via the NYtimes
It’s scary to think that such a massive project rested in the hands of just one company: Earthlink. Projects in Philly, San Francisco, and Tempe, Ariz., and Portland, Ore. were all affected by the company’s sudden pullout, a decision made after its pro-Wireless CEO died from cancer and a new head took over. According to the new CEO, the Earthlink model was neither profitable nor sustainable. But Meraki, a project that uses mesh networking to provide wi-fi, is catching on in San Francisco (of course!). My brother attached one of their repeaters to his roof deck (with his landlord’s blessing, I’m sure!). Meraki has had success in other, smaller, rural towns, too. I can’t say that I fully understand how this works, but I think this is a more reliable way to build the network infrastructure. It’s like th web 2.0 way of building the web: give the community the tools and they will build it themselves, without needing the lean on larger, corporate outfits that are simply profit-driven.
