- What If Wifi Was Visible?
- How to see if Wi-Fi is connected on Android?
- Implementation
- Step 1 : Creating a new project in Android Studio.
- Step 3 : Working with activity_main.xml
- Step 4 : Working with MainActivity.java file.
- Output
- Conclusion
- How to Fix it When Your Wi-Fi Network Is Not Showing Up
- In This Article
- Causes for ‘Wireless Network Not Showing Up’ Issues
- Fix Wi-Fi Network Not Showing Up
What If Wifi Was Visible?
In today’s tech-savvy world, it’s all around you – an invisible world of electromagnetic signals and radio waves.
Wi-Fi, or Wireless Fidelity, is responsible for over 60 percent of the planet’s internet traffic. It’s seemingly everywhere, yet, imperceptible to the human eye. But what if you could see it? What would Wi-Fi look like? And what would it do to you if you could see it? Your eyes are pretty remarkable, and I’m not just saying that to be nice. You can see colors over an electromagnetic wavelength anywhere from 410 nanometers (here you’ll find violet) to roughly 680 nanometers (the home of red).
This is what we call “visible light,” also known as the visible spectrum. Its what humans can view without the aid of any fancy tech devices. Things like Wi-Fi are invisible to the human eye. But what if it’s wasn’t? What would Wi-Fi look like? There are upwards of 4 billion people accessing the internet around the world. That’s a lot of Wi-Fi signals. If you could see them, you would be peeking into the unseen world of electromagnetic fields. Wi-Fi is all about transmitting and receiving data in the gigahertz (GHz) range. If you woke up one day with the ability to see these signals, you would see frequencies up to 30 GHz, wavelengths greater than 10 millimeters (0.4 inches). Not so bad, right? Well, it is speculated that Wi-Fi waves, or pulses, are approximately 15 centimeters (six inches) apart. So imagine a bombardment of colored bands taking over your vision. And that’s just in your bedroom.
With everything we have in our homes that relies on Wi-Fi and the ever-expanding availability of the signal, like city-wide public Wi-Fi networks, the visual stimulation would be too much. So what would happen to you if you started seeing Wi-Fi? It would be overwhelming, to say the least. Prepare yourself for the worst headache in the history of headaches. It would be inescapable. Wi-Fi routers or antennas can be attached to almost anything, including trees, buildings, lamp posts and other structures. If you think that fleeing to the wilderness would work, a typical outdoor router can project its signal 300 feet or more from its location. All those routers will be creating a circular data field around them. Talk about being surrounded!
There have also been claims that just being exposed to electromagnetic fields can cause symptoms of anxiety, depression, nausea and suicidal thoughts. So, imagine what would happen if you could see them. If you could see these signals, you would probably be looking for the deepest cave you could find to hide in, to escape from the constant barrage of lights and freakiness. But, could something like this actually happen? Well, technically we could make this a reality, but it’s not something that would ever occur naturally. It’s easy to take a pair of, say, infrared goggles off. But if you were stuck with this ability forever, you’d be crushed by the overwhelming amount of visual input.
Overall, the idea of being able to witness Wi-Fi in action sounds like a really cool idea, but we should limit it to our technology, not ourselves. Thankfully, our natural eyes aren’t capable of seeing this invisible world, and we should consider ourselves lucky. Electromagnetic waves can have all sorts of strange results on us. It’s even theorized that the phenomenon is responsible for what we know as “ghosts.” It makes you think, doesn’t it? Subscribe to What-If on YouTube or follow the show on Facebook Watch.
Sources
- “Here’s What Wi-Fi Would Look Like If We Could See It”. 2013. Vice. Accessed December 10 2019.
- “Reading on Color & Light, Part I”. 2019. asu.edu. Accessed December 10 2019.
- “How Does Wi-Fi Work?”. Escobar, Eric. 2015. Scientific American. Accessed December 10 2019.
- “Internet Stats & Facts for 2019”. 2018. hostingfacts.com. Accessed December 10 2019.
- “Here’s How Wi-Fi Actually Works”. John Patrick Pullen, 2019. Time. Accessed December 10 2019.
How to see if Wi-Fi is connected on Android?
Many times in android application api calls are being made. For making this api call it is necessary that the device is connected to the internet. Most of the applications before making any api call make sure that the device is connected to the internet. Along with that when an application is downloading some big files in that case the application generally checks whether the device is connected to wifi or not. In this article we will take a look at How to see if the android device is connected to Wi-fi or not from our android application.
Implementation
We will be creating a simple project in which we will be displaying a simple text view for displaying the heading of our application. After that we will be creating a button. We will be using this button to check the current Wifi status within our application whether wifi is connected or not.
Step 1 : Creating a new project in Android Studio.
Navigate to Android studio as shown in below screen. In the below screen click on New Project to create a new Android Studio Project.
After clicking on New Project you will get to see the below screen.
Inside this screen we have to simply select Empty Activity and click on Next. After clicking on next you will get to see the screen below.
Inside this screen we have to simply specify the project name. Then the package name will be generated automatically.
Note − Make sure to select the Language as Java.
After specifying all the details click on Finish to create a new Android studio project.
Once our project has been created we will get to see 2 files which are open i.e activity_main.xml and MainActivity.java file.
