[sllug-members]: Broadband when DSL not available?

[Corey Edwards]

On Sun, 2006-09-10 at 12:40 -0600, Knight Walker wrote:
> The other option (And the one I'm using for the time being) is
> fixed-point WiFi.  This is basically just 802.11b/g (Some use different
> gear, but it's the same effect) but with a PCI card in your server and a
> big 24dbi wire mesh antenna on your roof that shoots a beam (more or
> less) at a WiFi antenna maintained by your WISP (Wireless ISP).

We've found that 802.11 gear provides the least reliable signal due in
the most part to interference from every Tom, Dick and Harry who have
Wifi routers and 2.4 GHz cordless phones. Motorola Canopy works much
better. It's an FHSS-based system but is different from 802.11 and
generally will overpower a wimpy Linksys any day of the week. And the
radios are FreeBSD embedded to boot.

>   Most
> WISPs I've seen offer about 512/510 or 1M/384, but that's shared with
> all the clients on your tower.

You all share bandwidth to the AP, which isn't necessarily the same
thing. Using sectorized APs you can cram lots more users onto a tower.
Canopy gear uses GPS-based scheduling so that all the radios get a fair
shot at the bandwidth. Think of ATM cells or T1 timeslots. 802.11 is a
lot more ad-hoc (RTS helps some) and doesn't scale as well.

>   Usually not available in apartments, and
> if you're in a PUD or condos (Anything with an HOA) they are likely to
> bitch about your antenna placement.

The FCC actually made a good ruling (imagine that!) in this situation.
Because Congress granted them sole rights to manage radio frequencies,
HOAs can not restrict FCC rules. So as long as you can get a radio up
somehow, the HOA can't force you to take it down. Even for non-owners
(condos, apartments, etc.) there is hope. I've seen people plant a 4x4
in a pot w/ cement and mount their dish on that.

> Service from WISPs can be kinda iffy. I've lost signal with my WISP only
> twice and that was because their transceiver on their tower went out.
> Usually when the connectivity gets lost, it's because their router or
> their back-haul goes out; so I can still see the wireless signal, and I
> can see the other computers in my wireless segment trying to communicate
> with the router, but the router not responding.

All sorts of things can cause WISP service to go out. Components can
fail, just like in other realms. Wind can knock radios out of alignment.
We've lost a couple towers due to lightning strikes. That's always a
hoot. There's always an upsurge of performance degradation around spring
time when trees green out. No matter how well you plan, the trees always
seem to grow right in the line of sight.

> In my particular case, it sort of sucks because I had a static IP
> (Sorta, since it was NAT'd on their end) but when they switched their
> back-end from Qwest T1 to Covad business Cable, I lost my IP, and
> they've done nothing (after repeated calls) to rectify the situation.
> As it is, I'm just sitting tight until DSL gets into my neighborhood,
> since I want to host my own servers.

NAT is evil enough. ISPs who do any sort of NAT on their customer's
network are Devil Spawn(tm).

> Anyway, enough rant from me.  But as far as I know, your three broadband
> options are UTOPIA (Not available in most locations yet), DSL, Cable,
> and WISP.  You'll have to research what's available in your area.

Would be nice if there were more options for last mile access. I've got
high hopes for municipally driven physical layers that are open to all
ISPs on fair terms. We'll see in a few years if UTOPIA really turns into
one.

Corey

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