Brian, WB6CYT pointed this out:
The National Science Foundation and Mozilla are sponsoring an initiative to bypass the wired web to bring additional people online and to provide survivability in times of disaster.
Sound familiar? Seems we're already doing some of that; perhaps some of us should apply for some of the grant money to spice things up.
https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2017/06/21/2-million-prize-decentralize-web-apply-today/
Steven,
Thanks for the link to the initiative. I agree that AREDN has already provided the means to meet the "Off-the-Grid Internet Challenge" portion of the WINS Challenge. In Southern California, we have experimented with setting up high speed mesh networks to support ultra-marathon races in the mountains and SAR operations in the desert which is precisely the type of solutions that the Off-the-Grid Challenge seeks.
I would like to form a team to submit an entry in the challenge. Are there any licensing or intellectual property issues with using AREDN, OLSR or MeshChat software in the challenge?
Russ
KI6MLU
The details of licensing is located here: http://www.aredn.org/content/ui-license
"The Smart Community Networks Challenge seeks wireless solutions that leverage existing physical infrastructure to provide robust access to the whole Internet in underserved areas."
I see two BIG problems with trying to float the idea that AREDN could be used to meet the goals of this challenge.
1. AREDN uses Amateur Radio frequencies, licensed (in this country) by the FCC. If the "underserved areas" are in the United States, or any country that issues licenses for the portion of the radio spectrum that AREDN uses, then all the users would need to be licensed Amateur Radio operators, and I don't think that is the intention of the challenge.
2. AREDN is primarily an off-the-grid system with links to the internet for limited use that is not a violation of FCC rules, part 97. The intent of the challenge is to provide access to the "whole internet". Clearly not in compliance with Part 97.
AREDN works as well as it does because we can operate in the "HAM only" portion of the band.
The quickest way to kill the AREDN (Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network) project is to allow non-HAMs with no intention of complying with Part 97 to overwhelm and flood the network with traffic to the internet. I don't consider the considerable investment in time and money that I have put into the AREDN network in Orange County, California to be "existing physical infrastructure" that non-HAMs should be allowed to exploit because the want "free internet".
Comments?
There are two challenges posted, with the first being more fitting to us in my opinion.
Challenge 1: Off-the-Grid Internet Challenge
How can we leverage wireless technology to keep people connected to each other and to vital information sources in the aftermath of a disaster where Internet access is unavailable or compromised?
Challenge 2: Smart Community Networks Challenge
How can we leverage existing infrastructure to provide robust wireless Internet connectivity in communities that need greater access?
A couple of individuals who also work inside the AREDN Team decided to submit a proposal in the contest. These individuals debated using AREDN name for a different project, or doing a spinoff project using the AREDN firmware as a base, but ultimately they ended up submitting it using the AREDN project name. I want to emphasis that while those individuals submitted it under the AREDN name they really did not do it with the full group involved, they hid many details and did not discuss it with key individuals in the team, especially myself the most senior programmer of the group who would of likely been tasked with implementing some vaporware features they included in the proposal. I suspect part of the reason they went with submitting under the AREDN name instead of a new project was a point raised that they would need to spend time building up the brand to get all the items required for submission built up to meet the sample requirements.
Ultimately as I understand it their submission did not win any prize money in Phase 1 and as I understand it even though they were invited to Phase 2 (a large number of groups were invited to phase 2 instead of just the phase 1 winners) they will not be attempting that.
I am told they would of ensued the winnings would of went to AREDN as a group if they had won but it certainly was not a full group project though I'm not really sure the group actually needs any funding unless its trying to make a profit which I personably don't see a need to do but I might be in the minority there in the fact that I donate time and server equipment because I'm committed to easy, reliable HAM data networks and don't see a need to be paid back for those donations.
But for anyone who comes across this in the future and wants to know what happened with AREDN in this there you go.