Unwired
: Motorola announces a new neighborhood wireless scheme called Canopy that would let you provide high-speed wireless Internet access to your neighborhood — two miles around, up to 200 customers — for what seems to be a low cost: $1,000 for the access point antenna that beams the signal around, $515 for each customer’s antenna, plus bandwidth. The bandwidth is unlicensed, so anybody can set this up (zoning and condo boards willing). But I wouldn’t sell my Fudrucker’s franchise and go into this instead, not quite yet. Cable is still in a better position to provide the service because it’s already there and has the cash to underwrite the investment in equipment. Before cable Internet access finally came to my neighborhood, I would have been tempted and probably could have talked my neighbors into going in together on the hardware and bandwidth. But cable is easier. So this costs more than 802.11 but it gives a much better range and bandwidth. In any case: unwired is hot. [via Alterslash]
: Note, too, the NY Times reporting today on NYCWireless wiring — or should the verb be unwiring? — New York’s Bryant Park (behind the main library on 42nd Street).
Calling Rudy Guliani; they need you
: The San Francisco haters club — an apparently growing organization — will love this one (on Eminent Brain: The city fathers and mothers are debating outlawing public urination and defacation in The City. Jeez. I thought that was step No. 1 on the road to civilization.
