Latest News from David Geer

Cellular Voice and Voice over Wi-Fi

Wed, 06 Oct 2004 00:00:00 EDT

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.

M2M for Supply-Chain Management

Thu, 20 May 2004 00:00:00 EDT

No longer do people request information from machines, now they're all talking to each other! 2M technologies and applications span the supply chain. At near individual item level, RFID tags and sensors automate data communications about pallets and cases.

The 7 Biggest Wireless Surprises Coming in 2004

Mon, 01 Mar 2004 00:00:00 EST

Wireless is taking off in a big way, but some surprises await us. How do you predict the seven biggest surprises about to hit the wireless industry? I spoke with two well-connected 'ringers' who have a keen sense of the industry. I absorbed their combined input and pooled seven responses.

When Your Phone Is a Chip

Tue, 25 Nov 2003 12:54:06 EST

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.

IM at Work

Tue, 23 Sep 2003 16:01:39 EDT

IM (instant messaging) for the enterprise is being touted as something new. Don't you believe it. I recall using ICQ Corporate at an ISP in Cleveland in 1998.

Space Shuttle Wireless Part 3

Mon, 28 Jul 2003 11:07:00 EDT

In this concluding part of a three-part series on the space shuttle, WBT's David Geer looks at spread spectrum technology and its role in keeping encrypted data secure.

Space Shuttle Wireless Part 2

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

In a continuing report on the space shuttle and the critical role that wireless technology plays in its launch, orbit, and re-entry, WBT's David Geer takes a closer look this month at the program's S-band and Ku-band systems.

Space Shuttle Wireless

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Which 'wireless that works' application wins the award for long-standing, highly critical, and longest distance? That's the wireless at work at NASA; in particular, the wireless technologies that are crucial in shuttle missions.

Wireless Keeps Island of 165,000 Dry

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

A modern-day Atlantis of sorts, the city of Richmond, British Columbia, Canada sits on an island - the delta of the Frazier River. A haven from the watery depths surrounding it, the landmass is made mostly of sand and silicon deposits from the river itself. The environment is flat - perfect for a critical-needs wireless network.

Wireless U, Everywhere, USA

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

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.

Nextel Steps Up Wireless Business Solutions

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Nextel is building on its industrial voice service success with a broad professional data service that features 30 new J2ME applications, with 20 more in the works. Starting with several choice partnerships and customers old and new, it is now set up to deliver tailored mobile data solutions.

The End of Telecom As We Know It?

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

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.

WHEN? This Is the Multimillion-Dollar Question Surrounding the Rollout of Wireless Handheld Entertainment in North America

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Outside of North America, mobile entertainment is commonplace among a vast throng of the young and mobile...but why do Europe and Japan lead the way? Is it just lagging technology or a combination of cultural and geographical marketplace disparities? Are the hardware and network limitations or barriers insurmountable? WBT's David Geer investigates, and speaks to sundry U.S. software developers who are jumping on the m-entertainment bandwagon right now even though its arrival still seems to them to be 1824 months away.

The E911 Dilemma

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

E911 is Enhanced 911, the service that would ensure that 911 calls made from a cell phone are tagged, routed, and handled in such a way that help arrives at the appropriate destination. If my cell account is from Ohio and I'm in Maine, witnessing an accident, I need to know that calling 911 will send an ambulance crew to my current location. We're close to E911 implementation and I believe everyone involved is working hard, but there are many reasons why it's just not that easy to put it into play.

The Spectrum Cap Fight: A Left, a Right and a Smoke Screen

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Is the cap lift equally capable of improving QoS and making carriers more profitable? Or only the latter? Unfortunately, we may not know until the smoke clears whether the consumers, the carriers, or both are the winners. On November 8, 2001, the FCC began a gradual lift of the spectrum cap for mobile radio frequency (inclusive of cellular PCS).

Is Worldwide Wireless Broadband Barreling Our Way?

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Worldwide wireless broadband connectivity is spreading around the globe. What technologies are taking us there? How close are we? What are the obstacles? Robert Hoskins, director of the Broadband Wireless Alliance (BWA), describes three network environments that help define the three available wireless connectivity types. 'Think about it more as PANs, LANs, and WANs,' he says, 'Personal Area Networks, Local Area Networks, and Wide Area Networks. All of these can be either fixed or mobile networks. You sacrifice bandwidth for mobility.'

BlackBerry Evolution

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

An unnamed source close to RIM tells Wireless Business & Technology that the RIM BlackBerry cellular phone (service by AT&T Wireless) is ready to ship. The device remains almost identical, adding a headset for cellphone capabilities. The major change (if you can call it that), in order to add cellular, is the headset jack at the top.

Tauzin-Dingell and the Baby Bells Sing 'You and Me Against the CLEC World!'

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

You don't hear much about the Tauzin-Dingell Telecom Bill, unless you're in Washington, DC, or in the camp of either the CLECs (Competitive Local Exchange Carriers) who oppose it or the ILECs (Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers) who we might assume all but wrote it. But Tauzin-Dingell (now in the Senate) would allow the Baby Bells to keep their legacy networks and any of their new broadband infrastructure developments to themselves. It would gut the Telecom Reform Act (TRA) of 1996. It could raise prices on all telecom services; it could be the end of some CLECs.

CodePoint = M-Commerce Success?

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Many blame WAP, a lack of 3G bandwidth, or both, for the m-commerce woes we've all experienced or heard about. But what every consumer wants, sooner or later, every consumer gets. In this case, some of us may be getting a truly user-friendly m-commerce solution as soon as this fall.

Drive-by Hacking?

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

How can your corporate network possibly be susceptible to drive-by hacking if your IS department hasn't set up or authorized any wireless LANs? Easily! A significant number of employees are setting them up on corporate campuses...without authorization. Read on for tips on how to protect your company.

The Future Shock of Wireless Wearables

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

Today, computers go everywhere with us. We port laptops, handhelds, and BlackBerry devices for every purpose from remote teleworking to anytime, anywhere e-mailing. As long as the device does its job, we don't gripe.

Wireless Victories

Sat, 01 Jan 2000 00:00:00 EST

The president tells us we are fighting a new kind of war. We have witnessed the first battle fought on our turf. The battle of September 11 was fought in part not just with communication, but with wireless communication the new manifestation of an age-old weapon. Here are the stories of six U.S. citizens and their personal, wireless victories over the events of that day.