For most people trying to install security surveillance cameras on their barn perhaps 1/2 a mile away, you can probably just hack an old Linksys router as a repeater to get the job done or even build a WiFi Cantenna.
But if you want to make a DIY long-range WiFi network like FabFi did in Afghanistan (hooking up literally every village together), you might just want to check out some of their open source instructions on how to do it yourself using old electro