Anti-WiFi Wallpaper Available Next Year

it probably could be done also with paint by mapkinase · 2012-05-09 05:12 · Score: 4, Insightful

Americans do not use wallpaper much.

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Re:it probably could be done also with paint by ColdWetDog · 2012-05-09 05:17 · Score: 3, Funny

Americans do not use wallpaper much.
But if they would just use tin foil instead of silver (really, how bourgeois) it would be a major hit.
At least here on Slashdot. Maybe ThinkGeek could sell it.

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Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 05:23 · Score: 2, Insightful

Hope the paint is expensive... poor people in the hood generally run open WiFi!! :D
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 05:25 · Score: 1

Americans do not use wallpaper much.
But if they would just use tin foil instead of silver (really, how bourgeois) it would be a major hit.
At least here on Slashdot. Maybe ThinkGeek could sell it.
Amateur!
I went to my whosale club store and bought a pallet of aluminum foil. I then "wall papered" my entire house with it. No fucking wi-fi security problems here! No siree. Although, I'm stuck using CAT 5e for my internal network, but the fact of the matter is that I BEAT THEM! Ahahahahahaha! No sum-bitch is going to break into MY wireless - wire-less network!
Yeah man, I'm 'S' - 'M' - 'A' - 'R' - 'T'.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by TechyImmigrant · 2012-05-09 05:37 · Score: 2

In the US, you usually buy colored paint by choosing the color from a display of color cards and an operator taps in the code to machine which squirts the right ratio of dyes into a white base paint. Another machine then vibrates the can to mix it, while you get on with the rest of your shopping.
It wouldn't be hard to add a squirter of said silver particles to the machine. Pay a premium for a squirt of wifi blocker. Of course they couldn't patent this, because I just said it.

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Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jeffmeden · 2012-05-09 05:53 · Score: 1

I chuckled when they commented that it would "be priced at a modest premium vs classic mid-range wallpaper". Actual decorator mid-range wallpaper (nothing like the shit you will find at big box stores) is anywhere from $2 to $25 per *square foot*. That means a tiny 10x10 room can be anywhere from $640 to $8,000 to do the whole thing. This is why Americans generally eschew wallpaper (at least full-room designs) in favor of a nice coat of paint (about $50 for the whole room and you might have some left over.)
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 06:03 · Score: 1

They couldn't patent that, but they could patent a discount for not spraying in the silver bits.
Oh wait, they can't do that now either.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by mapkinase · 2012-05-09 06:08 · Score: 1

"That's why I am proud to be an American" (Anger Management)

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Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jklovanc · 2012-05-09 06:15 · Score: 2

That is true if you don't want to use your cell phone either. The pattern is designed to filter frequencies used by WiFi but not those used by cell phones. You can not do that with paint.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Omegawar · 2012-05-09 06:25 · Score: 1

There already is magnetic primer. It has little bits of iron in it so magnets will stick to a bare wall. Cover a whole wall in it and it blocks wifi pretty well.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by mcgrew · 2012-05-09 06:27 · Score: 1

I'd line the walls that face my street with foil if it didn't look so tacky and I could find EMF-proof curtains for the windows. Every time a car drives by I lose my TV signal (Shitty RCA tuner).
But wifi? Why paper your walls when you can just use encryption?

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Free Martian Whores!
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Narmi · 2012-05-09 06:32 · Score: 1

Why paper your walls when you can just use encryption?
To keep other Wifi signals out. It's a crowded spectrum.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Gerzel · 2012-05-09 06:33 · Score: 1

Another layer of protection.
Security is all about adding layers of protection at reasonable costs.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Nirvelli · 2012-05-09 06:39 · Score: 1

You can actually get EMF-blocking windows. I lived in an apartment building that was built to one of those new LEED Green Building standards, and it had special windows to block out heat from the Sun or something. Also concrete walls. TV reception was completely blocked, but as soon as you opened a window, channels came in perfectly clear.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by BasilBrush · 2012-05-09 06:52 · Score: 2

Well I wish they'd paint movie theatres in non-selective paint.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Goedendag · 2012-05-09 06:55 · Score: 3, Informative

Neither will this magic snake oil paper filter only wifi signals. The frequency (actually wavelength) of signals that can penetrate (or exit) a faraday cage are determined by the size of the holes in the cage. Holes will let wavelengts through that are shorter than the hole's size. Or to put it in another way: everthing up from the lowest frequency that can fit through the hole will pass the holes. Wifi happens to use a higher frequency (shorter wavelength) than GSM (and most mobile phone frequencies). If a GSM signal fits the hole, a wifi signal will have enough room left. Oh, and those holes don't know the difference between regular and emergency calls...
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Denogh · 2012-05-09 07:12 · Score: 1

It's not for security, it's for physical safety. WiFi causes cancer, you know.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by aztracker1 · 2012-05-09 07:20 · Score: 2, Interesting

But what about the cellular signals you *do* want?

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Michael J. Ryan - tracker1.info
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by aztracker1 · 2012-05-09 07:21 · Score: 1

If you've lived in an apartment complex recently you should know why. One apartment I lived in 2-3 years ago I had a list of about 20APs that were at least in range enough to come up on the list. It would be nice to block wifi but still allow cellular signals.

