Schwarzenegger mulling warning about wireless Internet piggybackers
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A proposed law mandating that makers of wireless Internet gear warn buyers to protect against unauthorized access was on the desk of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
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California Gov. Arnold  Schwarzenegger vetoed on Wednesday a bill that would have  required the state's employers to give workers written  notification if e-mail and other Internet activity is being  monitored at work.
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San Francisco city officials could bring the city&#39;s proposed Wi-Fi network closer to reality at two meetings this week as a key leader proposes significant changes to the plan.
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A Macromedia executive says wireless carriers are demanding specific menus, buttons and functions. Could Flash be the answer?
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Californians will have the right to decide for themselves whether their cell phone number is listed in a planned wireless 411 directory under a new bill signed into law last Friday (Sept.
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Preaching mobility to an audience teeming with cell-phone and laptop users, Intel CEO Paul Otellini looked into the crystal ball and predicted that Internet search will approach users instead of users approaching search.The Internet is not intelligent -- it has a drab interface and is in need of a serious face-lift, Otellini said during a Monday keynote at the International Consumer Electronics Show being held in Las Vegas.The Internet needs to be more interactive and needs to deliver a more visual and personal Internet experience, Otellini said.People feel disengaged with the Internet because it offers poor interactivity, Otellini said. Searching for data by starting a computer, visiting a search engine and then sifting through lots of information is a long process, Otellini said.With the help of better user interfaces, mobile Internet devices, and social networking, the Internet could get to know its users better to deliver a more personal experience, and that process is already under way, Otellini said. The Internet will soon be able to recognize a user, anticipate a data search and deliver related data before a user asks for it.Like the Nintendo Wii gaming console from Nintendo, once the Internet develops a sturdy interface users will engage with it, Otellini said. &quot;The popularity of the Wii lies with the interface, not the graphics,&quot; Otellini said. The experience brings people together in many ways through active engagement.Social networking is another way for people to connect, Otellini said. Many companies are working on cutting-edge technologies to boost social networking technologies to connect people and expose personalities to the Internet.Otellini demonstrated the use of eJamming Audiio, a social networking software and Web site through which musicians can connect and jam with other music enthusiasts. The band Smash Mouth jammed over the Internet with lead singer Steve Hartwell on stage, and other band members at other locations.As more people connect, the demand on the Internet will increase, and be facilitated by the adoption of WiMax, wireless technology that is being tested in 70 countries, Otellini said. That, in turn, could drive the demand for Internet-connected devices, Otellini said.Internet-connected consumer electronics will be able to anticipate the information users are looking for, sift the Internet and deliver data users are seeking, Otellini said. Using mobile Internet devices, Otellini said, will be &quot;like carrying the Internet with you. For example, such devices could anticipate and deliver requirements such as translation services or information on favorite meals for travelers.Intel is developing processors that allows consumer electronics to cope with the computing and graphics power demanded by high-resolution images or 3D interfaces of social networking sites like Second Life, Otellini said.Otellini demonstrated the Canmore system-on-a-chip platform, which enables high-resolution imaging and broadcast TV for consumer electronics devices. The chip includes the Intel Architecture processor, and an audio-visual unit that supports 1080p high-resolution imaging and surround sound.Canmore&#39;s computing power, graphics and audio-visual capabilities help devices do more while taking up less space, Otellini said. The platform, targeted at set-top boxes, TVs and media players, will be released in the second half of this year.Intel is already set to release the&#160;Menlow platform, a set of components including the low-power Silverthorne processor and Poulsbo chip set, that run ultramobile devices.
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Sleepy Spokane, Wash., has a secret: it's the wireless hot spot of the future
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By Tamara Chuang, The Orange County Register, Calif.  Jun. 5--MioNet   Rating: 3 (out of 5)    Purpose: Access your home computer when you're not at home.
