WE have to decide how we want this all to operate. Not the government. Or the phone companies or manufacturers. The airwaves, indeed, are a public resource, and so is the government which regulates them.
It seems to me that the closest analogy to the internet in general, as well as wifi in particular, is either the phone companies or the ham radio networks, depending how you see it. Apparently wifi is making the internet more like ham radio amateur operators, and less like government regulated telephone networks. ham radio is hardly 'amateur'. it's in fact more professional than the computer or telephone networks in many respects - it requires a government license to use. you must transmit your ID at all times, 'anonymous' use is not allowed. but ham radios are mostly run by volunteers, who buy their own equipment, and are not allowed to profit from their work in any way, by regulation of their licenses, it's supposed to be a 'hobby' - though it's now a global digital and voice network operated by volunteers. once your equipment is purchased and your training and license are in place, you talk to anyone and transmit for free, and all you pay for is your equipment and your own time. electricity, maybe. the "amateur hobbyists" have associations, and set up protocols, rules of use, and regulate themselves. the phone networks are similar, but the opposite. they're all run by for-profit corporations. you are allowed to run your own small phone company, however,provided you don't interfere with the larger one, or break certain laws and regulations. the phone networks are regulated by the government, simply because the companies can't quite regulate themsselves without guarantee that phone service won't become a privilege of just a few, and overcharge and abuse people for accessing their networks. the internet is something in between - it's half run by volunteers, half by corporations. some people make money, some don't. wifi is unregulated, and open to the public to use as they see fit. if someone is using it in a way that's improper, it should be up to the associations of users of that medium to set up the rules under which they want to operate. that association is HERE. so how do YOU WANT an open, unsecured access point to be seen? Government and corporations are here to represent OUR wishes, and if we express them clearly - we will get them. Here is what *I* would like to see. The purchaser and user of an access point is using public resources - Internet bandwidth, and the airwaves in their area. They should use them responsibly to everyone. They should secure their network, if they want, and make it easy. AND they should share their resources with the neighbors. All this means, is putting two subnets inside the router, allow the inside computers to access the 'private' subnet', the others to access the 'public' subnet, which is like a DMZ. And which should have a splash page, where the user can write "welcome to Johnny's wireless internet gateway. Operating on channel 9 at 99th street near Amsterdam, with a visibility of thirty meters. Use it all you wish. If you'd like to make a donation, call 212 123 1234. In addition, I want the router to have upgradable RAM, firmware, a programming kit, and full documentation, so that those who buy it can modify it as they see fit, do what they wish with it, having paid the price for their device, and now being it's rightful owner. In addition, the vendors should encourage user associations of their devices to gather, promote responsible, moral, and informed use, study how they work, and use them for the good of themselves, and their community. This is what I want my association to request from manufactureres, and requset my government to request from the same manufacturers. Not just the random enforcement of some laws, historical or not, with precedent or not. This is what I think is the most responsible and best for everyone. -- NYCwireless - http://www.nycwireless.net/ Un/Subscribe: http://lists.nycwireless.net/mailman/listinfo/nycwireless/ Archives: http://lists.nycwireless.net/pipermail/nycwireless/
