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Municipal WiFi Moves Ahead In Houston
Highlander404 sends word of one city that is bucking the trend of failing city Wi-Fi projects: Houston is investing most of the $5 million Earthlink paid to get out of its muni Wi-Fi contract to build out 10 free wireless network "bubbles" in low-income parts of the city. Access points will be in city-owned facilities to keep costs down. Houston's mayor said that over the long term the bubbles could be connected and the areas between them added to the network. The activation of the first of these zones was announced Monday. Upload and download speeds are said to be 3 Mbps.
We have it in Minneapolis. I'm not a subscriber but there is presence pretty much anywhere?
This sig isn't original enough, it's time to come up with something witty...
From TFA: "Each bubble will include about 15 public access points at schools, city facilities and community organizations within the area."
Also, it's not $5 million, it's $3.5 million: "The company had to pay the city $5 million after defaulting on a contract to build a citywide wireless Internet network last year. On Monday, Mayor Bill White announced the city will use about $3.5 million of that money to build 10 free wireless network "bubbles" in low-income parts of Houston to give residents access they otherwise might do without." And I'm sure that money includes more than just the access point: think all the infrastructure, etc. to support them.
"Anyone who [rips a CD] is probably engaging in copyright infringement." - David O. Carson
Sorry, here's the first entry in the DailyWTF series. Be sure to read through to the part where the business plan evolves to strapping a laptop, solar cell and satellite dish to a donkey and sending it through rural India!
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
OK.. "Free at the point of need or provision" We need more of these, partly to combat the silly ideas of those that would try to make it a crime to 'attempt to join an open network'
racism != cool....or funny.
Orbis terrarum est non altus satis
Of course, everything has to be paid for. In this case, Earthlink is paying for it out of their profits. Which means their customers are paying for it. Which means their employers are paying for it... and so on. But it is free to the users, for now. It'll be interesting how it develops from here though.
"Teach a man to build a fire, and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life."
...and it shouldn't have to be. I think it's a great idea to build out some of that infrastructure, but anyone who thinks it's going to bring full bandwidth to the masses has another think coming. But I have an idea to get businesses to provide this sort of service for "free". Feel free to implement, sell, and tell me your success stories. First, you'd need an easy-to-administrate wireless access point which allows businesses to customize the "Welcome" page, but has few other configurable options. Then you'd need to convince businesses that it's worthwhile for them to get DSL/Cable and run one of your wireless access points in their front window. The customizable "Welcome" page could just be a "digital billboard", saying, "This Internet session courtesy of Blah Blah, incorporated. Come in for a free home loan analysis." Or $0.50 off a mocha. Or something. Then let the user roam free on the net, maybe asking for their contact info first for later mailers if they want to get coupons. This could be extended to almost any fixed structure. Make the system weather-proof, and you could sell the idea to the businesses that advertise on billboards, so that anyone near such a billboard would get free Internet access after being notified of the advertiser's presence, maybe offered something special for calling the number on the billboard. Even newspaper kiosks could offer web access, if they're nailed down and wired appropriately. That way, people who are pulling out their iPhones to check movie listings or look up the weather could get that information from LocalPaper.com's site before moving on to the full-blown Internet. Just an idea, but I think it'd be a good way to profitably get Internet access points freely available, at least to high-traffic business districts. Then let the city build out to other areas; maybe start in less affluent areas where even slow access to the Internet for free would be a great benefit for those who can't afford $25.00/month for DSL.
The CB App. What's your 20?
partly to combat the silly ideas of those that would try to make it a crime to 'attempt to join an open network'
Joining a network that is financed, designed, and built to be open from the start is very different than joining a random 'open' residential network. No matter how the protocol of two computers asking and granting each other access really works.
As a native Houstonian, so I think I can speak knowledgeably about this. The fact that Earthlink was willing to cough up $5 million to get out of a contract should tell you something. Obviously they realized this would be money losing proposition. Unfortunately, trust Houston to ignore the problems in other cities and plow ahead anyway. And yes, Earthlink defaulted, but that money now belongs to the taxpayers. It could be MUCH better used--such as hiring more police and fire personnel--than handing out "free" access at taxpayer expense.