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Michael J. Ryan - tracker1.info
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by aztracker1 · 2012-05-09 07:23 · Score: 1

*THAT* would be awesome.. :)

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Michael J. Ryan - tracker1.info
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jklovanc · 2012-05-09 07:37 · Score: 1

That would assume that it was a Faraday cage. That is a reasonable assumption as that is the standard way of blocking radio waves. According to one of the articles it is a diffraction grid that can be tuned to the frequencies that it will absorb and filter.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by SomePgmr · 2012-05-09 07:39 · Score: 1

Exactly. In my condo (looking now), I can see 16 SSID's just in the quick-connect. I'm sure if I turned up a proper monitor for a minute I'd see at least half-again that number. And of course, nobody knows or cares how to spread the things out , so it's an ongoing battle.
I'd like a paint that blocks wifi, and some plain, less-expensive version of the same for the floor under the carpet.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jklovanc · 2012-05-09 07:43 · Score: 1

But what about if there is an accident in the theater and no one can call 911; panic will ensue. I can't phone friends to tell them how bad the movie is it is censorship and agains my right to freedom of speech.Sounds kind of dumb doesn't it but this is the logic used by many to blast BART for shutting off cellular coverage in response to a planned protest.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by lister+king+of+smeg · 2012-05-09 07:52 · Score: 3, Informative

what you really need is two layers the outside layer an antenna to pick up the neighbours wifi and this on the inside to keep them from picking up yours.

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Re:it probably could be done also with paint by BasilBrush · 2012-05-09 08:13 · Score: 3, Insightful

To be fair, the chances of an emergency requiring radio or cellphone on BART are far higher than in a movie theatre. And there are plenty more non-emergency but reasonable needs for communication whilst travelling.
For sure it's not many years since no one had any cellphones anyway, so it's far from disaster if people lose it for a while. But I think it's an over-reaction to take the service down because of a protest. Protests are an intrinsic part of being in a democracy and shouldn't be thought of as something to be suppressed.
The significant difference between the two is that when a movie ticket is bought, there is an implicit contract that you're not going to disturb other patrons by using cellphones. If you're unwilling to forgo them, then you shouldn't be buying a ticket.
But you don't reasonably forgo the expectation to use a cellphone when you travel on BART. Now it's part of the facilities it shouldn't be taken away without good reason. And I don't think a protest in the area is a good reason.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by peragrin · 2012-05-09 08:30 · Score: 1

That's why I prefer low powered jamming tied to the house lights for theaters, etc.
you generally only need one strong enough to drop out the signal strength.

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i thought once I was found, but it was only a dream.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Jane+Q.+Public · 2012-05-09 08:39 · Score: 1

"But if they would just use tin foil instead of silver (really, how bourgeois) it would be a major hit."
Foil-backed wallpaper has been available for decades at least. And it probably would indeed make a good Faraday cage, as long as you grounded it and your doors were metal too.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jklovanc · 2012-05-09 09:03 · Score: 1

And there are plenty more non-emergency but reasonable needs for communication whilst travelling.
People seemed to get along fine before cell phones were invented and traveling. Cell phones are a convenience and not a right.

Protests are an intrinsic part of being in a democracy and shouldn't be thought of as something to be suppressed.
There are plenty of other venues to protest rater than a crowded platform with trains moving by. How about the the court house that convicted the officer of involuntary manslaughter? The protest was planned only because some people didn't think that involuntary manslaughter was a stiff enough conviction.
The idea that people should be able to protest anywhere any time is not reasonable. All organized protests must have a permit to ensure that safety, ems, sanitation, etc are planned and available to accommodate the protest. All efforts must be done to accommodate the protests but sometimes that is not possible. A protest in an unsafe area is one of those cases. The protesters did not apply for or get a permit for this protest and it is therefore an unlawful protest.

And I don't think a protest in the area is a good reason.
This is where your opinion conflicts with mine. To me, a protest in a confined area where there is a danger of people being pushed or falling on to the tracks is a safety concern sufficient to deny large protest in that area. If the protest was allowed and someone was killed the headline would have been "BART fails to act in the face of protest. Innocent rider killed".
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by Goedendag · 2012-05-09 09:33 · Score: 1

They say that it are 2 square grids seperated by at thin film, with the grids rotated over 45 degrees. That would make it a cage in a cage. Difracting the signals will only bend the path of the signal. So the signals just end up in another place and that also depends on the incoming path of the signal. To 'absorb' this signal they have to be able to bend al signals, regardless of ther original path/direction, to a known absorber. The 'diffraction grid' has to be so tight that there are no gaps bigger than the wavelength they want to filter or there will be leaks. But they still needs some gaps somehow that are big enough to allow the longerwanted wavelength signals to get through the grid.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by nedlohs · 2012-05-09 09:51 · Score: 1

Which is significantly cheaper than the $80 per square foot it is being compared with.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by BasilBrush · 2012-05-09 10:41 · Score: 2

I don't agree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it.

