George Rogato wrote:
The crux of this ongoing argument is did someone certify a MT,
routerboard, cm9 system? Skip the already certified Trango components.
Dumb newbie question. Doesn't the certification apply to a "complete"
package, including antenna and software?
Mikrotik's RouterOS software (and basically every other WISP-targeted
Linux distribution) give you an easy way to change the radio power on
the card (within the limits of the card itself). If you turn that power
up too high, and hook up a really studly antenna, hey, you've just
exceeded the power limits. Maybe on accident, maybe not. I don't think
the FCC takes "oops" in lieu of fines, regardless of their sincerity.
I thought part of the whole point of certification was to (try to)
ensure that the product, as a whole, doesn't exceed allowed EIRP.
You might be able to get that combination of hardware and software, and
one specific antenna, all certified. And under the "you can use other
antennas as long as they have equal or less gain" rule, that's a start.
It's still a far cry from a completely certified system, though. There's
just too many types of antennas out there, and too many radio cards.
(Though that does bring up an interesting sideline - most of the "good"
radio cards out there are using the same chipset. If we're going for
components, would it be beneficial or even possible to certify the chip
and not the whole radio card?)
I'll refrain from a rant on how the whole certification process seems
designed to actively stifle ingenuity, but it sure is tempting.
David Smith
MVN.net
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