Wi-Fi by Rail, Bus or Boat

securitas writes "The New York Times' Glenn Fleishman writes about the growth of 802.11x WiFi wireless Internet access on commuter rail, bus and ferry boat now that it's commonly available in restaurants and coffee shops. The article also has an illustration by Al Granberg of some of the techniques used to achieve ubiquitous WiFi in motion."

Comments

social implications

[shackma2]

I wonder what the social implications of the growth of WIFI are. Coffee shops and cafes and trains used to be a place where people would sometimes sit alone, be bored, and sometimes start talking and meeting people. Now with WIFI, you'll be able to work whereever you go, could this have any sociological effect?

Re:social implications

[arieswind]

Obviously, employers will be able to squeeze more working time out of their employees, giving them even less of a chance for a social life. Soon all they need is cars that drive themselves, and there won't be a waking moment where employees can't be working. Thank you capitalism

Re:social implications

[nomadicGeek]

Thanks to capitalism there isn't any obligation to be an employee. You can always shop the market for a better employer or better yet, employ yourself.

The people that I know who have developed marketable skills set their own hours and have more opportunities than they have the time to pursue. Thank you capitalism.

Quit acting like you don't have any choice in the matter.

Re:social implications

[Anonymous Coward]

What about the commuter that wants to take a nap on the train after a hard day's work. Does he now have to st there listening to you tap on the keyboard as you vainly try to finish an Excel speadsheet.

They can work on Excel Spreadsheets without a WiFi connection, could for years now. None of the typing ever bothered you before? Besides most people will probably browse the web, which is mainly silent reading broken by the occasional mouse click...

Re:When will it end

[Armando_Mcgillicutty]

I wouldn't count on it ending anytime soon.

Why the paranoia anyway? The worst that is going to happen is someone hacks your WEP and steals your bandwidth, since your PC itself should be secure, in addition to your wireless connection right?

Right???

Re:Security

[daringone]

Hopefully widespread adoption of WiFi services fuels the market for wireless network security. I know somebody who can't use his WAP because his neighbors keep hacking his encryption.

Well, it's not that hard when your settings are:

SSID: linksys
Broadcast SSID?: Yes
Wireless security enabled?: No

I don't think it's so much the need for more security as it is the need to get people to actually use the security that's already there. I know of no wardrivers (personally) that even bother with an access point that doesn't broadcast it's SSID, is not the default SSID, and has WEP enabled. They'll find someone with the above configuration and wreak havoc.

Re:Just in case the decide to pull the reg crap

[Vitus Wagner]

... and perhaps an incentive for some people to abandon commuting by car.

So, Wi-Fi would cause more people to use public transport and thus help to copy with traffic jams?

Great?

[Dibson]

While I think Wi-Fi is really exciting - I just got an iBook with an airport extreme card - this is getting to be a bit much. People who carry laptops with them to/from work while commuting are probably at work on the computer all day. Now they're going to travel and use the internet? And then get home to their broadband connection and check their email?

Internet connectivity blanketed everywhere would be amazing. The convenience is great, but we need downtime and to interact with other people. If you're looking to occupy yourself on the train say hi to the person next to you. A person is an incredible thing - they probably have all sorts of stories that you can hear from no one else.

Maybe no one cares about that. But there are so many other issues. Imagine the security problems that come out of this. And what kind of costs is going to incur on the user? Advertising? By the minute? And trouble from illegal activity happening through these AP? It'd be great if it works out, but I think this is some time away.

Re:Great?

[ajlitt]

Great, you can make exactly the same argument about the proliferation of small, cheap portable phones. The thing is, some people do now talk on the phone in public, but this hasn't changed the dynamics of family and socialization for the worse. In fact, it's helped keep people closer in touch by allowing people to leave the house / office and live life without being tethered to a desk for fear of missing a call.

The same is possible with the expansion of WiFi coverage. Imagine someone being able to go on vacation with their family on a whim, knowing that they won't have to sacrifice their work responsibilities in the process. I'm not saying you should bring your notebook or PDA to Disneyland or anything. Just that the ability to make travel time more productive can make leisure time more palatable to employers.

Help! Help! I'm being forced to work!

[raygundan]

People who say things like that baffle me. It's like the people who won't carry a cell phone because they don't want to be bothered-- while simultaneously failing to realize that you aren't compelled to answer it, or even to have it turned on.

WiFi everywhere is handy. But just because I can get signal everywhere doesn't mean I'm somehow compelled to work. Hell, you don't even have to be working when you USE the WiFi. I prefer to waste a bunch of time on slashdot.

Re: Wi-Fi by Rail, Bus or Boat

[fishwallop]

From the diagram, it would seem the commuter train has in-car WiFi repeaters connected to a larger network wirelessly, which breaks in tunnels. The train is always in contact with a pair of "wires" - i.e. the rails - which on many train systems already carry data (that is, information for in-cab signaling systms). Is there a technical limitation which keeps the rails from being a suitable medium for high-speed data access suitable to feed to the in-car access point? Tunnels wouldn't interrupt the service.

Re:Just in case the decide to pull the reg crap

[jallison]

So, Wi-Fi would cause more people to use public transport and thus help to copy with traffic jams?

Perhaps. It's something to make you a bit more productive during your commute. Living in Southern California I am very familiar with how a commute by car just eats into your day. Many people in this area spend 3-4 hours commuting every day. That is pure wasted time when you are alone in your car.

Now if you could be fully productive -- or even just entertained -- during your commute, maybe you'll make that extra effort to take the train, ferry, or whatever.

Of course around here the problem is lack of options...the train doesn't come anywhere near where I live.

Re:WHY?

[scharkalvin]

who takes the train any more, it would be great for subways, but it probably will not work under ground.
Yeah, but it you tried it on the NY subway you would probably get mugged and your laptop stolen.

What is this "work" you speak of?

[mystereys]

When I'm not working, I spend a lot of time on the internet, playing. Yes, believe it or not, the internet can be used for entertainment purposes. Some may even call slashdot entertaining.

I think of wifi+laptop in a cafe (or similar location) as a variation of sitting there with a book. Sometimes, you want to get out of the house, sip/munch on something, and amuse yourself. Books do this well, as can laptops.