perform a large-area GPS-assisted survey, you may want to import a
map from one of the online map services or Microsoft MapPoint
(MapPoint Europe or MapPoint North America are required to use
MapPoint maps). Click Load
Street Map to open a
new map loader dialog. Once the initial map view is loaded
(the application will try to guess your location based on the Wi-Fi
environment), you can navigate to the area you want to survey,
using the map controls or the Navigation frame,
in which you can enter your coordinates, or read them from the GPS
receiver, or enter your address. Click Go
to Location to load
the map of the corresponding area. When you are satisfied with the
area selection and zoom level, click Use
Map. Note that the
application will use the map image as you see it, with the selected
zoom level and size in pixels as in the map loader window (the
window can be resized). Be sure to select the area correctly and to
set a zoom level that meets your needs, as you will not be able to
resize the map or zoom in/out at a later time. When you open
the map loader window, TamoGraph temporarily returns control over
your Wi-Fi adapter to Windows so that you can connect to the
Internet and load the map. If a Wi-Fi connection to your AP is not
established, connect your computer to the Internet over a wired
connection, close the map loader window, and open it again.
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