The protesters did not apply for or get a permit for this protest and it is therefore an unlawful protest.
There's a big problem with the concept of protests being illegal unless sanctioned by government. Ref China, Russia, Syria etc.
For sure you personally might find the US government within some acceptable bounds right now, so it's reasonable to give them the right of veto over protest. But what about people who differ in that opinion? Is their opinion less important than yours? And what if in a few years time the US government is not one that you trust anymore, and they are suppressing your protest?

To me, a protest in a confined area where there is a danger of people being pushed or falling on to the tracks is a safety concern sufficient to deny large protest in that area.
If there was a serious risk of accidents happening due to the protest, then that's even more reason not to cut off the emergency communication lines.

If the protest was allowed and someone was killed the headline would have been "BART fails to act in the face of protest. Innocent rider killed".
As it was, if someone died, the headline would have been: "Cell network switch off may have cost life."
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jklovanc · 2012-05-09 13:26 · Score: 1

BART did not cut off all protest just protest in that one type of area.

There's a big problem with the concept of protests being illegal unless sanctioned by government. Ref China, Russia, Syria etc.
There are a very strict list of reasons that a permit can be denied and "we don't agree with you" is not on that list. The government is required to do anything reasonable to allow protests to go forward. This is very different from the countries you list because they deny protests because they do not like what the protesters have to say.

And what if in a few years time the US government is not one that you trust anymore, and they are suppressing your protest?
Any denied permit can go to court to get a ruling. If the government and the courts turn against the people and the Constitution there are bigger issues than protest permits.

If there was a serious risk of accidents happening due to the protest, then that's even more reason not to cut off the emergency communication lines.
Yet another person who never read about how BART mitigated this issue. BART has a separate radio system that was still in operation. They had officers stationed on every platform with radios that use that system. Every train operator had a radio that used that system. EMS uses the same radio system as BART. There are telephones in every station that are direct lines to BART. In effect one out of five possible emergency channels was cut off. To me, that is not a problem.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by BasilBrush · 2012-05-09 15:39 · Score: 1

Yet another person who never read about how BART
I never read about it at all. It's a local rail system in the US and I'm not American. We're only discussing it at all because you brought it up in a reply to one of my posts. I'm only going from what you said. I don't really care enough to check the details myself.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by johanatan · 2012-05-09 17:56 · Score: 1

Femtocell.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by jklovanc · 2012-05-09 18:18 · Score: 2

If you don't care enough to verify facts then don't make statements like "that's even more reason not to cut off the emergency communication lines." So, since you do not care enough to check facts, you are admitting that your statements are un-researched assumptions on you part that may or may not be true. I will keep that in mind when reading your posts.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by BasilBrush · 2012-05-09 23:42 · Score: 1

Stupid cunt.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by mcgrew · 2012-05-10 02:57 · Score: 1

It would be nice to block wifi but still allow cellular signals.

It would also be extremely hard to do. You'd have to come up with something (a mesh, perhaps) that blocked one frequency while letting another in. Not sure how close the cell frequencies are to wifi frequencies, though. I guess if you made your apartment into a faraday cage (like using this wallpaper) and having a repeater outside your window with an antenna inside the apartment it might do the trick..

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Re:it probably could be done also with paint by monkeyhybrid · 2012-05-10 05:15 · Score: 1

Obviously not that hard to do. From the first sentence of the linked article:-

A type of wallpaper that prevents Wi-Fi signals escaping from a building without blocking mobile phone signals has been developed by a British defence contractor.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by bkcallahan · 2012-05-10 05:28 · Score: 1

We will now.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by cthulhu11 · 2012-05-10 05:48 · Score: 1

Where exactly would we buy tin foil? The foil that's widely available is aluminium.
Re:it probably could be done also with paint by RockDoctor · 2012-05-11 06:59 · Score: 1

Have you covered the windows in indium-tin oxide or some other transparent conductor (graphene, perhaps)? If not, no problem ; your phone will work while you stand by the window, giving the snipers in the black helicopters something to aim at. But, of course, your Wifi is hackable through the window.
Or, just brick over the windows anyway. Who needs daylight?

--
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could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Trepidity · 2012-05-09 05:14 · Score: 5, Interesting

If I put some of this wallpaper on the walls between me and neighbors in an apartment building (and maybe even something similar on floors/ceilings), could this plausibly increase signal quality by reducing interference from the 50 (!) other access points I currently see within range?

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10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10

Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by LordNimon · 2012-05-09 05:16 · Score: 1

Yes.

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And the men who hold high places must be the ones who start
To mold a new reality... closer to the heart
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Hatta · 2012-05-09 05:18 · Score: 5, Insightful

That's kind of the entire point.

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Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Trepidity · 2012-05-09 05:20 · Score: 1

From the article it sounds like they were advertising it as a way to keep your signals from getting out, as a kind of physical security barrier--- not as a way of keeping others' signals from coming in. But perhaps it's true that they'll end up marketing it that way as well.

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10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by DigiShaman · 2012-05-09 05:21 · Score: 1

So long as your devices are not near windows. If so, a special window tinting will be required.

