Three-wheeled Wireless Internet

An anonymous reader writes "I just found this article which describes how a group of people in the UK built a 3 wheeled trike-type rickshaw to give visitors to a festival mobile Internet access. An interesting read for those /.ers into wireless networks, it also gives good information about the use of satellite for net connectivity and renewable energy sources. They do a good job of lightening a dry subject with a dash of humour." (The festival here is The Big Green Gathering, which sounds like a low-key, English version of Burning Man.)

Comments

pretty cool

[mOoZik]

All of this is doable by the average slashdotter, except of course for the sattelite link, which is probably expensive. Still, very, very cool.

Portability perhaps?

[commie_pig]

I don't know if I'm too keen to rent a little bike with an internet connection. I'd much rather have wireless connection points scattered over the festival terrain which would allow a PDA to connect - that way, I can even walk.

One day, when technology is dirt cheap (if that ever happens), then I wouldn't mind having a little computer loaded on a little bike like that.

Until then, I first need personal connectivity

Save the whales! - collect the whole set

Re:Portability perhaps?

[semaj]

I don't know if I'm too keen to rent a little bike with an internet connection. I'd much rather have wireless connection points scattered over the festival terrain which would allow a PDA to connect - that way, I can even walk.

Did you actually read the article?

They describe setting up a number of wireless base stations using 802.11b to "ensure that the majority of wireless clients could connect to our network". They built the rickshaw as a moving terminal so that people without laptops/PDAs could have a chance to use the network.

uh

[DNS-and-BIND]

Do you think maybe you can go to a freaking festival, and not have to check your freaking email? How about just chilling out and having fun for a few hours? And I'm not even going to mention the demeaning aspects of the rickshaw. Its shameful history should not be resurrected under any circumstances.

Re:uh

[TomV]

Bear in mind that the BGG was always had a very strong contingent of the activist community, and a lot of these people have ongoing campaigns to run Commitment doesn't necessarily stop just becasue you're at a festival.

Also, it wasn't just a few hours, it was five full (and very fabulous) days for the punters, and a lot of the workers were there for a week beforehand and a week afterwards.

The rickshaw technology is not demeaning. For that matter, the opportunity it gives to grindingly poor people to feed their families rather than starving is not in itself demeaning either. Now, the culture which allows this to happen, that's another matter. And it's not a matter of history so it's not really a case of resurrection.

tomV

misleading header

[polaar]

I already had this mental image of people riding around, delivering paper printouts of http-requests and...
eh, nevermind...

Just took my laptop ....

[taniwha]

at least to Burningman this year, turned it on, grabbed a wifi lease and hey presto I was connected. Thanks to the playanet folks.

Then I realized "I'm in the middle of the desert I don't want my email to find me", quickly checked slashdot and turned it off ....

Oh man

[cca93014]

The Big Green Gathering is similar to the Burning Man with the exception of a total lack of 14 year old Californians off their heads on mescaline.

Whether this is a plus or a minus depends entirely on your age.

Low-key burning man?

[cliffy2000]

Sounds like the premise for a bad Kids in the Hall sketch, with one of the gang on fire and acting totally low-key about it. Either that, or I'm amazingly sleep deprived.
Mod with your heart, not your intellect!

WiFi Chick

[aardwolf204]

For those who are too lazy to read the entire article, I'll point you to the good stuff: Wifi Chick, complete with iBook.

Sorry.

[turgid]

I feel so sorry for you. You're obviosuly quite young and earnest, and probably a very Nice Guy(TM). You've made the fundamental mistake that many young men make (myself included), amd that is that everyone else is just like you. Bitter experience will tech you otherwise. Go out, chat up loads of other young women and have a good time. Don't take things so seriously jsut now. I know, it's easier said than done, but this is advice from someone who's been there and done it. If only I'd known 10 years ago what I know now. In a few years' time, you'll probably meet someone you love much more and in a different way and it will all become moot.

Green Gathering

[BeCre8iv]

This is on my doorstep, its my local culture and the the comparison with burning-man is a little off the mark.

the BGG is an activists gathering, while there is music at night, by day it is not a hedonists paradise like Burning-Man but more a massive sustainability workshop where you can learn about non-violent resistance through to how to get web without a mains socket.

People on /. tend to see the iTrike as a festival gimmik that is less than practical, when it is realy a high profile proof of concept with a little humour thrown in.

I am realy glad the BGG got slashdotted because it rarely gets a mention in the UK, let alone internationally.

BTW - Heds from overseas looking for a Burningman Type experience should try Glastonbury festival - the BGG is for serious activists, travelers and the free-festival harcore, the first thing you notice is that there is no branding or commercialism on site which is wierd to say the least in this day and age.

As for cost... its difficult to know. Short of the tech itself, the iTrike is probably recycled bits and bobs from...

Rinky-Dink
http://www.baka.co.uk/rinky/

Raymundo's Renewable Lounge
http://www.ray-mundo.co.uk/

and some road protest site somewhere.

Re:Green Gathering

[TomV]

Sure there were healers. And sure they took payment. But there's a big difference between Katrina from Oxford getting in for free because she was offering Shiatsu for whatever amount seemed affordable (or in several cases for free) and fair rather than the 30 an hour she charges me as a regular client outside the festival, and huge Coke, Vodaphone and Carlsberg logos everywhere. There were plenty of small stallholders doing business. There were no major listed companies doing business. I think that's the distinction which was being drawn.

Hahahah....he loves the trees so much he chops up their rotting corpses and sells them for profit. Nice.

Trees have been known to benefit from pruning. trees have been known to drop branches in storms. And knowledge about woodwork can enable people to become more self-sufficient to a greater extent than knowledge about metalwork (also on offer at the BGG) or how plastic factories work.)

What's so evil about making some money? Making money isn't evil, it's essential. Certain approaches to making money are more or less unpleasant than others, that's all.

tV

NOT BurningMan

[ynohoo]

Burning Man was based on the likes of Stonehenge Free Festival (1973-84) which got closed down by Maggie Thatcher for having too much fun.

This is more like a church picnic for eco-types.

Costs.

[adelayde]

Here are the costs for this (in Euros):

- Satellite terminal and dish: 5,000
- Buffalo Tech Base stations x 5: 750
- Assorted cabling: 50
- Home made wireless bits: 150
- Home built rack-mount firewall: 1,000
- Dodge D50 s/h: 3,5000
- Rickshaw: 1,000 (guessed)
- Speakers and Amp, Mixer, Batteries: 1,000
- Solar+Wind+Batteries: 10,000 (guess)
- Other bits and bobs: 100

So quite expensive really, obviously you could this for a lot cheaper.