Free Wireless HotSpots Everywhere

Some of the ideas stated in this blog were thought of back when the idea was in fact MAD.  But in some case they sit around a bit and become REAL. This idea is one of those such that started out as mad and became real (or is in the process of becoming real).

Past Prediction of the Future

When I originally came up with the idea of ubiquitous WiFi everywhere, the year was 2001 and I had just discovered WiFi 802.11b.  It was fascinating and almost ridiculously cumbersome.  How could I check the connection if there was no cable?  At the time I had signed up with Earthlink DSL at a blazing 1024 kbps /128 kbps.  I was livin' the good life.

Many of my neighbors had dial-up connections, and most of them had computers.  But none of them had even heard of WiFi. By the summer of 2001 I had purchased and installed USB WiFi-B dongles for each of my neighbors (there were only 6 families) and set up a system whereby they could all access my Wireless Network at speeds up to 128 kbps / 16 kbps per user.  Yes, I gave it away.

Some of my neighbors were downright dumbfounded and my initial data showed that they barely used the free service that I was providing. But as they recognized the constant availability, they all came around to using it more often. And two of them felt that they should pay me a portion of what they had been paying their prior ISP.   The whole system worked out quite well, as my usage was often late at night, while theirs was often in the morning and early evening.

What's Happening Now

Alas, Google and Comcast have begun to do what did 14 years ago, although on a much grander scale.  Comcast X-finity cable modem / routers all have a 2nd, dedicated SSID labeled "Xfinity" that is open to anyone.  Just cruise your neighborhood (presuming Comcast is common in your area) and look for these Access Points. In the last year I've found over 500 of them when driving through Silicon Valley.

Google on the other hand is doing something similar, but through Google Fiber service, Starbucks, and a future Mobile Carrier service.  Google knows fully well that WiFi can handle the needs of the people far better than current Mobile data can.  The mobile service that they will likely roll out in the future looks to mirror the business plan of Republic Wireless.

Google's been supplying free WiFi on airplanes and in Time's Square for the past few years.  It's not apparent who else is willing to spread the love.  Hopefully in the near future this Mad Tech Idea about Free Wireless Hotspots will actually be everywhere.