Slashdot Mirror
Using Your BlackBerry As a Modem On Linux
ruphus13 writes "Now, the suits and the geeks can unite — Barry allows BlackBerrys to serve as modems for Linux machines. From the news post, 'Barry, created by open source software vendor Net Direct, lets you not only sync your contacts and calendar but also use your smartphone as a computer modem. Sure, it's not as fast as T1 or cable, but you can't beat it if you're stuck somewhere with no Internet access. Currently, there are packages available for Ubuntu, Debian, Mandriva, and Fedora (although syncing is not supported on Fedora 9). Most older BlackBerrys work just fine with Barry, but the newest generation of devices — the Storm and Bold — are not yet fully supported.'"
I have done this with Mac OS X and a little Samsung Sync. Years ago, for phones that allow you to put software on it. There really isn't much stopping you from doing this.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
My first experience was using a normal, run of the mill cell phone that had an IR port as a modem -- back in high school. That was beyond annoying, because the alignment had to be withing about 5 degrees, but it worked, and back then 9.6kbps was not unbearable even for the web. These days I do it with Bluetooth when I am traveling, and I can really only check my email via POP3.
Palm trees and 8
Cell providers also routinely filter data traffic, because they want to charge extra for mobile Internet and fax plans. Verizon definitely does this, and T-mobile kills fax but not dialup users. How this is not a violation of the Sherman act is a mystery to me.
Palm trees and 8
9 years late, we can welcome RIM to the new millenium.
Seriously, most geeks will have used cell phones as modems for years. I certainly did it back in the last millennium. In the old days, IR was the way to connect. Then when you got fed up trying to keep the phone pointed at the computer you got a cable.
Bluetooth replaced all that nonsense. And, today, we have software that turns your phone into a Wireless access point, allowing you to share your connection with the entire room.
Here's hoping I never have a job that forces me to give all that up for a Blackberry!
They have lots and lots of money.
A bullet may have your name on it but splash damage is addressed "To whom it may concern."
Nonetheless someone, somewhere, gets a hardon just thinking about it and absolutely cannot go on unless he finds a way to do it.
A bullet may have your name on it but splash damage is addressed "To whom it may concern."
I tried to do this with my Pearl when we went on vacation. Thought I could use my laptop on the trip when we wanted to find where to go, etc.
First roadblock is the cost. I pay $30 for my Blackberry data plan, can browse the internet... unlimited data they say. Except if you want to tether it to a computer that is another $30.
Then half way through the trip it just plain stopped working. I had to "reboot" the Pearl to correct the problem, where rebooting means pulling the battery out.
Otherwise I actually felt the speeds were decent, faster than dialup... probably 120k/sec, and this was over old-school GSM(not 3G).
This just isn't really practical. I just came back from a trip in Central America, and Internet access was easier to find than land or cell phone service. I have a feeling it's that way in lots of developing countries. My phone was useless. There were very very few land lines, but I could hop on one of many computers at hostels or Internet cafes and check my email.
I've been doing this with my Curve 8320 without Barry for some time now, via blueZ and rfcomm under Gentoo on my laptop. It's relatively stable and has enough bandwidth for casual web surfing. I was able to get up to 20KBps down / 11KBps up over EDGE.
Future events such as these may affect you in the future!
Bluetooth to my cell is a saviour in low-service areas where I can't find a quick access point.
I've been doing this for quite some time as well, although some of the new usb-attached modems from local cell service providers are very nice (and work with Linux).
- Michael T. Babcock (Yes, I blog)
I just got a Storm with an All-you-can-eat(but don't go over 5 GB/month or else!) data plan, but I think it explicitly excepts using it as a modem.
15.00 a month from verizon makes it available to tether. This is on a business plan.
Charles Wyble System Engineer
I just switched to a Nokia 6133 using t-mobile, and I've set things up so the laptop connects to the phone via bluetooth, and I set up a normal PPP connection using GPRS/EDGE. I also have the cable, but it is more convenient to use bluetooth (however, I discovered when my house lost power for 5 days and I needed to check email, that the bluetooth drains the battery much faster). I do have to subscribe to the unlimited data service on t-mobile, and speed depends on whether I can get GPRS or EDGE. Here is one such site that documents how to set things up. http://koti.kapsi.fi/mcfrisk/linux_gprs.html
They have lots and lots of money.
Sorry, but how can this comment be modded +3 Insightful?
Better mod this one +5 Informative:
"The Universe is very big!"
My UID is prime. Hah!
I used to do that with my old T-Mobile phone, but now I just have a Sprint PCI-E mini card built in. It's a hell of a lot more convenient than using a tethered phone.
I wrote up a script that uses traceroute to determine whether or not I have Internet connectivity via 802.11 or my wired Ethernet jack, and if not, it automatically connects the Sprint card. When I have 802.11 connectivity it traceroutes to the nearest Google box every 30 seconds or so and if it notices that I'm not going out through Sprint (yay interface priority) it disconnects the Sprint card. My laptop's WiFi switch turns the entire shebang off, so it's kind of like a "I can has interwebs?" switch. :)
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo!
even if you have "unlimited" there are TOS that forbid this. They have all done it.
Well, this was a nice article.
It obliquely credits my own article on the same topic - written a whole one day previously - while describing it as a 'review' of Barry. No, it isn't. It's a guide to the exact same topic covered in this article, only it's a hell of a lot more useful, because my article tells you exactly what packages to download for what distributions, and how to actually use them. Rather than just saying "oh, look, this application lets you do this, isn't it cool?"
Would've been a lot more useful to link to me. But then, my server probably can't take the load, so I should be thankful. :)
http://www.happyassassin.net/blackberry-tethering-and-more-on-linux/
What corporations are getting Blackberries w/out unlimited data plans?
Many blackberry "unlimited" data plans only include unlimited data destined-to and originating-from the blackberry itself. Data incurred when using it as a tethered modem is usually excluded from the unlimited bb data plan.
The rationale is that you can really only consume so much bandwidth with the BB itself. After all, its primary an email device with some modest multimedia capabilities. So they can give you "unlimited data" and the limitations on the device itself effectively keep practically everyone within the bounds they'd like. After all, its not like you are going to use it to seed torrents or stream hi-def video...