I don't have a favorite store or even brand. I buy 1000ft rolls from the local electrical supply house (Riverside Lighting) which gives me a discount in trade for some of the computah work I do for them. I also buy partially empty boxes from the local electrical contractors, also at a good price. If I want exotic CAT5e cable, I tend to buy off Craigslist and eBay. It's somewhat risky, but I've done quite well.
I don't know what you paid at Home Despot, but you can get 1000ft roll for $44 including shipping on eBay.
The catch is that I can't tell if it's super stiff, super sloppy, difficult to strip, manufacturers rejects, impossible to see color codes, or other abomination. Caveat Emptor.
Surfnet or Hilltop? Probably Hilltop because Surfnet recently went to NV2 which is only supported on Mikrotic ratios. Bridge mode is the same as disabling the router section of the UBNT M2 radio. That also means your previous description was not accurate. You do NOT have the router and NAT enabled in the radio and therefore do NOT have double NAT. You're fine and leave the radio config alone.
Note: I'm in Ben Lomond.
No. It's probably some kind of audio source problem in the computah. I have the same headache with Skype. Whenever I use a different VoIP application, but leave Skype running in the system tray, Skype gets confused and starts juggling the audio sources and outputs trying to retain ownership. In addition, every time there's a Skype update, it resets the audio settings. While I'm ranting, the last 2 revisions do not exit properly and sometimes hang my machine when I'm shutting down. In short, Skype is badly written and needs a cleanup.
My fix is to use QuickMix to save and restore the sound card settings.
I'm sure there are better and more modern programs that do the same thing, but this one works for me (on XP).
It's largely dictated by the internal arrangement of the patch antennas inside. There should be mounting holes or studs on the back of the panel antenna, which you can use to attach some manner of bracketry. It's easier to deal with the bracketry, than with the RF cables.
I can't tell about the quality of the cable from the box. What I've seen on the shelf at the local Home Despot is marginal. (Yes, I'm picky).
That will be a single run from antennna to POE adapter. I'm not thrilled with your use of indoor CAT5, but it will work for a few years (unless the critters chew up the cable). Do you have conduit in the ground?
If you want to make it somewhat UV proof, just spray it lightly with some kind of clear acrylic spray or dip such as Krylon. Note I said lightly as too much will create a cracking mess when you bend the cable.
That might be a double run if you want wired ethernet in the garage.
That will probably be a single run, with an ethernet switch in the game room.
Total is 175ft. However, I think you're underestimating the "extra" cable needed at each end for service loops and just plain getting out of the way of things. Add another 25ft. So, you need 200ft. However, since you have too much wire, running two cables where only one is needed is quite easy at this point.
I like to drill two adjacent small holes. It's easier and doesn't weaken anything. I can also scribble on the 2x4 base plate something about where the wire is going, instead of dealing with wire tags and labels.
Incidentally, whatever you use to attach the cable to the woodwork, make sure it doesn't crush or crimp the cable. There are overpriced fasteners for doing this, but I just use rounded staples, being very careful not to harpoon the cable.