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Life is not for the lazy.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by vlm · 2012-05-09 05:22 · Score: 1

Talk to your local RF/microwave EE about waveguides and cutoff freqs and operating way the heck above cutoff. You won't like what you'll hear.
I almost guarantee you'll be constructing an efficient waveguide system in the lower VHF region, maybe UHF in hallways, depends on design. My open plan bachelor pad probably would have made a decent 20 meter ham band waveguide, but my little dorm room in college would have been more like 6M waveguide. Anyway this is probably going to increase noise levels. Even worse, because its cutoff is so low, you're going to multimode like hell and probably not be able to receive anything, even strong local signals. So an extra 20 dB of noise in the SNR plus massive multipath? no thanks..

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"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 05:22 · Score: 1

I'm guessing most of the market is for the crazies that cry that Wifi is giving them headaches.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by TechyImmigrant · 2012-05-09 05:24 · Score: 1

If I put some of this wallpaper on the walls between me and neighbors in an apartment building (and maybe even something similar on floors/ceilings), could this plausibly increase signal quality by reducing interference from the 50 (!) other access points I currently see within range?
It will also improve your own network by limiting interference between the APs you have in each room.

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I should use this sig to advertise my book ISBN-13 : 978-1501515132.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by pixelpusher220 · 2012-05-09 05:26 · Score: 3, Funny

ooo Tinfoil curtains! I'll make a killing, or rather my wife will when she sees them.

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People in cars cause accidents....accidents in cars cause people :-D
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by swanzilla · 2012-05-09 05:29 · Score: 5, Funny

Goodbye tin foil hat; hello stylish wallpaper hat.

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0 = 1 + e^(Alt something)
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by X0563511 · 2012-05-09 05:30 · Score: 1

Since probably most people here have no idea what multimode is:
Think echoes or reverberation, but for radio waves.

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For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by phoenix_rizzen · 2012-05-09 05:44 · Score: 1

Bah! Just modify the firmware on your access point to boost the transmit power and drown out all the other APs! If you do it right, you won't be able to see any other APs. And you may even be able to warm food on it, to boot. :)
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by beanpoppa · 2012-05-09 05:44 · Score: 1

Actually, multimode was about the only thing that I DID understand from the post.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by cpu6502 · 2012-05-09 05:53 · Score: 1

EM-blocking wallpaper would also block radio and TV reception. Or maybe just the UHF band. (Then again maybe I'm the only one who still uses that old technology, and most people don't care.)

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Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by berashith · 2012-05-09 05:56 · Score: 1

it is a shame that the windows will have to be covered also.
I have aluminum siding on much of my house. I am going to ground it when I get home to see if my neighbors routers suddenly stop showing up.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by tibit · 2012-05-09 05:57 · Score: 1

In other words: a conductive shield is a solution with serious side effects. An absorbing (dissipative) wallpaper would be much better. Perhaps a little bit of bulk conductivity but not too much would do the trick? No, this isn't what I had in mind, why, thank you.

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A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Jeremi · 2012-05-09 06:15 · Score: 1

Bah! Just modify the firmware on your access point to boost the transmit power and drown out all the other APs! If you do it right, you won't be able to see any other APs. And you may even be able to warm food on it, to boot. :)
Alas, the neighbors have already done that trick. Now I get Moire patterns on my retinas whenever I enter the kitchen.

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I don't care if it's 90,000 hectares. That lake was not my doing.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by jkflying · 2012-05-09 06:20 · Score: 1

Unfortunately that only boosts transmissions. My laptop, phone and ebook aren't going to magically boost along with the router...

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Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 06:29 · Score: 1

Insulating windows are already often coated with a very thin (transparent) layer of metal or metal oxide to reduce the emissivity. This coat also decreases radio transmissivity quite a lot.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Psychofreak · 2012-05-09 06:37 · Score: 2

Some probably will, but I expect your siding is already well grounded.
I had aluminum siding on my old house, it was grounded in several spots (plumbing for garden hose spigots, electrical inlet and meter, AC unit, grounding spike, probably at a few other points too), and phones, pagers, etc did not work well inside. It was kinda nice most of the time. My wireless was very low strength, but usable, on the front porch in front of the picture window, and as expected very strong inside.
Phil

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Laugh, it's good for you!
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by Trepidity · 2012-05-09 06:44 · Score: 1

It sounds like this one is frequency-specific, so it would only block wifi frequencies. But I suppose it depends on just how narrow the blocked band is.

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10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by BasilBrush · 2012-05-09 06:57 · Score: 1

On the other hand, all that interference will presumably make it even better when your objective is to stop people using wireless devices in the shielded room. Like for example discouraging device use in a movie theatre.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by aslagle · 2012-05-09 07:03 · Score: 1

It's not old - most OTA HD signals are over UHF, at least in the US.
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by AioKits · 2012-05-09 07:24 · Score: 1

Judging from that picture it looks like the hat has given the wearer a stroke.

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"Quote me as saying I was mis-quoted." -Groucho Marx
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by couchslug · 2012-05-09 07:47 · Score: 3, Insightful

"Goodbye tin foil hat; hello stylish wallpaper hat."
Hello band-pass filter wallpaper hat!
Now I can SORT the voices in my head.

