biosman2's Blog

Wireless Internet Is A Political Issue... Again.

by Jon T Norwood

All over the world ubiquitous broadband Internet access is bringing countries closer together. It surprises many when they find out that in China the average citizen has access to much faster download speeds and at a much lower cost than the average American. Of course the Chinese have to deal with the fact that they are viewing a censored Internet, but even that is getting better everyday. In Europe a person would be hard pressed to find a place they COULDN'T connect wirelessly to the Internet, while in the US users must go to a specific coffee shop or airport to do the same thing. It appears that the United States is behind the curve in offering affordable Internet access to its citizens, and short of socialized services, so what can be done?

U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) introduced the Wireless Innovation Act of 2007 early this year to try and close the gap between the United States and other countries in the area of broadband Wireless Internet penetration within the consumer market. This very closely resembles the Wireless Innovation Act of 2006 sponsored by John Kerry (WINN) which failed to pass the previous year but has been reintroduced as well. Specifically the bill is intended to "make use of spectrum in the gaps or 'white spaces' between broadcast channels two and 51 when the transition from analog to digital television is complete in two years. With the capacity to transmit data over longer distances with less power, this prime spectrum, now reserved primarily for television broadcasting, could support a wide range of innovative wireless devices and services that aren't useable in other frequencies", says Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) who is also co-sponsoring the bill.

WINN '07 could be the ticket the country needs to increase the consumer market penetration of broadband wireless Internet, which would of course bring about new products and services both obvious and unknown. This type of legislature is designed to take fast, decisive action and correct an obvious problem. This of course means it will be delayed. So where are our ground breaking bills now?:

H.R.1597 - To require the FCC to issue a final order regarding television white spaces. Sponsor: Rep Inslee, Jay [WA-1] (introduced 3/20/2007)

Latest Major Action: 3/21/2007 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.

S.234 - A bill to require the FCC to issue a final order regarding television white spaces. Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. [MA] (introduced 1/9/2007)

Latest Major Action: 1/9/2007 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

It is clear the decisive bill isn't exactly tearing its way through the hallowed halls of the House and Senate. Of course bills take time to pass, and there is a lot of pork to be added to this one yet so we still have time. So why exactly is this bill important to the United States if its just going to let its citizens surf the Internet more easily? John Kerry said, "The bill would serve communities large and small, enabling the delivery of broadband that will connect business owners with their customers, students with dynamic new learning resources and first responders with victims in crisis." With that in mind, the bill seems a bit more relevant to the county as something more than an entertainment device.

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Wireless Internet Is A Political Issue... Again

Wireless Home Security

by Eoin Beckett

A Central Nervous System for your Home

Traditional home alarm security systems rely on sensors that, as long as someone has remembered to turn them on, can detect windows or doors opening. It is a simple cause and effect relationship: a trigger sets off an alarm to alert neighbours or passersby, or an alarm goes off at the police station or the local security company.

The paid, and often expensive, local security company maybe phones to hear if everything is OK, or maybe even drives by. The police might show up if they're not too busy, but the system is prone to many loopholes. The proclivity of false alarms and the dull routine of the job means that security forces are often slow to respond, and the Police are often too busy. However, that was then, this is now. Wireless home security has changed the way we protect our homes. Let's take a look at some of the benefits a modern domestic security system has to offer.

Wireless: Just One Feature of Many

A wireless home security system is more than simply a traditional alarm system minus the cables. There are two keys to the system:

1. The whole system is digital, so you can program it to function in the way you want. 2. The system is part of your home networks.

What does this mean for your home security? If your house is broken into, the system could ring your mobile phone, or send a text message. You could set it to send messages to more than one cell phone. It could be connected to webcams positioned around the house, all accessed from your cellphone or Blackberry. In short, if it can be programmed, it is possible.

The Central Nervous System to Calm Your Nerves

Once you have a wireless home network with a powerful CPU at its heart, you can pretty well add any kind of detector. Why not cover every eventuality and hook up smoke, carbon monoxide, temperature or motion detectors? If anything abnormal takes place in and around your home, you can get a message via your mobile phone. If your mobile phone can access the Internet, the possibilities are even greater. You could call up your browser and get some live footage from your array of webcams, switch to infra-red if it's dark and maybe listen in too. The security possibilities are obvious, but it also sounds like something that would be great fun to play with... so with motivation that high, your home would be safer than ever.

Suddenly you can monitor all kinds of things going on at home without having to be there. Motion detectors and webcams can let you know whether the dog has curled up on your favourite armchair again. You can monitor the temperature of your greenhouse in winter and your wine cellar in summer. And you can even send a message via the network to regulate the temperature before anything gets spoiled. I'm not sure what you'd do about the dog though. 'Train' it when you get back, I suppose.

The Home of the Panic Button

An often overlooked, but extremely useful feature of a wireless home security package is the addition of a panic button. If you have an elderly or infirm family member, a panic button is a must. If someone sounds the alarm, you can pick up your cellphone and find out what is going on by taking a look, listening in or answering the distress call. Perhaps the sound of your voice coming from the loudspeakers would be enough to sooth your confused aunt with Alzheimer's or your sick child off from school. Perhaps you could even shout at the dog to get out of your lazy-boy.

Finally, the big advantage of building up a wireless home security system is its inherent flexibility. You can add, reposition and take away different components such as motion sensors or webcams without having to rip out lengths of wiring. As the hardware becomes more readily available and commonplace, it is falling in price. Upgrading your entire home would have meant employing a team of professionals just five years ago. Now you can do it all yourself after a brief and relatively inexpensive trip to the mall. Nervous about your home security? Give your own central nervous system a break; give your home its own central nervous system.

