Joe et al, Business travelers can and do compute in parks, hotels, bars, restaurants, etc. Ricochet covered the entire city to make their network pretty darn useful to their clientele.
Regarding Michael's comment about the option to use 802.11: I was referring to the cost of their use of licensed spectrum in their operation, the "modems" were connecting to the lamppost using 900 MHz. The COST of using unlicensed spectrum in their backhaul was part of their investment, adding to their costs. Bottom line: A large number of nodes with diverse ownership, sharing common principles, using cheap, readily available technology, can offer a greater service -in the long run - than a single, proprietary service that needs to finance their operation to stay afloat. Jacob Farkas On 12/10/03 12:35 PM, "Joe Plotkin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Actually, I think you are both comparing apples to oranges. Ricochet > was a mobile service, and as such, required them to pre-build a large > network coverage area before they could even offer the service. > Additionally, as an expensive mobile service it was obviously aimed > at the business traveller -- and to me, it seems like they > underestimated the difficulty of computing while driving. > > ----------------------------> Joe > > At 12:00 PM -0500 12/10/03, Michael Stearne wrote: >> On Dec 10, 2003, at 11:47 AM, Jacob Farkas wrote: >> >>> Ricochet's failure demonstrates why it can be easier, faster, and more >>> effective to have grassroots community networks blanket the city with >>> ubiquitous wireless Internet access in NYC, LONG TERM. And free, of course. >>> >>> What contributed to their downfall, may have been any combination of the >>> following: >>> >>> 1. Investment in proprietary, licensed slice of spectrum. >>> 2. Lease, or purchase of space rights for equipment. >>> 3. Monthly service charges that cost more than a typical ADSL line ($75) >>> with speeds hovering between 128-200 kbps. >>> 4. Equipment for end-user was quite pricey, between $200-$300. >>> 5. Administrative costs associated with accounts, management, billing, tech >>> support. >>> 6. Marketing costs. >>> >>> The NYCwireless model: >>> Unlicensed 802.11b, equipment placed with owners consent and encouragement >>> for free, Free usage, no administrative overhead, word of mouth and >>> plentiful press coverage. >>> >>> While we may not enjoy the citywide coverage offered by Ricochet, YET, we >>> should see growth in numbers of public nodes, shared with intent. >>> >> >> But at the same time the pricey reasons you gave above are because >> they were trying to be ahead of the curve. 802.11b wasn't there >> like it is today. I'm sure if they, like pay services today, had >> access to 802.11b they would've used that. >> >> Michael >> >> -- >> NYCwireless - http://www.nycwireless.net/ >> Un/Subscribe: http://lists.nycwireless.net/mailman/listinfo/nycwireless/ >> Archives: http://lists.nycwireless.net/pipermail/nycwireless/ > -- NYCwireless - http://www.nycwireless.net/ Un/Subscribe: http://lists.nycwireless.net/mailman/listinfo/nycwireless/ Archives: http://lists.nycwireless.net/pipermail/nycwireless/
