I remember as a kid a sense of community.  Was this because I was living in a town instead of a bustling city?  I don't think so. It seemed as though community was still thriving. We knew our neighbors, even the ones we didn't care for that much, but we still knew them just the same.  And in that knowing, there came sharing, sharing of ideas, and of resources. The box of used clothing was passed around when a new mother was expecting a new born. Tools were exchanged between neighbors as well as recipes and smiles. Why don't we still do this? Why is it that as a community, we absorb so many identical resources and not share?

Nowadays, do we even know our neighbors? A man who has trotted down our street for years, one minuscule step at a time, his body barely moving, was just a guy we'd see, that is until one evening when my wife happened to speak with him for a while. She found out, Robert lived in the next building over – a stones throw away.  Robert has Parkinson's disease, and rather than wilting away inside his apartment, Robert's son suggested he get out everyday and move – move, so you can continue to move longer. Robert, a happy man and neighbor, unknown to us for years, and us all-the-while wondering why he moves so slow.  Well I guess asking answered the why – but why don't we ask much anymore?

I began thinking of community and of shared resources, and so I contacted two individuals in hopes they would share some of their knowledge and expertise and maybe a bit of insight into the new emerging digital communities.

Open Source Community

I asked Jason Amy, long time friend, programmer and fly fisherman, to explain what open source meant to him (open source, refers to software code which is open and available to the public, including free operating systems such as Linux and FreeBSD)  – he relates his hobbies to what the open source community truly is.

Joe: Describe your typical workday

Jason: Another day another dollar...gulp down my coffee to make it into the office by the same lousy time of 9:00. Same old crap, different day.

Joe: Sounds like you'd rather be doing something else.

Jason: If I had my way I'd travel the world fly-fishing and never set foot into an office again. I have to go to work, like most, to pay bills and to support my hobbies.

Joe: What are your hobbies, I know you are a big ``coder", but what's your favorite hobby?

Jason:  My main hobby takes control of my mind and body - fly-fishing. It is my release - my sanctuary. I have spent months and years tying flies that look identical to a non-fly fishing person. They would say, "These all look the same". But I would argue, "You're not looking closely enough - one has 5 less fibers and a grizzly hackle". I'm not sure the fish can tell the difference, but I like to think all my work pays off in the end. Probably not. But I love to do it and that will never change. The beauty of hobbies is that you control what you do, when you do it and how you do it. This is a fundamental of open source software. This is what drives the people who write software purely for free - open source software. The love of a hobby.

Joe: What happens in the more corporate structure of licensed software programming

Jason: Well... there's a time clock, options, stupid corporate meetings, stupid bosses that send emails about how we're behind schedule and need to ``put in a few extra hours this weekend" (all because some sales schmuck agreed to an impossible delivery date). There's the moronic HR department planning ridiculous events such as pumpkin carving in the meeting room at 3pm today (yet you have to work overtime to make up time for this stupid event) and mostly the WORTHLESS Friday afternoon ``beer thirty".

Joe: So what do the open source guys do?

Jason: The software hobbyists set their own schedule, their own releases and most importantly how they develop THEIR product (yes, I imagine they have their own ``beer thirty", but on THEIR time). These people do it for the love of invention. Anytime the word ``open-source" comes up I hear the Microsofties trumpeting words like ``quality" and ``accountability" and mumblings of how that isn't present in open-source.

Joe: Is it?

Jason: After dealing with Microsoft products for over 10 years, I would agree, yes, it's Microsoft that has neither quality nor accountability with their software. And open source does.  There is this thing known as google (yes, google runs on more than 10,000 Linux boxes,(see www.google.com/press/highlights.html), where you can find any question you have about any piece of open source software or, go to the website which hosts the open source software and you can talk with the person who wrote it (that would never happen with Microsoft - I know from personal experience).  It's this community of software hobbyists that feed off each other and off of ``Joe-user".  Anyone that uses and/or codes the software provides a cycle of feedback, which makes it better.

Software for free!  How can that be?  Is anything free anymore? How soon we forget about free libraries, theatre-in-the-park, museum day (once a month), nature walks, petting friendly neighborhood dogs, and yes, even television – just add rabbit ears.

A slice of community, albeit a digital community, people sharing their ideas online, through forums or email, and some never having met face to face, rather through the many miles of wire.  And now, some of those wires are being replaced by newer wi-fi (wireless fidelity) technology.

Enter Wi-Fi

I recently bought a wireless router and wireless laptop card so I could have internet access anywhere in or outside (within range) of the apartment, connecting with a DSL broadband internet service, I have joined the new wi-fi elite. Okay, I spent a hundred bucks and got the equipment. Big deal. A year ago when wireless routers hadn't quite become the rage yet, Jason and I had talked about sharing our internet service with an entire complex via inexpensive wi-fi router or wireless access point. Each person would contribute a small amount towards this fast internet service, lowering the costs. This idea now appears to be catching on as new wireless communities crop up.