Eoin Beckett is a freelance writer and editor. He writes both short fiction and non-fiction for both online and print publications. Although he stems from Ireland, he currently lives and works in Copenhagen, Denmark.

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Wireless Home Security

O2 mobile network: Service you can trust

by Sean Mauger

Incorporated in 2001, following the demerger of BT wireless from BT Telecom, O2 since then has continuously grown and today is one of the leading players in mobile services catering to consumers and companies in the United Kingdom. O2 UK is a part of O2 group which is a subsidiary of Telefónica S.A. O2 mobile network is spread across UK and Ireland. The company also offers network services along with integrated fixed/mobile businesses to Germany, The Czech Republic and the Isle of Man.O2 leads the UK market in non-voice services like media messaging, text, music and video, games, as well as data connections through 3G, GPRS and WLAN. O2 in the name of O2 Airwave, supplies secure digital communications to many public safety organisations which includes emergency services like the Ambulance, Police, and Fire services.

O2 under the umbrella name of O2 mobile phone brings before you some of the latest and the best mobile handsets from the leading manufacturers like Nokia, Sony Ericsson, LG, Samsung etc. These handsets are compatible with O2's advanced technology and are delight for mobile users across the United Kingdom. You can find handsets like Nokia N91, Nokia E60, Motorola V3i, Motorola V3x, LG chocolate KG800 and Sony Ericsson K750i under 02 mobile phone deals. O2 offers a comprehensive range of price plans to its customers. The price plans come in various sizes and shapes and are designed to cater a wider audience. You have many options to choose from like Pay as you go, Sim Free etc. Apart from that, O2 believes in offering more to its customers and therefore always strives to add value to their product portfolio.

O2 takes pride in offering maximum coverage to remotest of locations. You can enjoy hassle-free connectivity, no matter in which part of world you are. So, bank on O2 Mobile Phones network and make your communication stylish.

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Introduction To Wifi Antenna Power

by David Faulkner

The wifi technology has proved to be of great use and has stood on the expectations of the users. It is the wifi antenna power that is considered to be the most important aspect in the area of development of the wifi technology. It is possible to extend the given range of the wi-fi system (currently running 802.11 IEEE standard) by installing and configuring an external antenna, and it is logical that with more range more mobility can be provided to the user.

There are various types and kind of antennas available in the market, for choosing the appropriate one we have to first analyze all our requirements. We should judge our needs and whichever antenna satisfies the requirements should be taken. If the requirement is to have a better mobility of the system then the directional antennas should be taken. It is widely used in point to point transmission.

There is a second type of antenna available in the market; these are called omni directional power antennas. When an antenna transmits waves, they are propagated in all directions. Hence these antennas can serve as a base antennas, can transmit the data to various nodes in the network like wireless printers, laptops, PDA, etc. These antennas have some shortcomings too. These bi-directional antennas cannot be used in point to point transmission.

There is a third category of antennas, which can be used in multi cast communication, in other words in order to have data transmission between a point and multi points, point to multi-point WiFi antenna power options are available. It is very useful when we try to establish and share wireless local area network or try to establish a high speed internet connection. It is also applicable in the set up of wireless access points.

Knowing and understanding the qualities that are needed for an efficient and properly working network and requirements of our system is very crucial for choosing the right kind of antennas. Choosing the right type of power antennas can help in utilizing the facility of wifi network of the system. If someone does not understand the whole technicality of the wireless networks, and its requirement, it is advisable to get in touch of the concerned technicians before buying any type of antennas.

Just knowing the range offered by a particular antenna is not the only condition which be taken care of. In other words there are different factors also which must be considered, in order to calculate the total range of he antenna, these factors are the power output of the wireless network interface card, and also the strength of the receiving wireless card (the card of the destination node). These factors play an important role to determine the effective range of the antennas.

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Setting Up Your Dlink Wireless Network - Simple Steps to Follow

by Gavin Sanderson

The Dlink wireless network setup is quite easy. All you need is a Dlink wireless router or a Wireless Access Point (WAP) and then you need the Dlink wireless adapter, one for each computer, which will connect to the router or the WAP. There are many components to a wireless network and it may include a broadband internet connection through a cable modem or DSL, an internet security option, wireless printers and faxes, wireless music and video players, wireless game consoles and controllers, and so on.

Dlink wireless network setup is easiest when all components are from Dlink because it ensures maximum hardware compatibility. All Dlink products come with a quick installation manual that makes it a snap to follow step-by-step instructions to get the network ready to go. There are also detailed user manuals that cover all the technical aspects of the router and adapter.

Wireless networks are quite convenient and neat because there is no mess of power wires and connecting cables but there are some things you proceed with the Dlink wireless network setup.

First thing to keep in mind is that no outsiders are able to connect to your network because by default the Dlink wireless network setup is open to everyone. You must replace all the default passwords with those of your own choice because the factory defaults are known to hackers. Default settings include the access point and adapters and passwords. There are many similar Dlink networks in the world and it must be expected that there is a high probability of your network being close to some adapter that is not part of your network. Hackers are constantly on the prowl looking for networks running on default settings because they are so easy to crack. All you need to do is create a new password and you are several times safer. Hackers are a constant threat to wireless networks so you must change the password before you open your network to the world.

During the first run of the Dlink wireless network setup you will be assisted by setup wizards. When you are answering the questions that will help you to configure the network you must make sure you change all the default values to customized ones. Just make sure that you don't go overboard in choosing something so complicated that you yourself cannot remember it. As long as you go in for a reasonably complicated personalized setup you will be fine. Just do not choose common information like your family name, kids' names, date of birth and so on.

If you have more than one computer you wish to include in your wireless network then make sure the WAP or router is located central to all computers.

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