Putting these bubbles in "low income" areas makes absolutely no sense, unless they plan to also put in computers or some sort of cybercafe. Most of the people living there are not going to be sporting lap tops. And if they have a computer they're unlikely to have a wireless modem. They'll expect to be given one for free though. These are not nice parts of town. I used to live (briefly) not far from area highlighted on the map in the story. If you stand outside at night (not advisable), you very often hear gunfire. A murdered prostitute was found in the field across from the condos I lived in. Lots of drug dealing. This is not indicative of Houston--it has plenty good areas. I make this point in that if they do set up any sort of computer kiosk places in areas like this, it's going to have to have 24 hour security.
Most of the people taking advantage of this are going to be small-medium businesses who will be milking the free bandwidth, not lower income families. Houston libraries already have computers and internet access, this will give others the ability to bring their own computer--but again, I wouldn't in these areas of town. I think this is going to be a colossal waste of tax payer money.
If you've never been modded as "flamebait" or "troll," you've never tried to argue a minority viewpoint here!
The cost of getting a computer is fixed. As a one time expense, it is something even a poor family can save up for. Sure, $200 for a crappy laptop and wifi card make take some saving up, but that is something that can be managed. A monthly cost of $35 (if they're very lucky) for broadband that only works at home is not an appealing proposition if you're barely scraping by. If you look at it as a two year investment, that is $8.50/month vs. $43.50/month.
The laptop also has the benefits of being able to help with self-education. This means that kids who need access the most, to help climb out of poverty through education and experience, get a better chance to do it. It won't help everyone and it will be abused, but it will help a lot of kids get out of the destructive cycle and that will pay off in less young adults needing public assistance and more paying taxes. It is a long term investment, but isn't that what we want city governments doing?
In the short term it might help more people prepare for a better job and encourage more business than the alternative ways of spending the same money. At the heart of every slum is a basic problem, there are lazy, greedy individuals out to get what the world "owes" them who at the same time harm those who might make a better life for themselves given the opportunity. I'm not sure if there is a way to change the behavior of those who are there because they are unwilling to make different choices, but it is possible to help those that are there because they are unable to find better opportunities.
Every young adult that gets a better job out of this is a double-payoff, first in the lack of cost to other tax payers, and second in the taxes that they will pay. I feels naive, but I believe that enough people will improve their lives that the long term cost to benefit ratio will come out positive for the tax payers.
B) Eliminate all the stupid users. This is frowned upon by society.
I don't think so. This is going into areas where the broadband providers don't tread. From TFS:
Houston is doing what all governments do. It is providing services it sees as necessary that the private sector can't or won't do. It's funny how when a community decides to provide a service the private sector may be in they scream foul but when that service becomes unprofitable they want out as fast as possible. The question is what other consessions did Earthlink get out of Houston? A company willing to pay $$$ to get out of a contract has done the bean counting before signing and you can bet your bottom dollar that those beans fall in Earthlink's favor.
This is a sig. This is only a sig. Had this been an actual sig you would have been informed where to tune for more sigs.
As a fellow Houstonian who lived in the Gulfton area before it backslid into such a high crime area,
I think you are assuming way too much. There are plenty of devices that can be had free or cheap
to get on the net, and that are certainly in the reach of low-income family. I've seen plenty
of PSPs ($169) and Nintendo DS ($129) floating around low income neighborhoods just to start, so people are willing
to drop even "small" (by your standard or mine) amounts of disposable income on entertainment. And both
those devices have 802.11b wireless access. Even so a linux PC from Fry's ($199) or Walmart isn't much more if
someone is forced to buy new. You can bet Fry's or someone savvy will start bundling a high-gain antenna
and wireless card / usb stick for this market.
In terms of free or cheap, I personally supervised the disposal of hundreds of computers after a major downsizing
and was able to redirect some of them to a personal favorite charity. If there had been demand for the balance
of the devices I think I could have gotten them all, frankly. But even without a downsizing the City of Houston's Harwin recycling
center accepts old computers for recycling, nothing stopping COH from sending them though a volunteer organization
to see what's reusable and donating devices. They give away toys and bikes every year at Christmas at the George R. Brown,
heck I was there myself last year. But hey just ask your city council members if you don't believe me.
So before you start to poo poo the idea of folks getting access, let me assure you that again I personal experience getting people to volunteer
time and equipment for low-income folks who needed laptops or desktops for college.
Having said that, unless it is very dense I think this infrastructure is going to be oversubscribed very, very quickly.
Good luck to COH keeping the mesh up once its established! And of course I cringe at the first 911 call because someone's
kid can't get on the net and needs to do their homework. You know its going to happen. LOL.
(Read fark.com for plenty of examples of that behavior if you don't believe me there either.)