David Geer

Most rainbows are colorful shining heralds that a storm has passed. "Project Rainbow" leaves us in a fog as to what is to come. So do frequently named participants such as IBM, Intel, AT&T, and Verizon by their silence. At its vaguest, Project Rainbow is a consortium that loosely ties at least the aforementioned companies together. According to a consensus of surrounding industry hearsayers, the purpose is a serious verbal rumination about the plausibility of a nationwide 802.11 network that all participants could profit from. The fact that Project Rainbow exists with such certainty while remaining so unidentifiable is part of its attraction for investigation, reporting, and discussion. Project Rainbow seems to be a loosely knit rallying point for certain known and unkn... (more)

Wireless U, Everywhere, USA

Universities across the country are increasingly implementing wireless solutions.The reason is twofold: better access for students in an information-centered lifestyle, and increased ROI for the academic institution. What drives wireless proliferation on campus? How will institutions keep students constantly connected? Wired infrastructure, seemingly available everywhere, is too limitin... (more)

When Your Phone Is a Chip

Industry players Wavecom and Intel have successfully entered the cellphone market with solutions-based, all-in-one chipset modules. These modules are waltzing OEMs over the line into the world of cellular phones. Wavecom Enables Turnkey Cellphone Business For companies in the CDMA market without expertise or experience in GSM, the Wavecom product affords the opportunity to slap this module ... (more)

M2M for Supply-Chain Management

No longer do people request information from machines, now they're all talking to each other! M2M technologies and applications span the supply chain. At near individual item level, RFID tags and sensors automate data communications about pallets and cases. Like bar codes, the devices are ID'ed and tracked, and with them the goods and inventory. For this tracking, the devices need a path... (more)

Cellular Voice and Voice over Wi-Fi

Alliances, competitors, technologies, hardware, and roaming line the path to dual-mode, cellular/Wi-Fi handsets. Another game of sit and wait has begun as major carriers ready themselves to swallow small providers whole once they have fattened themselves with successful Wi-Fi hotspots. Which end of this communications food chain are you on? Free spectrum is a good motive for providers to ... (more)