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As a ham, too (N7IJS) I recognize your implicit selection of 2m or 450 MHz. But I gently object to this, for reasons that I think will be obvious.
I was thinking of the itenerant frequencies around 151 MHz, but the bandwidth would be limited. I wasn't thinking of amateur frequencies, but my fingers sometimes have a mind of their own ;)
First, technology has been marching on in the last 10-20 years, and communications frequencies of 2 GHz and more are technically do-able and comparatively empty. (and with modern IC technology, even easy)
I'd love to see plans (or used commercial gear) able to do this - I've got a point-to-point application that I'd love to set up ...
Secondly, ham gear tends to be used for long-range communication (miles and watts) and generally has little or no ability to frequency hop/time hop or to automatically turn down transmitter power to be able to share frequencies over short distances (low milliwatts or even microwatts). Those high gigahertz frequencies would be ideal for communication over a few blocks distance. (Sure, packet has been done for years but it is a still-born development; they still think 9600 bps is a "fast" modem speed.)
The opportunities for this sort of thing are amazing. And remember, there are two types of spread spectrum - the high bandwidth stuff as well as the frequency hopping stuff.
I forsee locally-owned boxes that are the equivalent of a wireless phone switch implementing re-used freuqency microcells; the cost SHOULD be far lower than the current copperline phone systems, once the telephones are paid for. And they shouldn't cost much more than current 900 MHz cordless telephones, too.
Again, I'd like to see this, too... - -- Ed Carp, N7EKG Ed.Carp@linux.org, ecarp@netcom.com 214/993-3935 voicemail/digital pager 800/558-3408 SkyPager Finger ecarp@netcom.com for PGP 2.5 public key an88744@anon.penet.fi "Past the wounds of childhood, past the fallen dreams and the broken families, through the hurt and the loss and the agony only the night ever hears, is a waiting soul. Patient, permanent, abundant, it opens its infinite heart and asks only one thing of you ... 'Remember who it is you really are.'" -- "Losing Your Mind", Karen Alexander and Rick Boyes -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.2 iQCVAwUBMOqb1CS9AwzY9LDxAQGDQQP5AaMaKy6t4q6Xfog19JFAnuqxULH6r6UV 03I2sA+h1/vyM9fAuyUEwlBlKUrA3+tByM3VCn5Q2HH4twxwRRLRSn9peJG7fpnE pc36wVwqwXHvKslrSFA10Y5lahEzuS7NC+jTYgw6l+VF17yJaPw+dtXlpcsq+SMo bj3VDH6nVDQ= =vamo -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----