[FADCA] Willie and Joe - and WiFi. (Where is the software?)

[bud thompson]

Hi, Florida Amateur Digital Communications Association e-mailers - and a few
others who may be helpful.

Deltona FL  3/23/2003 10:13:43.8766

(The topic is Wireless Fidelity - WiFi - I'll get there in a couple of
paragraphs.)

These days it is important to provide a date/time for almost every
communications as technology is changing so fast. You can be out of date
with some of this technology by the time you get a reply e-mail.

When I was trained to be a soldier, (circa 1854) the assumption was that I
would be out in the woods, armed with a muzzle loader, and with not more
than a dozen buddies. We'd hope that a hot lunch would be available sometime
this month. Today our front line soldier is in the open desert, spends 14-18
hours on The Line, then sends an e-mail to his wife, mother or father, does
a quick 'appearance' for the MSNBC embedded media guy, and actually has
toilet paper! Bill Mauldin's Willie and Joe never woulda thunk.

The topic is Wireless Fidelity - WiFi - and if you don't think that
technology isn't changing fast and getting a lot of ham attention, you've
not been paying attention! Get out your April 2003 QST, check the article on
page 28. "High Speed Multimedia Radio by Kris Mraz, N5KM.

No, Virginia, that is not the annual April's Fool article.

I have never invented anything.  I have no patients. I consider myself an
applications sort of guy. Someone else does research, makes empirical
investigations, invents, gets a patient, and I apply the results.  That
said, in my earlier Life's Work as well as ham radio, I have been
instrumental (perhaps creative) in combining Application A with Application
B - to meet a need or solve a problem. So, while not all of us can be
inventive, some of us can see the bigger picture. (I've been both
congratulated and chastised for thinking "out of the box".)

Okay -Now I need some help from those of you who have more computer,
networking, and WiFi experience than I.

Over the past month I've subscribed to the ARRL-sponsored  HSMM-related
WiFi e-mail reflector. I've read most, and scanned the rest, of the notes.
(Geeezee, is it a HAMTHING to flame, or a general male trait? After only two
weeks the flames were gaining in numbers.  After working my way through the
10 to 15 e-mails a day I have come to the following conclusions:

1.  Most of the 802.11(b) folks are interested in the RLAN (i.e. local area
net) aspects of a nationwide system that would allow ANYONE with a laptop
and wireless network card and a short stub of an antenna INTERNET access
anywhere in CONUS. - A nationwide wireless dream.

2.  Many of the hams involved are SHF RF geeks who want to prove they can
extend RLAN to RLAN backbones with either (a) less or (b) more power output
than anyone else.

3.  Some (as usual) are ham barroom lawyer wannabees who challenge
everything, reciting part and parcel from Part 97, offering little else.

4.  Not many are promoting specific applications (i.e. uses by end users)
 - just Internet access sans telephone lines or CATV cable.

Here I come with ideas for applications OTHER THAN just wireless Internet
access, but without sufficient COMPUTER applications experience. (I've been
'in' personal computers since 1981 but only got my first sound card in
October last year.  Echo Link is the only sound card application I've used.
The only computer game I've played since PONG is Hearts.  There MUST be a
breadth of computer applications out there that can help with integrating
WiFi RF networking to ham applications (i.e. EMCOMMs) that do not use the
wired Internet.

ARRL has coined this Ham Internet the HINTERNET.

REFERENCE  Page 28 April 2003 QST - . Figure 2. The Access Points (AP)
represent LAN/Switches just as with FPAC/ROSE on our layered network. The
HAM1, HAM2, HAM3 represent EOCs, Served Agency offices, tactical stations,
(a.k.a. users). (See http:www.fadca.org for the existing packet network.)

Now - get out of that box and stop thinking radios. No vhf/uhf/HF radios or
antennas anymore.  Only WiFi cards and sufficient antenna to reach an AP. No
TNCs any more. No telegraph keys, semaphore, or smoke signals any more.

What USER computer software/applications are presently available to do the
following (all of which is described as possible applications on page 29)?

1.  End-to-end digital messaging (e-mail) between "users".

2.  Voice over IP (actually full duplex telephone) between/among users.

3.  Video and video conference between/among users' computers.

4.  Web Cam applications.

5.  Remote Control by HAM1 of radios, etc at HAM3 location.

Microsoft Netmeeting is referenced in the article. How much of this will it
handle?

I know there are 'chat' and 'instant' messaging schemes that probably look
like ham digital stuff (upper screen receive text, lower screen transmit
text), but the controlling interface between two users is on the internet.
E-mail, per se, requires servers, presently though the internet.  How is
such handled on our emerging Hinternet w/o an internet connection? (Rick
KN6KB: For e-mail messaging can Airmail-to-Airmail be the answer if both use
Telnet terminal? I'll bet there needs to be a Telnet server someplace (e.g.
WL2K PMBO).)

I know there is software for all of these applications, but since I've not
used it, I don't know how much of it supports computer-to-computer w/o some
interface.  I suppose that "connections" could be made based on IP addresses
if the software doesn't need an intermediate controlling interface. We
certainly need more than a ping test from the Orange County EOC in Orlando
to the Daytona Beach Red Cross office!

Are we going to have to supply local or regional "servers" on our Hinternet?
Presently, my ISP has a server that gets me to the internet, another that
gets my incoming e-mail, and another that takes my outgoing e-mail.

My concept is that at user end points (EOC, Served Agency, ham QTH, mobile,
or fixed tactical station), a ham would sit in front of a computer with
headphones/microphone along with keyboard/mouse. Each user must have a way
to connect to a single or to multiple user(s).  A connect would also include
media/mode type (e-mail, telephone, video, etc) I imagine this could look
like the Echo Link menu (point, click, connect) - but without the Internet,
where is
this software to support end user to end user applications?

I'm guessing we would need UMBRELLA "menu software" of some sort to tie the
user addressing to media/modes.  It would be a hassle to have to run a
separate program for each mode (e-mail, telephone, video, etc.) each of
which had its own point and click connect scheme. The menu should be in
user-supplied English, not IP addresses.

How much of this can Microsoft Netmeeting handle?

There are other applications questions - Say at an EOC - We presently have
three hams each with a radio.  One is vhf, one uhf, and one HF. There might
even be another radio for packet with a TNC and computer.  How do all of
these guys use the Hinternet?  Does each have to have a separate
computer/WiFi card, or can we use something like WinXP or Windows 2000 and
have multiple users on a single computer via wired LAN? Each ham would only
have a keyboard, mouse, headset/mic and monitor.

How much of this can Microsoft Netmeeting handle?

If not MS Netmeeting, where's the software to do the job?

Thanks for any help you can supply in my continuing education.

bud N0IA

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