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"This post is an artistic work of fiction and falsehood. Only a fool would take anything posted here as fact."
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by mcgrew · 2012-05-09 08:48 · Score: 1

Back in the analog TV days we called multimode interference "ghosting." It's a lot worse with digital, rather than two of something on the screen you don't get a picture at all (I have multimode interference whenever a car drives by my house).

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Free Martian Whores!
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by vlm · 2012-05-09 09:10 · Score: 1

Filling your walls with BBQ charcoal and grounding it would probably work "OK", or at least better than nothing.
At microwave-range freqs finding a good absorber is no picnic as they tend to be annoyingly freq dependent. I had one piece of comm gear operating around 3 GHz that insisted on oscillating whenever I placed the cover on the enclosure... I tried all the usual conductive foams on the cover and it just wouldn't work. I ended up repackaging the amplifiers into smaller enclosures inside the main system enclosure with a cutoff freq much higher than 3 GHz. PITA and expensive.

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"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by vlm · 2012-05-09 09:16 · Score: 1

OK... a waveguide is exactly like a single mode optical fiber, but for much lower frequencies. If the waveguide is too small for the wave you wanna shove into it, it doesn't fit (cutoff). Look into your microwave oven... the microwaves don't stay inside because of the glass, but because they can't fit thru the holes in the screen door inside the glass.
Pitiful analogy is its like walking around in a funhouse full of mirrors while expecting wall power to radiate out of a power cord like a laser into the laptop charger on the other side of the room. Maybe a better analogy is find the crappiest most echo filled architecture you've ever experienced and try to have a conversation next to a loud generator.

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"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by X0563511 · 2012-05-09 09:24 · Score: 1

What? That doesn't make any sense, unless things are JUST right and you're getting a reflection from the car.

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For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by DerekLyons · 2012-05-09 09:49 · Score: 1

Maybe, maybe not. The signals will still come through windows, through unpapered areas behind cabinets and shower stalls, etc... Even on papered walls, there's going to be leakage through light switches and electric plugs (especially if you have plastic boxes).
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by mcgrew · 2012-05-10 02:18 · Score: 1

I figure either reflections, or more likely interference from spark plugs, since even a motorcycle will kill the picture and sound for a second. Perhaps both. Mostly, though, I think it's my shitty tuner.

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Free Martian Whores!
Re:could this decrease interference in high-rises? by X0563511 · 2012-05-10 02:50 · Score: 1

Yea, it's the firing electronics (not necessarily the plugs) or the fuel injection. That's not multimode though, just vanilla RFI.

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For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...

Mistranslation in summary by srussia · 2012-05-09 05:17 · Score: 1

The French "classique" should be translated as "traditional".

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Set your phasers on "funky"!

Re:Can it block EMP too? by vlm · 2012-05-09 05:24 · Score: 1

Ungrounded Faraday cage aka antenna just makes it worse. Just close the steel rack door and you'll be all good.

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"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger

no greater evil than wallpaper by alen · 2012-05-09 05:25 · Score: 4, Informative

being from europe my mom made my dad put it up on the walls. if you want to change it you have a hellish experience ahead of removing the old wallpaper

i will never use wall paper

Re:no greater evil than wallpaper by X0563511 · 2012-05-09 05:33 · Score: 1

Clearly you're not a redneck.
I've helped tear out a wall that had at least 20 layers of wallpaper on it...

--
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Re:no greater evil than wallpaper by Lashat · 2012-05-09 05:46 · Score: 1

Real rednecks re-use wallpaper as mountain money.

--
For every benefit you receive a tax is levied. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
Re:no greater evil than wallpaper by azalin · 2012-05-09 05:54 · Score: 3, Insightful

If it's properly applied (like using wallpaper glue and primer instead of say paper glue) just put on some remover (or even water) and the whole line pulls right of. A six year old with a ladder could probably do it. If you apply the wrong glue though, have fun.
Re:no greater evil than wallpaper by ooshna · 2012-05-09 06:23 · Score: 1

No real rednecks use it as a prom dress then peel off a layer and use it as a wedding dress...
Re:no greater evil than wallpaper by jkflying · 2012-05-09 06:46 · Score: 1

Change? Just layer it over...

--
Help I am stuck in a signature factory!
Re:no greater evil than wallpaper by tibit · 2012-05-09 08:05 · Score: 1

I agree. Imagine what fun it was to attempt to pull 30 year old straw wallpaper. It was a mat of ~1/32" diameter straw with a fine thread woven into it every few inches, to keep the straws aligned. They obviously did a good job of installing it -- the glue held very well, and somehow didn't think much of being soaked in water for hours. After suffering through removal of perhaps 50ft^2 of it, we decided enough was enough. It was easier to replace the drywall in the room. Hey -- the walls look new, and it was easy to pull some new cable in the wall, too.

--
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.

Old Tech is New Tech by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 05:25 · Score: 1

They had paint that did this in 1998, still sell it today. It used for allowing magnets to stick to a painted wall.

Re:Old Tech is New Tech by sunderland56 · 2012-05-09 12:31 · Score: 1

They've had rolls of wallpaper that blocks signals for decades. I've got a roll or two in my kitchen - it's labelled "aluminum foil".

how about passive cell-phone-blocking tech? by davidwr · 2012-05-09 05:30 · Score: 3, Interesting

Churches and theaters would love it, because the FCC can't say "you can't do that" without a serious court challenge.

