FCC Allows Mix-and-Match Wi-Fi Antennas

Posted by michael on Friday July 23, 2004 @07:06AM from the net-gain dept.

Glenn Fleishman writes "We just filed a story at Wi-Fi Networking News about how the FCC recently and quietly approved rules that will allow the legal use of the Pringles can and other antennas. Currently, it's clearly illegal--even though it's incredibly easy--to swap out a manufacturers' antennas from a Wi-Fi access point with an antenna of your choosing. It's legal to sell antennas; not legal to deploy them. Call it the switchblade kit rule: legal to sell, but don't assemble. The FCC's new rule provides a middle ground: a manufacturer can certify their hardware with the highest gain legal antennas of each type (yagi, omni, etc.) and then end-users can swap in antennas of equal or lesser signal characteristics. It's an important move because it removes the potential for community wireless and individual users to be prosecuted for illegal antennas once new certifications are in place."

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But... wait... by w.p.richardson · 2004-07-23 07:09 · Score: 1, Offtopic

Michael... Powell... is... evil!
This can't be happening!

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1. Re:But... wait... by proj_2501 · 2004-07-23 07:14 · Score: 0, Offtopic
  
  the stuff that grows on your dead body emits co2 as well!
2. Re:But... wait... by strictnein · 2004-07-23 07:20 · Score: 0, Offtopic
  
  the stuff that grows on your dead body emits co2 as well!
  
  Use your body as fertilizer for trees! Then you'll win!
  
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3. Re:But... wait... by drinkypoo · 2004-07-23 07:29 · Score: 0, Offtopic
  
  What, hair? It's just protein.
  Did you know that rainforests produce almost as much CO2 due to decomposition as they consume? Their primary function is to strain stuff out of the atmosphere, so they're still useful. Redwood forests are also rainforests, and they release their CO2 again on a longer scale by periodically burning (except they don't do that right now, because of us) which is part of their reproductive cycle.
  
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