[Techtalk] wireless home network without router

[Alina Friedrichsen]

Hi Miriam!

> It doesn't seem to include what I'd like to see, where anybody's message 
> can hop from handheld to handheld across a wide area to its destination, 
> but that might be the next step if enough people want it.

This is only a new buzzword for building a Bluetooth-like thing with WiFi, nothing new technically. You're looking for IEEE 802.11s.

> I have only one wireless device so far, but out here in the Australian 
> countryside (not the outback, but still sparsely populated) I have 
> become interested in finding out how to share wireless communication 
> among people. The big companies charge high prices for really bad 
> service, with many places unable to reliably connect to the centralised 
> systems. A mesh network would work really well out here...

Yes, I recommend a IP-based mesh for it, maybe IPv6 if you want future-compliant, and devices with Atheros chipset.

> if I can work 
> out how to put it together, and if I can get sufficient range -- people 
> are often separated by distance and terrain.

As long as you can see the other site and nothing is between, WiFi can conquer several miles with the right hardware.

> For example I can see only 
> two houses from here, and they are on the other side of the wide valley 
> I live in. But one house might be able to see other houses further up 
> the valley in one direction and the other might see another house down 
> the valley in the other direction. If we could hop signals home to home 
> we might be able to connect hundreds of people who are otherwise almost 
> isolated.

That is the sense of mesh protocols.

> I use a satellite connection to get access to the internet, 
> but this is not suitable for everyone because of the cost, hilly 
> terrain, and trees blocking line-of-sight to the geostationary satellite.

Oh, this is really outdoor!
I'm hanging on a normal ADSL phone line in the city.

> Very interesting topic. Thank you for your offer. I might contact you in 
> the future if I have problems.

Okay.

> It may be some months away though, as I 
> have some other things taking up most of my time at the moment, like 
> building a free (except for cheap materials) way to generate electricity 
> from the sun day and *night*! :)

Photovoltaics, or...?

Best wishes too,
Alina