FierceWiFi June 29, 2005

• Houston to use parking meters in muni-WiFi
• Pakistan first country to face Internet blackout
• WGRA pushing for WiMax roaming standard
• iPass opens client-side connectivity
• NASA deploys mesh network at space center
• SPOTLIGHT: 243 Mbps WiFi chipset
• ALSO NOTED: Extreme's new WLAN switches, APs; Newbury releases Watchdog 5.0; and much more...

Houston to use parking meters in muni-WiFi

The city of Houston is planning to begin using its parking meters for more than regulating parking and collecting revenue for the city. The first step in the plan is to make the city's parking meters able to be "fed" not by coins, but by the driver's credit card information, with each meter connected to a central system through WiFi in order to verify the creaidt card information. The next step is to turn these WiFi-enabled meters into elements in a city-wide WiFi hotzone. The WiFi …

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Pakistan first country to face Internet blackout

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WGRA pushing for WiMax roaming standard

They sure move quickly: The WiMax Global Roaming Alliance (WGRA) was formed only a few weeks ago, and its leading member, RemotePipes, is already pushing for the creation of a system which will make it possible for WiMax users to roam among different WISPs. The WGRA is not a standards-developing organization, but rather a lose fedration of companies interested in developing a consensus around the preferred emerging standard. The organization may offer modifications to these emerging …

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iPass opens client-side connectivity

Pressured by corporate clients to allow employess to connect to enterprise networks through free WiFi hotspots, iPass this week has opened its client-side connectivity software to allow users to connect to the Internet through wireless and fixed networks which are not part of the company's aggregate system. Corporations would still benefit from having their employees connect to the corporate networks through aggregated iPass APs, as such a conenction would be free, but the new …

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NASA deploys mesh network at space center

The Space Shuttle program will resume next month, and Nortel will offer important service to enable NASA's critical information and data sharing among the Space Shuttle Discovery, the International Space Station, and NASA operations centers on the ground. Nortel's backbone routers already support the Mars Rover, the Hubble Telescope, and other NASA programs.

Nortel and Pronto are also making life easier for the many journalists covering NASA events. Nortel deploys a Nortel …

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SPOTLIGHT: 243 Mbps WiFi chipset

Israeli company Metalink says its new baseband chip, the MtW8170, when combined with the already available MtW8150 RF chip, makes a chipset able to operate at 243 Mbps. It will also be compatible with 802.11n. The company says that the WLANPlus could be embedded in digital video recorders, set-top boxes, HDTVs, media adaptors, and other consumer electronics products. Story

ALSO NOTED: Extreme's new WLAN switches, APs; Newbury releases Watchdog 5.0; and much more...

> Extreme Networks shows new WLAN switches and APs aiming to simplify centrally managed WiFi networks. Story

> Carriers in five countries will try out a $39 WiFi phone from Irvine, California-based Hop-On. Release

> Newbury Networks releases Watchdog 5.0 which precisely locates -- and blocks -- unauthorized users trying to enter …

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