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IT officials from three California cities detailed their experiences Monday with trying to set up municipal wireless networks, efforts that have yielded varying degrees of success.Speaking during the MuniWireless conference in Santa Clara, Calif., IT executives from Anaheim, San Francisco, and Los Angeles noted development plans for these networks, both for public services and to bridge the digital divide between those with Internet access and those without."Really, it?s been the applications that have been the driving force," said Robb McIntosh, information services manager for Anaheim.The city is in the process of building wireless links for public safety, public works, and other services. EDS runs the city's IT, McIntosh said. Meanwhile, Anaheim's citizen Wi-Fi network, intended for resident access to wireless capabilities, is 70 percent developed, McIntosh said.San Francisco's now-stalled efforts to build citywide wireless links were inspired by the digital divide, said Chris Vein, San Francisco CIO."[Bridging this divide] remains the driving force for us today," Vein said.Plans had called for a mesh network to cover all 49 square miles of the city. EarthLink was supposed to provide the system but that plan did not come to fruition. "Now, we're kind of stepping back, taking a big breath and looking at what we have to do next," Vein said.Anaheim's choice for paying for its citizen wireless network involves selling subscriptions. In San Francisco, payment options such as subscriptions or simply using taxpayer funds are still on the table."We're taking a look at everything," said Vein. "We haven't ruled anything out."Los Angeles also cited digital inclusion as its reason for seeking a wireless network, said Mark Wolf, assistant general manager for the city's Information Technology Agency.Wolf stressed the hurdles in having to provide wireless coverage to a city spanning 464 square miles and extending from the ocean to the mountains. Los Angeles has been doing Wi-Fi on a small basis and has been learning from cities such as Philadelphia and San Francisco. The plan is at a crossroads, Wolf said."It?s a good thing that it's at a crossroads and not cross hairs, in the sites of a gun," said Wolf.?Aside from the altruistic goal of digital inclusion, Los Angeles also is equipping its police force with sophisticated wireless equipment from Motorola. Video capabilities allow police to see a scene before arriving; other features include license plate-scanning, mobile digital cameras, and facial recognition systems.In other talks during Monday's general session at the conference, Padmarsee Warrior, CTO of Motorola, stressed that multiple wireless standards such as Wi-Fi and the newly approved WiMax standard will continue to coexist. While Wi-Fi is limited to covering hot spots, WiMax is good for covering large areas."The right kind of debate for the industry to have is what combination of these technologies provides true value to public safety, to governments, to municipalities, to consumers, to enterprise, to corporations, etc., as the world becomes mobile. And the world is becoming mobile," Warrior said.Speaker Esme Vos, co-founder of MuniWireless.com, emphasized applications for wireless. These included making wireless capabilities available on public transit so people can get their work done while commuting, traffic management, and energy management. Cities such as Riverside, Calif., Tuscon, Ariz., and Milpitas, Calif., are utilizing wireless to provide city services, she said.With cities doubling in size every five years but without the ability to double the number of municipal employees, cities are looking to leverage wireless, Vos said.
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Wireless devices slip past anti-gadget policies to open a new communications channel to lawmakers.
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Can Wi-Fi signals make you ill? Newshounds pore over the available literature, but miss something interesting about the claims
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By CHRIS WETTERICH STAFF WRITER  Did the city of Springfield move too fast to scuttle a proposed downtown wireless Internet network?   One member of the group that planned that network said last week that may be the case.
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Warning labels may soon appear on wireless Internet hardware after the California legislature passed a law that would require makers of Wi-Fi cards and routers to warn users of the dangers of unsecured wireless networks.
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A proposed law would require companies to keep detailed data about peopleâs Internet and phone use.
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Researchers say large numbers of wireless routers could be susceptible to a piggyback attack in dense urban areas.
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InfoWorld - Backers of a massive wireless network for California&#39;s Silicon Valley have yet to build promised test networks or complete a model agreement for local governments, but at least one executive expects those to be finished by year&#39;s end.
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While the news about municipal Wi-Fi has been grim lately, columnist Craig Mathias describes why he thinks it will inevitably succeed.