WiMax; to stay fixed or to roam. Fixed WiMax is set to hit London in a big way and shows how much growth WiMax still has to make before it hits the big time. Right now fixed (where the customer installs an antenna on thier building) is about the only way WiMax can be profitable at the moment. Everyone thinks that mobile WiMax with it’s broadband speeds over large areas will be the big thing, they seem to for get one thing; Manufacturers are not putting WiMax cards into laptops at the factory yet. Once they do and there’s enough of a properly equipped userbase out there, then we’ll see roaming WiMax. For now, fixed is where it’s at.
Via [vnunet.com]
Monthly Archive for March, 2006
Application vendor Newbury has released a new product to make it easier for enterprises to leverage positional data on thier WiFi clients. The software allows network owners to track the location of clients through a number of AP’s and can launch location specific services based on that location. The system can also track the location of various WiFi enables assets (like phones and Laptops).
Via [itweek.co.uk]
Now that the buzzword of convergance of WiFi and cellular is going full steam the question now seems to be ‘who owns the talk time?’. If I have a cell phone and am using the cellular network, it’s easy to bill me for the talk time. If I’m at my home or business using the WiFi link, it’s my internet connection and WiFi being used. So the telco’s are fighting over how to bill people for the WiFi portion of thier calls. Various methods and camps are being setup that offer different levels of cost and features, but there seems to be a standards fight in the near future.
Via [techworld.com]
After Illinois fined David M. Kauchak $250 for illegally accessing a wireless network, the question is raised; is a fine and possible jail time the proper thing to do? At the very least this sends the message that innocuous surfing on someone elses connection is against the law and there are consiquiences. It’s also a question of morality, should you be taking advantage of some else’s security mistake?
Via [networkingpipeline.com]
An Illinois man was fined $250 for accessing a wireless network that was not his own. While there have been other convictions fire theft of services, this is the first citation with a fine on record. While a fine for just ‘freeloading’ on a network makes more sense than jail time, it is very hard for law enforcement to know exactly what’s going on. That guy with the laptop in the parked car might be using an 3g modem instead of WiFi and be completely legal.
Via [arstechnica.com]
With the draft of 802.11n fresh off the presses, questions are already popping up about the usefulness of the technology, particularly in large, multi-AP environments like University campuses. There also seem to be some questions about the effects of 802.11n networks on existing b/g/a networks as wider 40Mhz channels might interfere with existing systems. Despite it being a draft and despite questions being raised, manufacturers are rushing to release ‘pre-n’ products now rather than later.
Via [techworld.com]
Laptops are beginning to arrive on the market with cellular data capabilities built in as well as WiFi. The idea is that the cellular service compliments WiFi in providing access away from the nearest coffee shop. The problem is that service is still expensive and the built in radios are tied to different carriers. Hopefully in the near future, carrier free modems will be available and allow access through any company offering the service.
Via [businessweek.com]
Nintendo is partnering with BT openzone in the UK to setup WiFi hotspots in game retail stores for Nintendo DS users to download content, demo’s and promotional information. a Million subscribed Nintendo WiFi subscribers is quite the market base for this service. At the very least this proves that Wifi is becoming mainstream.
Via [vnunet.com]
Milpitas, California does’nt seem like a likely place but it is going to be one of the most unwired towns in the US. Smaller communities weem to have less problems with municipal WiFi plans and incumbant service providers don’t try to get in the way. Perhaps muni-WiFi needs to focus on the small towns first before going after the big cities.
Via [pcmag.com]
Bellsouth is pushing thier WiMax service, setup after Hurricane Katrina, as backup for broadband service in New Orleans. The $29.95 service is bundled with landline broadband service.
Via [wirelessweek.com]
So the telco’s jump up and down and lobby states to pass laws prohibiting municipalities from offering Municipal Wifi themselves, but are more than happy to step up and do it themselves. Sprint’s offshoot, Embarq is testing a few sites in Henderson, Nevada after the city expressed interest in municipal wireless in October.
Via [wi-fiplanet.com]
Urban WiMax is set to provide 250 London businesses with 10Mbit/sec service through thier fixed WiMax service. The company plans to undercut competing landline providers by up to 50% while also providing redundant internet connections through 2 different providers. Could there be a bandwidth price war in the near future if they are successful?
Via [vnunet.com]
Craig Settles, noted Muni-wireless pundit has released a study of proposed muni-wifiinstallations and has found that very few realize that at the end of the day, someone has to pay. Touting it at a ‘free network’ is just plain wrong as it eventually becomes a bait and switch with residents and constituents. Politicians think in myopic 2 to 4 year cycles, they are concerned with the ribbon cutting and looking caring. They know nothing of the people behind the scenes and what they have to go through to make thier proposals reality.
Via [wi-fiplanet.com]
Knowing that the access point your connecting to, be it the one in your home or the one in your favorite coffee shop are authentic is a major concern for users. They might not be who you think and rigged up to sniff your passwords, credit card or anything else you might send. Various services exist to authenticate access points and the clients connecting to them, but sadly, they seem to only be for the paranoid right now and the general masses seem not to have caught onto the risk.
Via [techworld.com]
Down To Business: The Economics Of Metro Wi-Fi
Will metro WiFi ever really work? Governments who have trouble filling potholes responsible for a bleeding edge technology? Some people see it as a blessing and others as a huge curse. The economics of who pays for what, and even logistics such as how much of how much of a downtown office building should be coverd are considerations as well. Any metro WiFi implimentation should be looked at very carefully and very cautiously. Politicians eagar to please consituants might be promising more than can be pulled off.
Via [informationweek.com]