Here is some advice I give to wardrivers who are feeling the rising gas prices and want to find smarter ways to wardrive.
Wardriving Tips ‘n’ Tricks v1.0
http://www.chroniclesofawardriver.org/wardriving_tipsntricks.html
The following information is for responsible use only.
Get more APs logged per your wardrive outings with these great tips and tricks I’ve refined over my wardriving experience.
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Follow the rules and laws of the road. The longer you do this the longer you will be able to wardrive which is a benefit to wardrivers and those wishing to try wardriving out. If you are unable to drive or navigate or even be a passenger in a wardriving adventure you can also take alternative transit such as buses, bikes, scooters. The more portable your wardriving unit is the more options you have. Driving slower actually allows you to capture more APs than driving as fast as the law allows. Stop at the yellow lights if it is safe, you will be rewarded with an extra AP or two. Do not drive excessively slow as this will bring attention to you.
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Use mapping software to refine your wardriving routes. This could mean using something like Microsoft MapPoint in conjunction from WiGLE’s Browsable Map o’ the World to learn where heavily driven areas have occurred so that you do not submit duplicate data. Duplicate data means you do not get credit as the original discoverer thus your rank may not increase as you are not benefiting anyone. Plan ahead and do not get lost as this brings unwanted attention to you. If you cannot drive or navigate in the dark try and do your wardrives at dusk. Do not enter track housing areas if you do not know the way especially if it is dark outside, chances are you may get lost or hit something. Try and find nice smooth long routes as this will help your gas mileage as well as make the drive pleasant. Drives may be unpleasant if you are constantly dodging and turning corners.
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Use the day of the week and time of day wisely. It is logical that Residents are home on weekends and holidays which may mean more net time than when they are at work. Unforunately residents also are usually working on a house project during the weekend and could be considered a road obstacle and may be out enough to notice you as a stranger to their neighborhood. The last thing you want to do is explain to anyone what you are doing (though always be prepared). Paranoid users may actually turn off their APs when they are not being used meaning you may not log them because you missed the right window. Businesses peak times are 9am - 5pm, Monday - Friday other times they may be offline or not in use.
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Do not eat or drink heavily meals or excessively during or before your wardrive adventures. Doing so will cause many break sessions that limit your time and distance because you have to find a lavatory nearby to conduct business.Take a shower and wear deodorant (odorless antiperspirant is best) when a driver or passenger in a car full of other people. The last thing you want to do is drive with the windows open with the AC on because you smell in one way or another.
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Do not draw unwanted attention to yourself. If you have a lot of things hanging off your vehicle or look like you are a driving a bomb chances are you are going to get pulled over because you drew enough attention to yourself for someone else to be concerned in what you are actually doing. Your navigator should dim LCDs at night if they need them otherwise anyone half a block away can see you have a computer in the passenger seat. Do not drive staring at an LCD as this is also unlawful in many places due to driver distraction hazard. When driving just look straight ahead and don’t look lost even if you are. Always know your routes even if just by street names. Pulling over a lot will bring attention to yourself.
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Make sure you fill up your tank before starting your wardriving adventure.The last thing you want to do is call your local AAA service because you ran out of fuel. Even if you only think you will be out for an hour or so make sure you have enough fuel to make a halfway point and back. Sometimes wardrivers may be distracted enough to forget they forgot to get enough fuel to make it home.
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Camouflage your system.The last thing you want is someone breaking in your window while you are eating lunch because they saw a new laptop and GPS unit in your passenger seat. Also hiding your wardriving kit in plain sight does not draw attention to yourself thus does not allow someone to stop and ask what that beeping thing is in your car with a bunch of wires going everywhere. Using a plain box with some tape on it just makes it look like you may be carrying an old lamp or something not worth the theft value.This also helps in people asking less questions. Less questions means more time wardriving and less time explaining.
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Wardriving is legal. Do not be nervous of police officers or act erractically when anyone not “in the know” is around. Driving in neighborhoods may appear to be behavior similar to would be thieves “casing out” a place.This is not what you are doing as a wardriver. If you route your target areas successfully no one will know you were even there.When asked questions by strangers do not giggle or try and act as if you are walking a gray line. Doing so will only bring more questions. Act smart and don’t fool around when being asked questions.