Re: [GKD] RFI: Wireless WAN Comparisons Sought

[Vickram Crishna]

On 3/7/06, Ian Howard wrote:

> Such an analysis does not exist from an independent organization that I
> know of, nor for projects in a developing world context. There are of
> course a number of considerations. WiMAX and newer equipment do offer
> many advantages, though are much more expensive and still not as widely
> available. Most practitioners developing smaller networks, or smaller
> commercial networks, are using 802.11 equipment.

I think it is important to realise that in developing world contexts,
scalability is not the issue that it might be in a municipal network,
for instance, in a very connected country. In the latter, the wireless
network is often a convenience, or a saving in cost, compared to other,
existing, channels of communication, whereas for the former, this may
well be the first installation of modern distance communications.

The need for multiple point to point connections between the same towns
or villages barely exists, since there will only be a handful of
computers at either end. Within the nodal area, 802.11b/g is sufficient
to meet almost any need in the foreseeable future, and between nodes it
also works excellently, and most importantly, cheaply, thus making the
possibility of rolling out more such connections rapidly.

Arguably, using mesh networking also removes the issue of control of the
communication channel, which can often fall into the wrong hands from a
development perspective, if POTS paradigms such as client server, or
circuit switching, are going to be the price of higher bandwidth and
reliability.

Some of us are planning a major summit on wireless networking in
Dharamsala, India, in late October 2006. We are working on the final
dates and I will keep this list posted. The summit will comprise
workshops aimed at sharing among techies as well as teaching rural
acolytes the basics. We expect a major part of the summit will be visits
to rural nascent networks in India to upgrade configurations, using mesh
and tweaked firmware on routers etc, which will be a chance for both
Indian and foreign enthusiasts to hone their skills, as well as allow
representatives from other developing regions who want to have similar
networks deployed, to get hands-on experience. We will post the dates on
the summit web site very soon, as well the session programmes, as these
freeze over the next few weeks.

I think that one very useful lesson that we can expect to emerge from
this summit will be the kind of comparison that Patrick originally
sought.

-- 
Vickram





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Re: [GKD] RFI: Wireless WAN Comparisons Sought

[Ian Howard]

Patrick,

Such an analysis does not exist from an independent organization that I
know of, nor for projects in a developing world context. There are of
course a number of considerations. WiMAX and newer equipment do offer
many advantages, though are much more expensive and still not as widely
available. Most practitioners developing smaller networks, or smaller
commercial networks, are using 802.11 equipment. You may find some
examples useful in the following book that we recently released: See
 (free to download). The bottle antenna that we built
in Mali is in there too ;-)

Ian

-- 
Ian Howard
Director/Technical Lead
Adaptic - http://adaptic.ca
Adapted Information and Communications
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On 2/28/06, Ken DiPietro wrote:

> I am unaware of any report that meets the criteria you have inquired
> about and I believe what you are asking for is more than can be answered
> in an email not to mention beyond the scope of this list. However, if
> you would like to contact me off-list to discuss this further I would be
> glad to assist you.
>
> Assuming you can be assured of LOS and your distances will remain under
> 10km there are several solutions that might fit your needs. One source
> that I can refer you to (off the top of my head) would be the
> "BottleNet" project run by Geek Corps in Mali. It is my understanding
> that they have driven cost down to roughly $40 (US) per installation
> plus whatever cost allowances you would have to factor in for
> alternative power technology.
> 
>
>
>
> On 2/27/06, Patrick O'Beirne wrote:
>  
>> What I would really like now is any comparative analysis of the
>> different technologies available and their actual costs when implemented
>> in remote regions, and any comments on their reliability based on
>> experience. Ideally this would be freely available from a development
>> organisation, but I would also like to know of any reports from
>> commercial research analysts.





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Re: [GKD] RFI: Wireless WAN Comparisons Sought

[Ken DiPietro]

Patrick,

I am unaware of any report that meets the criteria you have inquired
about and I believe what you are asking for is more than can be answered
in an email not to mention beyond the scope of this list. However, if
you would like to contact me off-list to discuss this further I would be
glad to assist you.

Assuming you can be assured of LOS and your distances will remain under
10km there are several solutions that might fit your needs. One source
that I can refer you to (off the top of my head) would be the
"BottleNet" project run by Geek Corps in Mali. It is my understanding
that they have driven cost down to roughly $40 (US) per installation
plus whatever cost allowances you would have to factor in for
alternative power technology.


Respectfully,

Ken DiPietro
Wireless without compromise


On 2/27/06, Patrick O'Beirne wrote:

> What I would really like now is any comparative analysis of the
> different technologies available and their actual costs when implemented
> in remote regions, and any comments on their reliability based on
> experience. Ideally this would be freely available from a development
> organisation, but I would also like to know of any reports from
> commercial research analysts.

..snip...




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Re: [GKD] RFI: Wireless WAN Comparisons Sought

[Salman Ansari]

Suggest you look at WiFi Mesh solutions (e.g. Bel Air). These will give
you the best combination of coverage and back haul all in one. Power and
other requirements are very low and these systems are meant for outdoor
installations. Can be used for stand-alone applications and is useful
for deploying where distances have to be covered for back haul and where
local hotspots have to be created.

If anyone is interested, I can send a copy of some slides I got from Bel
Air.

Salman Ansari



On Monday, February 27, 2006, Patrick O'Beirne wrote:

> As some of you may know, I've worked with LEOsats for email
> store-and-forward applications.
> 
> I am now investigating wireless mail and instant message networks in
> regions without power or telecommunications lines or availability of
> mobile networks.
> 
> What I would really like now is any comparative analysis of the
> different technologies available and their actual costs when implemented
> in remote regions, and any comments on their reliability based on
> experience. Ideally this would be freely available from a development
> organisation, but I would also like to know of any reports from
> commercial research analysts.

..snip...




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