I live in San Francisco , the city where Wi - Fi memory access is considered a fundamental right field . Seriously , that ’s what our city manager , Gavin Newsom , say lately .
Of course , in a densely packed city full of badly configure router , free Wi - Fi is already a realness for many San Franciscans . In my construction , anybody can just bug into an unlocked router cleverly named WLAN whenever they get the urge . I already have five wireless web visible from my dwelling house personal computer , so you ’ll forgive me if I sometimes mistakenly believe that I ’m already living in a earth of omnipresent Wi - Fi .
Still , while Wi - Fi access may not make it onto the Universal Declaration of Human rightfield anytime shortly , the idea of this form of service being as freely and widely uncommitted as street brightness or paved roads is middling compelling .
Just as streetlights made the street safe and paved roads sped up commerce , it ’s gentle to imagine Wi - Fi bringing all sort of societal benefits to San Francisco — from a more calculator - literate population to a city take with next - generation vane services that commute the way we shop and socialize .
In fact , that chance may explain why Google Inc. is one of the 24 company that submitted proposals to supply the service . Not much is known about Google ’s plan , but it ’s suspected that the hunt locomotive engine giant may be plan to recoup the price of setting up a urban center - wide Wi - Fi internet by sell extremely targeted ads .
I cogitate that would be a mistake . San Francisco voters lapse a ban on newfangled billboard three class ago , sagely deciding that advert in public spaces cheapen civic life . So why stick in advertising ( and we ’re speak about advertising that could even be aware of the placement and online proclivities of its recipient ) into such a fundamental public service ? Why , money , of grade . But what are the lawful toll ?
If you look closely , there are more of import insurance issues surrounding municipal Wi - Fi than the dubiousness of whether or not the overhaul will transmit popup advertizing .
As my fellow San Franciscan , Technorati Inc. Chief Executive Officer Dave Sifry tell me the other day , the more interesting enquiry admit : How do you verify that the meshwork does n’t get abused ? How much bandwidth do you allow ? What about authentication ? What form of services do you allow ? File communion ? Mail servers ? How do you prevent your free meshing provider from becoming another kind of monopoly ?
“ If you think too naively about this , you may have a organisation that ’s really rife for abuse , ” Dave say me .
And the Google connectedness made him a little uneasy too . “ It does sort of make you wonder a little bit about how your Web surfing is then being trail and what are the privacy issues , ” he say .
fortuitously for Dave and me , Philadelphia may already be working some of these issue out ahead of us . It awarded a municipal Wi - Fi contract bridge to EarthLink Inc. this hebdomad that will leave about 135 straightforward miles ( 217 hearty klick ) of the city blanket with 1 M bps ( bit per secondly ) Wi - Fi by the end of next class .
Rather than wait on up ads , the EarthLink meshing will charge user US$ 20 per month for access and offer a reduced rate of $ 10 a month for depressed - income menage , spend a penny this municipal utility seem a little more like water than roads or street light .
It will be interesting to see how this grand sight develops . The mayor has already warn that he expects lawsuits , presumptively from distressed Internet servicing provider , and while there has n’t been much argument about the privacy or security concerns , the San Francisco Examiner recently ran two reader letter asking how safe all these Wi - Fi antenna might be . “ What kind of radiation will they be give off ? ” a reader asked , suggesting that the project be put on hold until the health risk of wireless networking are well understood . “ allow ’s not be in too bounteous a hastiness in the name of progress . ”
This bozo obviously does n’t live in my construction .
