NetStumbler.com

More than a decade ago, an EDN article examined the developments that paved the way for the wireless technology era. A March 4, 1993 feature entitled “Digital wireless networks” foresaw the existence of wireless LANs that could operate over infrared or RF channels and predicted that the Federal Communications Commission would allow various frequency-hopping and direct-sequence spread spectrum modulation schemes. Although it did not say anything about direct-sequence champion AT&T Microelectronics, the report mentioned Proxim, which advocated the frequency-hopping approach.
Via [edn.com]

HP unveiled a $2,199 high-definition LCD TV that has built-in 802.11 a/b/g Wi-Fi radio and standard Ethernet network connections. The new SLC3760N 37-inch MediaSmart high-definition LCD TV can link up with PCs running HP’s proprietary software. But because the display only has WiFi radio and not a router, users must secure another Wi-Fi connected device so it can access pre-recorded content. The TV is teeming with AV ports including an optical audio plus HDMI out to enable direct connection to stereos and home theater receivers.
Via [extremetech.com]

IBM has partnered with Xing to develop Kyoku-NAVI S and Kyoku-NAVI II, which are karaoke controllers with built-in WLAN. Users need to only use the machines’ touch screens to search a database hosting tens of thousands of songs, by singer, song title or category. Access to the catalogue is made possible by IBM DB2 Everyplace, a technology that performs data-management services and allows mobile equipment to tap online or remote databases. The devices will be up for sale in Japan starting November.
Via [news.com.com]

A survey by YouGov revealed that WiFi users hope for more hotspots in more locations. Half of the 253 respondents want WiFi access in trains and a quarter on the tube. Some 86 perecent with laptops, however, do not know how useful having such connection during rush hour. The study also showed that 45 percent of those surveyed use the technology to keep in touch with family and friends and 30 percent believed their work/life balance improved due to high-speed wireless connectivity.
Via [theregister.co.uk]

Cisco has teamed up with Congio to reduce the volume of radio interference around WLAN devices. Cognio’s Spectrum Expert for WiFi — a CardBus device that plugs into a Windows notebook — can analyze WiFi interference and would complement the company’s Wireless Control System. These tools would help companies deploy wireless LANs and manage interference from a range of sources, including non-WiFi appliances like microwave ovens. The Spectrum Expert is sold at Cisco’s regular sales outlets.
Via [techworld.com]

California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill that would label WiFi routers with security warning stickers. The law, which will take effect on October 1, 2007, aims to ensure that consumers would know how to activate security setting on a new home networking equipment. Schwarzenegger also vetoed a bill that would restrict the way the state could use RFID technology in identification cards. He believed it would be better to wait for the approval of national standards before the state creates its own.
Via [arstechnica.com]

ABI Research sees a rise in the demand for consumer electronic products with wireless networking capabilities and an explosive growth for WiFi with a shift in the way entertainment is delivered. The firm expects shipments of WiFi-enabled consumer electronic devices to jump from 40 million this year to 249 million in 2011. The key to this expansion is the bridge between PC and TV and the growing use of mobile telephony but content availability and bandwidth problems could present as challenges to such possibility.
Via [technewsworld.com]

Free-Hotspot.com plans to start a new campaign that will give people free Internet access, and even phone calls, if they watch a cinema advertisement and answer a two-question quiz later. According to CEO Dan Toomey, the scheme is intended to expand the company’s presence in the U.K.
Via [theinquirer.net]

Skyriver Communications is extending its fixed wireless coverage in Los Angeles county to include Pasadena and nearby communities such as Arcadia, Sierra Madre, Alhambra, San Gabriel, Rosemead and El Monte. The company said it now delivers continuous wireless coverage from Palm Springs through Ventura using pre-WiMAX technology. According to Skyriver’s VP of Sales Manny Fennessy, the company’s services “will provide local software providers, LAN consultants, ISPs and technology integrators with the opportunity to generate new sources of revenue while providing their customers with enterprise grade access solutions.”
Via [biz.yahoo.com]

Trapeze Networks Inc. unveiled its “Smart Mobile” software, which conveys copies of Station Switching Records to each access point in an 802.11 network. The new solution renders local copies of information on Quality of Service policies, firewall protection, and Virtual LAN tags. It enables encryption to be carried out in a distributed manner and it can better handle the gigabit per second speeds expected in 802.11n networks. Trapeze chief technology officer Dan Simone believes the software can make higher-layer links in external wireless LAN environments, which resemble the Layer 3 and 4 wireless backhaul systems offered by microwave radio companies.
Via [eetimes.com]

The WiFi Alliance plans to certify the interoperability of draft-n products ahead of the full approval of the 802.11n standard. Under the two-phase certification program, the alliance will begin testing the products including baseline features from the standard in the first half of 2007 while the next phase will involve the final ratification, which is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2008. Many products based on the key features of the standard are now being sold and the estimate is that tens of millions more of these products will hit the market in 2007.
Via [elecdesign.com]

Wyse Technology Inc. has started shipping its V-Class systems of thin-client computers embedded with 802.11b and 802.11g wireless capabilities. According to David Angwin, a Wyse senior marketing manager in the U.K., WiFi-embedded computers are particularly useful in environments such as airports and schools where Ethernet may not always be available. Although the current setup does not support 802.11i protocol, customers who purchased the wireless V-Class systems may upgrade their computers to support the standard once it is approved. The computers are priced differently depending on the operating system; each comes with Windows CE, Windows XP Embedded or Linux.
Via [computerworld.com]

Information technology has come a long way from what it was 10 years ago. In 1995, people were just getting acquainted with the Internet and Netscape Navigator 1.0. Going to countries like Indonesia and Thailand would mean that a traveller must bring along a medley of devices to ensure his or her laptop would function and could access the Internet. But now, it would only take a few seconds to download a big file and Internet access is even free, particularly in some hotels where they offer WiFi connection at no cost.
Via [nytimes.com]

Fon.com’s WiFi routers are apparently in violation of the conditions of seven of U.K.’s top 10 Internet service providers. The company’s routers enable sharing of broadband connections with third parties, which is allowed by Blueyonder from Telewest and Orange Broadband. But others like BT, NTL and Tiscali prohibit connection sharing while AOL would only permit that if the access is sold.
Via [out-law.com]

Intel looks to introduce Nokia’s 3G chip and improved graphics support for Microsoft’s Windows Vista in its next-generation motherboards for notebooks. According to Dadi Perlmutter, who heads Intel’s mobility group, the Santa Rosa package will hit the market in the first half of next year. The company also plans a 2007 release for a new chip using a different architecture from the Core 2 Duo for ultramobile PCs. The chip is expected to eat less power and be considerably smaller than the current mobile designs.
Via [news.zdnet.com]