My search for more information on the wi-fi craze led me to Matt Peterson in San Francisco, founder of the Bay Area Wireless User Group (www.BAWUG.org).  I emailed Matt to ask him about ``the wireless community".  Matt promptly called me back and informed me that he was not talking over a traditional phone, rather Voice-Over-IP (which means, he was talking to me through his computer on the internet).  He was using a service (not free) that sells very reasonable unlimited U.S. And Canada long distance service for a flat monthly rate, affording Matt to use this service as much as he wants and not requiring a regular phone line in his house. This type of service could be integrated in a wireless computer network allowing unlimited wireless calling without the need for a standard phone or even cell phone.

Matt's organization meets regularly and includes all types of people, from local government, venture capitalist, ham operators, and regular folks interested in wireless technology.  Being new to the wireless arena myself I asked if many involved in his group were sharing internet services.  Sharing resources is right up BAWUG's alley. Sharing ideas, and technical expertise in group meetings and on their website, Matt describes the user group as an ``educational network".  They talk about antennas, new products, and better security for wi-fi technology.  People interested in setting up a community wireless network in their local neighborhood, or a commercial wireless business, such as a cafe that offers internet on a pay-as-you-go basis.  

Matt started BAWUG after having attended the annual ``Burning Man" function, the week long community gathering which can be viewed as either one big party in the desert of Black Rock City, Nevada, or perhaps a venue for expression between diverse groups of people.  Matt said, ``We built a wi-fi network out there...an internal network...a project called playanet...there's a web site called playanet.org that has some pictures and stuff." He built an infrastructure in that far-out desert playa, a place where cell phones and pagers do not work. Burning man attendees can log in on a terminal at a kiosk or with their own laptop computer and setup there user name and contact information and include their actual camp position on a map-like website for easy locating by neighbors and friends.

Currently Matt and his partner Tim Pozar are enlisting the aid of police and other governmental agencies to get access to their rooftops and towers around the city to install their equipment.  They are conducting demonstrations of their easily replicated and reasonable wireless computer systems in hopes that they can build a wireless community in the bay area, connecting up multiple counties. They foresee a community of varied users, and are first concentrating on the public safety sector, an area that presently has very slow and expensive proprietary systems.  The San Francisco police department was given a demonstration of how to get access to Matt's hilltop wireless network from their police truck in a matter of minutes.  Access to important data such as wind reports if a major fire broke out...``that sort of thing...it certainly could be something to bridge the divide", Matt explained.  A redundant wireless system to compliment what is already in place for emergency needs. The problem with emergency systems is that they are rarely tested and maintained, and only used during an emergency. He envisions a system that can be used more regularly by city building and fire inspectors, using wireless tablet personal computers that could link up to check-off forms and diagrams that these inspectors could update on their regular routine surveys.  This way the system is in use on a daily basis, and everyone can get very comfortable using it. Another tier of use could be a ``co-op user", one who contributes $15 or $20 a month to have access to the network, including full internet access. On a smaller scale, another type of user would be an ``anonymous" user (visitors to a city, people who can't afford their own internet service, etc.).  This anonymous user could access the limited internet for free from a downtown recreational area or anywhere within the wireless range, so when my Kiwi friend Dave comes to the city, he could easily access information on bus routes, restaurants, and more importantly where the best pubs are.

One sideline note to those who are considering entering the wi-fi arena and sharing out their DSL lines with their entire apartment complex.  Be aware, that while some DSL providers such as Covad and Earthlink allow sharing your connection with family members or friends, not all companies  welcome this trend.  Unfortunately you must read your ``acceptable use policy" for your internet provider – they are all different.  I admit, it will be one ``boring" read but it will be in your best interest to do so. Special note: Cable companies usually do not allow the sharing of their services.

Is community returning; evolving into a virtual sharing society?  Sharing open source software down free wireless networks – people contributing their modern talents to help one another.  Will most of us continue to isolate ourselves and withhold our resources? Maybe the next time you're in need of a hammer or an internet connection or you have something you can share, you will talk to your neighbor.  And, oh yes, get their name this time.

My thanks to Matt Peterson, who can be reached at www.barwn.org or www.bawug.org or www.playanet.org and special thanks to Jason Amy, who can be found out in the great West of California on the rivers, streams, and ocean, fly fishing.

©2003 Joseph Beachy

For other articles in this series by Joe Beachy, check the Archives.

Joe Beachy is a former circus radio engineer, wearer of forty three hats, theatre tech director, and a refugee from Fox. He still resides in tinsel town.

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