--
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.

Re:Oh well thank god. by X0563511 · 2012-05-09 05:34 · Score: 1

Frequencies near the blocks will be attenuated.

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For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...

This will not help those who claim to be allergic by Kenja · 2012-05-09 05:36 · Score: 1

This will not help those who claim to be allergic to WiFi signals since their problem is psychosomatic.

--

"Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"

Great! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-05-09 05:37 · Score: 1

So finally Sheldon *CAN* stop Penny from mooching of his Wifi?

Warning to PC and smart phone users!!! by BenJeremy · 2012-05-09 05:37 · Score: 5, Funny

I used this wallpaper on my desktop, and now my wifi no longer works.

Took me a while to figure it out, but I've since switched back to my old wallpaper, and everything is fine now.

Re:Warning to PC and smart phone users!!! by azalin · 2012-05-09 06:01 · Score: 1

very nice. I will have to use this on the next guy who comes with "I have problems with my wifi".
Re:Warning to PC and smart phone users!!! by 140Mandak262Jamuna · 2012-05-09 11:56 · Score: 1

You talk as though wallpaper means something other than the background image on your computer/device screen.

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sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact

Can be anti-wife too. by gstrickler · 2012-05-09 05:44 · Score: 1

Just make it ugly enough, and it can be effective at reducing your chances of getting married.

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make imaginary.friends COUNT=100 VISIBLE=false

Downside by ThatsNotPudding · 2012-05-09 05:49 · Score: 1

It makes the walls optically transparent.

Already available now. by Lumpy · 2012-05-09 05:50 · Score: 3, Informative

Paint your wall with magnetic paint, wallpaper over it.

http://www.amazon.com/Rustoleum-223081-Rust-Oleum-Magnetic-Primer/dp/B000PU1D3I

Paint your walls with two coats of this primer, and paint into the electrical boxes to where you can ground it. I used under wallpaper speaker wire that is just a stick thin copper foil, I ran a 3" strip out the electrical box connected to the ground, painted over it.

Wifi and cellular coverage in that room is completely lost when the door is closed (which is also painted) and I have aluminum storm windows and aluminum screens on the windows.

Made a huge difference to RF interference to my ham shack. the number of "birdies" from crap in the home went down to nothing so I could pull in signals that were closer to the noise floor a lot easier.

--
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.

Re:Already available now. by ve3oat · 2012-05-09 06:59 · Score: 1

Made a huge difference to RF interference to my ham shack. the number of "birdies" from crap in the home went down to nothing so I could pull in signals that were closer to the noise floor a lot easier.
Sounds like either all the sources of the birdies are in that now-shielded room or all of your ham antennas are in that room.

Just embed particles in drywall panels. by Picass0 · 2012-05-09 05:52 · Score: 1

Most businesses when re-doing floorspace are going to move a few walls around. If they embed the silver particles in the drywall the business owner has the option of painting or wallpapering.

Block everything, install repeaters by petes_PoV · 2012-05-09 05:52 · Score: 2

Rather than "tune" the wallpaper to block or allow certain frequency bands, surely it's simpler to block the whole lot and then install hardware inside the screened room to retransmit the sorts of signals (not just their frequencies) that you wish to allow.

That way, as technology changes, you can easily reconfigure the system to accommodate new requirements.

I'd guess that's what most people do anyway - since this wallpaper has taken so ong to be developed.

--
politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons

Certified by TFH Institute by 140Mandak262Jamuna · 2012-05-09 05:56 · Score: 2

The anti-WiFi wall paper will be the second product to be certified by the Tin Foil Hatter's Institute. The first one to earn the esteemed and much sought after certification was Reynolds kitchen aluminum wrap.

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sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact

Re:Oh well thank god. by azalin · 2012-05-09 05:56 · Score: 1

Blocking should be ok, jamming isn't though.

Re:This will not help those who claim to be allerg by azalin · 2012-05-09 05:59 · Score: 1

As long as you tell them convincingly it works, it might actually help. If the allergy is in your mind the cure is also there.

Aluminum foil.. by Paracelcus · 2012-05-09 06:04 · Score: 1

The wide, heavy duty stuff, contact cement, conductive tape on joints, grounded at two points per unbroken plane. then cover with regular wall paper.

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I killed da wabbit -Elmer Fudd

Movie Theaters and Churches... by OldGunner · 2012-05-09 06:06 · Score: 1

...would make good beta testers.

--
Vietnam Veteran / Former Postal Worker -- Use Caution When Taunting!

Re:This will not help those who claim to be allerg by Beardo+the+Bearded · 2012-05-09 06:06 · Score: 1

That's not true.

These people -- whether they have a physical pathway that is known to medical science or not -- have a reaction to electromagnetic waves. This product blocks out those frequencies that they claim sensitivity to. If they feel better having bought the product, then what's the harm? You're not engaging in fraud, you are selling a product that blocks what they don't want in their house.

--

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ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.

