Hi I've just got a Google Nexus One and was thinking about making an application for it. The first thing that came to mind was a minimalist app to add open WiFi networks as points of interest. I imagine it working something like this:
The app continuously scans nearby WiFi access points. When one is found, it connects to it and posts the GPS position, accuracy, WiFi strength, (E)SSID, connection type and recent user movement to a script running on the web. If it doesn't get the correct response then that access point is blacklisted (avoiding paid but open networks which redirect to a login page). The data is released into the public domain (or maybe CC:SA?) and at some later time the positions of all known access points can be estimated and imported into OSM's database. Some clever rules could be used to avoid moving hotspots which have been moved manually, or to delete ones which haven't been seen in a long time. I know that there are already companies and communities doing this, but I can't find anyone with data that's free enough for my liking. There are also objections to adding wifi hotspots on the wiki, but no sensible ones as far as I can see. Open wireless access points are useful to me, I work away from home and often need to find the closest place with free wifi so I don't use all my data allowance when downloading large files. Thoughts, objections or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Gaz _______________________________________________ talk mailing list talk@openstreetmap.org http://lists.openstreetmap.org/listinfo/talk
