A few weeks ago while on a flight from Minneapolis to Dallas, I passed the two million frequent flier mile mark on American Airlines. This revelation got me to start thinking about all the time that I’ve spent cooped up in a hollow metal tube and how much nicer it would have been with a decent WiFi connection!So far, it seems that market financial forces and the FAA have been the main sticking points keeping WiFi from making its grand entrance at 30,000 feet. The airlines have been under considerable financial pressure for years now and with the high price of Jet A fuel, the prospect of taking a plane out of service for a few days to install WiFi gear is the making of a nightmare for the airline accountants.

Also, the airlines and the FAA have spent years touting the dangers of wireless devices on planes (whether real or imagined, we don’t really know yet). Sorry folks, but it’s going to take a complete ‘about face’ before WiFi on planes moves into the mainstream.

The other issue with WiFi in the Sky is the backhaul links. Just lighting up the inside of a metal tube with 802.11 signals isn’t really the hard part. How do you get the data off the plane and on to the ‘Net?

The two main methods at this point have been to send it to a satellite or send it down to base stations on the ground. I’ve been on customer networks that have had satellite links between their locations and it’s not fun. Email and slow browsing are the facts of life. Slow bandwidth, coupled with high/variable packet latency kills most advanced media from traversing the link.

Ground based stations seem to have the promise of more bandwidth and more control over the network, but placement of base stations can be problematic, unless an already mature technology is used (i.e. EVDO/GPRS).

Whatever the future holds for Internet access in the sky, I sure hope is comes before I hit the next million mile mark!

 

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Managing anything in a K-12 environment can be a very strenuous activity. Imagine all those different school buildings, thousands of students, parents, and teachers and then multiply that by government regulation and bureaucracy. In this episode of AirWaves we speak with Michael Cooper of Oak Hills Local School District who has been managing a Cisco autonomous AP based network for several years. Michael shares his thoughts on WLAN network management and how he transitioned from an, “I’ll just console in,” management style to valuing the benefits of an enterprise grade network management tool. Please take a listen and provide your feedback in our forums.

 

 AirWave Podcast with Denver International Airport: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

There has been a lot of press recently around Denver International Airport moving from a “paid” wifi service to a “free” service. I had the opportunity to speak with Mikael Rasmussen who is the WiFi Manager for Qwest Government Services and has the actual responsibility for running and maintaining all of the wireless LAN services at DIA. The free network is getting most of the publicity today but Mikael also has the responsibility for other wireless LAN services that the airlines and the airport use for things like baggage handling and security. Mikael inherited the AirWave Wireless Management Suite when Qwest took over responsibility for the network but has quickly become a convert as he’s had to deal with legacy networks and multiple vendors. Take a listen and feel free to post questions on our forum.

 

 Ivy Plus League WiFi Panel: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This week we recorded a podcast with the main wireless LAN guys from MIT, Brown and Princeton…hence the Ivy+ League moniker. Chris, Don, and Daniel offer candid insights into how they are managing their campus wide WLAN deployments, where their networks are headed and how they are dealing with new technologies like 802.11 and the iPhone. These guys have been cumulatively running wireless networks for over 10 years and they have all seen the impact of different radio technologies, wireless LAN architectures, and physical deployment scenarios. If you are managing your own wireless LAN or would like to learn from people who are managing hundreds of wireless nodes and supporting thousands of wireless clients, please take a listen.

This is the AirWaves webcast (visit AirWave Webcast Library for more) to have, as we shattered our previous registration and attendance records featuring Craig Mathias’ presentation on everyone’s hot topic in the wireless space: 802.11n.

When will the first enterprise units ship? What will this mean for my legacy gear? Will my users be able to connect to .11n APs? Will my users with .11n cards be able to connect to my old B or G equipment?

Find out here:

Click here to view the “What’s New with 802.11n & Beyond” webcast

Jeremy Haltom has become a bit of a “diamond in the rough” for us here at AirWave as he continues to shine brightly as our guest speaker on some of the more pressing industry topics today. We don’t want to inflate his ego too much, but he does a great job of helping you understand what practical tips you can walk away from and put to use in your own WLAN environment.

This time, Jeremy helped explain the eight most common security threats facing a WLAN infrastructure today and how to deal with them, followed by an open Q&A with the audience. If you have any more questions for Jeremy or AirWave, feel free to post away in the forums.

And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for, Jeremy Haltom’s webcast on WLAN Security Best Practices:

Click here to view the Best Practices in WLAN Security webcast

As the wireless access point has continued its maturation process, the outdoor WiFi solutions have become robust and service providers are looking at new ways to leverage the technology.

The result is a powerful niche market that has caught the interest of cities of all sizes.

Muniwireless.com, owned and operated by Esme Vos, is a well-respected resource and we were lucky enough to have Esme Vos join us and share her insights on the industry.

Click here to view the “Municipal Wireless Market Overview” webcast.

MIMO? Unified Architectures? Dense WLAN deployments? Management & assurance? VoFi/Convergence? Location/Tracking? Scalability?

These are some of the trends that will define 2007.

But how?

Find out with guest speaker Craig Mathias:

Click here to view the Wireless Trends for 2007 webcast