I’ve been thinking about this article on building a low-tech internet a lot lately. It outlines the possibilities of using cheaper technologies, including basic Wi-Fi, to share network connections over long distances.
My primary interest in this is providing alternatives to the large ISPs in Seattle and other places. With net neutrality continually on unstable footing, a small ISP run as a cooperative, non-profit, or something similar could provide an excellent alternate option for people who decide that maybe they don’t want Comcast to decide what they can look at efficiently.
As long as the networks were kept relatively small-scale, I believe you could use the wi-fi antennae solutions outlined in the article to provide decent internet service to end-users, and likely to do for a much, much cheaper price than ISPs currently charge. Also, by using wireless technology, you avoid the “last mile problem,” where the expensive part of providing internet is running the final length of cable from the nearest distribution center to the end user’s location.
This also has a lot of potential to help out Seattle’s homeless population. It would be (relatively) easy to set up temporary access via a network node up on a pole in a given encampment. This receiver (and connection point) would be fairly easy to power through a solar panel or similar off-the-grid technology, so the location wouldn’t need electricity available, either. This way, homeless people could use the wi-fi to connect any of their portable computing devices (e.g. smartphones) to the internet without needing to worry about data rates, and with steady speed. It’s hardly a perfect solution, but I think it’d be a start.
There’s some issues in Seattle in particular that I haven’t figured out how to deal with. Mostly the hills. We have so many hills, y’all. I’m not sure how I’d handle getting the signal over/around those. (I mean, repeaters, obvs, but how does that affect the network?) Finding people willing to let me bolt something to their roof might be difficult, too. And how well (or not) does this equipment work in the rain? Mysteries to be solved.
What do you all think about the potential of using long-range wi-fi and similar technology to set up an alternative ISP in Seattle?
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