Step 3 : Working with activity_main.xml
Navigate to activity_main.xml. If this file is not visible. To open this file. In the left pane navigate to app>res>layout>activity_main.xml to open this file. After opening this file. Add the below code to it. Comments are added in the code to get to know in detail.
Explanation − In the above code we are creating a Relative layout as a root layout and inside that we are creating a simple text view in which we are displaying the heading of our application. After that we are creating a button which we will be using to check the current wifi status of our device.
Step 4 : Working with MainActivity.java file.
Navigate to MainActivity.java. If this file is not visible. To open this file. In the left pane navigate to app>res>layout>MainActivity.java to open this file. After opening this file. Add the below code to it. Comments are added in the code to get to know in detail.
package com.example.androidjavaapp; import android.content.Context; import android.net.ConnectivityManager; import android.net.NetworkInfo; import android.os.Bundle; import android.view.View; import android.widget.Button; import android.widget.Toast; import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity; public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity < // on below line we are creating variable for button. private Button checkWifiBtn; @Override protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) < super.onCreate(savedInstanceState); setContentView(R.layout.activity_main); // on below line initializing variable with id. checkWifiBtn = findViewById(R.id.idBtnCheckWifiStatus); // on below line adding click listener for our button. checkWifiBtn.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() < @Override public void onClick(View v) < // on below line we are creating a variable for connectivity manager and initializing it. ConnectivityManager connectivityManager = (ConnectivityManager) getSystemService(Context.CONNECTIVITY_SERVICE); // on below line we are getting network info to get wifi network info. NetworkInfo wifiConnection = connectivityManager.getNetworkInfo(ConnectivityManager.TYPE_WIFI); // on below line displaying toast message when wi-fi is connected when wi-fi is disconnected if (wifiConnection.isConnected()) < Toast.makeText(MainActivity.this, "Wi-Fi is connected..", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show(); >else < Toast.makeText(MainActivity.this, "Wi-Fi is disconnected..", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show(); >> >); > >
Explanation − In the above code we are firstly creating a variable for our button. After that we will get to see an onCreate method inside which we will be initializing the layout file which we have to display when the app is opened for the first time. Inside this onCreate method we are initializing our button with its id. After that we are adding an on click listener for our button. Inside the click listener for our button we are checking the wi-fi connection status using connectivity manager and network info. After that we are displaying the toast message when the wi-fi is connected or disconnected.
After adding the above code now we have to simply click on the green icon in the top bar to run our application on a mobile device.
Note − Make sure you are connected to your real device or emulator.
Output
Conclusion
In the above tutorial we have taken a look on How to check the Wi-Fi connection status for our device from our android application using connectivity manager and network info.
How to Fix it When Your Wi-Fi Network Is Not Showing Up
Tricia Goss has been a writer and editor for 10+ years. She’s written tips and tutorials for Microsoft Office applications and other sites.
In This Article
When you can’t connect to the internet because your Wi-Fi doesn’t show up on your device, you have a problem. It helps if you know the cause, but you can take steps to remedy the situation even if you don’t.
Causes for ‘Wireless Network Not Showing Up’ Issues
Problems with your router, ISP, or device could prevent your Wi-Fi network from showing up in the list of available networks. A few of the reasons that cause Wi-Fi connection problems include:
- Device not in router’s range: Your device must be within the router’s range. In most homes, that can be up to 30 feet from the router. You may be able to connect up to 50 feet away, but the speed is slower, and the connection often drops.
- Router not restored correctly: The router might not have been properly restored after losing power or being unplugged.
- Network adapter turned off/disabled: The Wi-Fi connection problem isn’t always caused by the router; your device could be the culprit. If a restart doesn’t help, your network adapter could be disabled, or its drivers may need updating.
- Virus: If your device has a virus, it could block your ability to connect to Wi-Fi. A quick virus scan and restart could help.
- Object interference: Large appliances, thick walls, or other wireless devices can interfere with your wireless connection.
Wi-Fi not showing up can be caused by these and more issues. Troubleshooting to find the problem is the key to fixing it.
Fix Wi-Fi Network Not Showing Up
Try these troubleshooting steps in order until you resolve your issue. They are listed from easiest to most complex.
- Troubleshoot your wireless connection. Before you begin trying to fix your Wi-Fi, make sure there is no problem with the device you are trying to connect. If the issue is that your Wi-Fi network is not showing up on your laptop, for example, take a few minutes to make sure everything on the computer is as it should be. Are all cables connected to the device? Are they plugged in to a working outlet? Are you sure the Wi-Fi on the device is turned on? (This could be a physical switch, an internal setting, or both.) Ruling out the basics like this is the first place to start.
Neighboring wireless networks could also interfere with your own. Changing your Wi-Fi channel number could resolve the issue.
To fix slow Wi-Fi, close background programs, avoid signal interference, troubleshoot your network equipment, scan for malware, and contact your internet service provider.
To secure your Wi-Fi network, turn on WPA2 encryption, change the network name, create a strong password, turn on your router’s firewall, and turn off admin privileges.
If you see the “Wi-Fi Doesn’t Have a Valid IP Configuration” error, restart your router, change the SSID and password, reset the firewall, or perform a network reset.