Lead paint by MrEricSir · 2012-05-09 06:08 · Score: 2

How about lead paint? My apartment is covered in the stuff!

--
There's no -1 for "I don't get it."

Powerline Adapters in Apt Building? by CrashNBrn · 2012-05-09 06:15 · Score: 1

Why not just use a non-wireless router and a couple powerline adapters in an apartment building. It might be slightly more expensive, but if you only need to hook up a couple computers it would likely be worth it. You'd also have the option of putting in a wireless repeater/range extender in a given room for guests et al.

Lighting? by ninjackn · 2012-05-09 06:20 · Score: 1

So if a house has this copper particle wallpaper (or paint) does that mean the house is more of a hazard in a lightning storm?

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[FUCK BETA 2.6.2014]

Re:welcome to this product by jkflying · 2012-05-09 06:24 · Score: 1

1. Buy cheap house near antenna
2. Wallpaper
3. Sell 'antenna proof' house for full antenna-free value (AKA ???)
4. Profit!!!

--
Help I am stuck in a signature factory!

Brick by Caerdwyn · 2012-05-09 06:27 · Score: 2

Silver wallpaper? Cool! It will go with the 5000-dollar brick I put on top of my stereo amplifier to screen out cosmic rays.

How long do you think it will be before Monster gets into the wallpaper market and starts suing anyone who uses the term "wallpaper" in their domain names?

--
Everybody gets what the majority deserves.

Re:Brick by n7ytd · 2012-05-09 10:19 · Score: 1

And as a bonus, the brick is a tiger repellant, too!

They still wouldn't do it probably by Sycraft-fu · 2012-05-09 06:54 · Score: 1

Because of lawsuits. So person goes to theatre, it blocks cell signals. they have a heart attack, try to dial 911, it doesn't go through, they die. Now arguments aside as to if that would have saved his life, there is still likely a lawsuit. He tried to call for help, couldn't because of the evil, bad, naughty, etc, etc theatre and he died of the poor dear, nwo give us $50 million dollars.

Can't see it happening on account of that.

It also might not be entirely without merit. If someone is having a problem first I have to notice in the theatre, and I dunno about you but I'm always doing my best to ignore the audience and focus on the screen. Then if I do notice, number one thing I'll do is try to get my phone out to call for help. If it doesn't work I have to decide between staying to administer CPR/first aid, running to try and find an employee that has access to a phone (payphones are gone these days), or running all the way out of the building which can be pretty damn large for most modern theatres and not let you back in just on a lark (to get information on the person's status).

I realize they could contain it more narrowly than that, just to the actual screen and seats area, but then I am not going to be walking looking at my phone to try and see when it comes alive, I have to make a decision and act fast and I don't know where the dead zone ends. For that matter I don't even know why my phone can't get signal.

Re:They still wouldn't do it probably by Imrik · 2012-05-09 08:46 · Score: 1

Well if they don't hide the fact that you can't get a signal in the screen and seats area, you'll probably know where you have to go to get signal. This would probably save them the liability of a lawsuit and they could even bill it as a feature of their theater.

The Darkest hour - by dindi · 2012-05-09 06:55 · Score: 1

What comes in mind is the apartment form The Darkest Hour movie :

http://collider.com/wp-content/uploads/Sergeis-Faraday-Cage-The-Darkest-Hour-concept-art.jpg

Yeah, the movie wasn't great, but it was different enough from the usual space-monster-crap to be interesting. And the Faraday-cage apartment rocked :)

Re:This will not help those who claim to be allerg by Chris+Burke · 2012-05-09 07:03 · Score: 1

These people -- whether they have a physical pathway that is known to medical science or not -- have a reaction to electromagnetic waves.

No. These people are having a reaction to something, and are blaming electromagnetic waves.

This is an important distinction. We must separate the effect from the claimed cause.

If the problem is truly psychosomatic and the thing they're reacting to is in their own heads, then in theory if you take away their chosen bugbear (and they are aware of it) they should feel better. But then again they may not, and will just say the Wifi wallpaper doesn't work or it's one of the many frequencies the wallpaper doesn't block that is causing their problem. It's not like saying "logically, your symptoms cannot be caused by the cause you claim" is a magical way to make psychosomatic illness go away.

If the problem is not psychosomatic (and I fully believe this is the case for at least some of them), then something is affecting their health which is almost certainly not EM radiation, and so it will continue to cause them problems if you block the EM.

However, once again they are likely to continue to blame the EM. If they weren't predisposed to blame EM then they'd be looking at other, more likely causes for their problems already.

In neither case is the solution to the problem to indulge their misbegotten notions in order to turn a profit. It's either treating the psychosomatic illness with medicine and therapy, or trying to figure out the actual environmental or biological cause for their problem.

Don't do what they do, and get so fixated on a specific cause that we assume that the alleged but highly unlikely cause and the effect are a package deal. It's detrimental to their own quest for health because nobody can get past the idea that it must be caused by Wifi.

--

The enemies of Democracy are

Patent time! by SecurityGuy · 2012-05-09 07:30 · Score: 1

I'm going to patent the method and process of applying this technique through haberdashery to prevent control or surveillance of private contemplations.

