The first comment that I want to make aboutthis CommsDesign article on wirless networkingis that I hope we’re drifting away from the use of the term “WiFi” for 802.11 and towards the more generic “WLAN.” I dunno why, but “WiFi” just gripes me every time I use it or hear it. It sounds too contrived.
Anyway, on to the news. The WLAN article is about HP’s plans to push for the development of public 802.11b/Bluetooth “hot spots” in parks, airline terminals, and other outdoor places in urban areas where people might want to be connected to the ‘net. These hot spots will provide an alternative to 3G, and in fact I thought it kind of funny that one perennially delayed wireless technology (Bluetooth) is on track to fill in the gap left by another (3G). The article attributes the lack of American interest in 3G to the fact that we Americans like to surf on decent-sized, color PDA and laptop screens and not the miniscule monochrome screens found on the current crop of cell phones. I know I definitely fit this description. I had enough of Lynx back in 1994, and my more recent experience with the “Sprint Wireless Web” triggered brutal flashbacks. So,bring on the color screensand WLAN hot spots.