Re:Oh well thank god. by tibit · 2012-05-09 08:07 · Score: 1

Why would it be illegal? You made that up.

--
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.

Re:This will not help those who claim to be allerg by macslut · 2012-05-09 08:30 · Score: 1

I hate those people. Now I have to put up with Anti-WiFi Wallpaper, which I'm all kinds of allergic to!

Re:My steel desk drawer doesn't stop wifi... by tibit · 2012-05-09 08:40 · Score: 1

LOL. That wasn't even close. It has nothing to do with grounding, never mind that at 2GHz, the grounding of the desk drawer is fairly immaterial anyway. Think about the impedance of the grounding wire and of the soil itself. The grounding wire will disrupt the RF field around it, but the fact that it ends in a spike in soil doesn't matter at all -- it'd only be measurable up for a few dozen MHz maybe.

The router is leaking RF energy through all the slots present between the drawer and the metal box the drawers slide. It's also using the ethernet and power cables as antennas. The RF energy confined in the drawer couples into the cables and exits the drawer. Same goes for outside RF: it's picked up by the cables, enters the drawer, gets reradiated into the drawer, and is picked up by the router's antenna. You'd be amazed how good this reradiation effect is. You can get a WiFi device, put it in a metal can with a cover soldered in, and just leave two small holes for power and ethernet wires to poke through. That's enough to make it work wirelessly. I have seen that test myself at an electromagnetic compliance (EMC) training. You can have all the shielding you want, but if you poke antennas through it, it's all for naught.

--
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.

Re:Wallpaper? by tibit · 2012-05-09 08:43 · Score: 1

Drywall would be much better, because you can easily mix additives into the plaster that would make it a bulk conductor: very good at dissipating RF energy away as heat. Making it selective would be a tad harder, though, because you'd need more targeted additives to act like distributed antennas with some resistance built in (say thin pieces of graphite "wire").

--
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.

Re:This will not help those who claim to be allerg by Beardo+the+Bearded · 2012-05-09 08:43 · Score: 1

These people -- whether they have a physical pathway that is known to medical science or not -- have a reaction to electromagnetic waves.

No. These people are having a reaction to something, and are blaming electromagnetic waves.

This is an important distinction. We must separate the effect from the claimed cause.

It's detrimental to their own quest for health because nobody can get past the idea that it must be caused by Wifi.

Oh, I had never thought of it that way. I just assumed they were having purely mental symptoms, so that blocking RF would help them out once they knew they were in a shielded room.

I would not have thought to look for a different cause. Now, if one can block RF and remove that from the list of possible causes of suffering, wouldn't that make it easier to diagnose what the problem could be?

--

---
ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.

Re:Just use grounded aluminum foil! by tibit · 2012-05-09 08:46 · Score: 1

You don't need to ground the aluminum foil to a water pipe. What for? All you need to get a phone off the air is a metal can with a tight-fitting, no-paint-along-the-line-of-contact metal lid. Old rectangular Twinnings tea cans with round lids would work without modifications I think. Newer Twinnings cans may need some sanding where the lid contacts the can, I'd think, but I didn't try it so just do it and report back :)

--
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.

Re:This will not help those who claim to be allerg by Imrik · 2012-05-09 08:47 · Score: 1

The best part is you don't even have to pay for the expensive wallpaper, just get the regular stuff.

cheaper solution by ozduo · 2012-05-09 12:43 · Score: 1

I just roll a big rock in front of my cave, blocks everything even stops the Neanderthals next door from borrowing a cup of sugar.

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I got to the chocolate box before you, that's why the hard ones have teeth marks.

What is old is new again by speedlaw · 2012-05-09 14:40 · Score: 1

I've an older home, where there is horsehair plaster on metal lath. That metal lath is the best wifi blocker I've ever seen...... I'd think the world's intelligence agencies have sensitive rooms covered with something like this anyway.

Useless if you have windows/doors by detritus. · 2012-05-09 19:03 · Score: 1

*looks out the window*
Honey! Get the kids to the basement, a Google car just turned the corner!
(,,,wait, radio waves travel through windows and other openings! Shit shit shit.... )
*runs to the breaker box*
*Google car drives by*
NOOOOO!!!! *Power goes dead*

*sobbing*
Honey, I think we just made a bad investment.

indeed it is frequency-specific by Herve5 · 2012-05-09 22:33 · Score: 1

If you look at the article photos, you'll see the filtering is by means of a printed conductive ink in patterns that are quite complex, visibly featuring capacitors at specific frequencies etc.
To me it is obvious this is not a simple Faraday cage but a frequency-specific damper.
So there is nothing lile "if a GSM fits the hole then..."
If the damper is well designed it'll kill a specific Wifi frequency, and it alone.

--
Herve S.

faraday for everyday by hjames · 2012-05-10 00:49 · Score: 1

Why be so limited as to blocking just wifi - why not just build a simple faraday cage for such luddites?
Beats tinfoil hats, for sure!

Some people have windows by vandamme · 2012-05-10 08:19 · Score: 1

....and I run Linux, but I have glass apertures on my house, so the aluminum-foil reflective insulation on the inside of my wallboard doesn't shield wifi that much.

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