[p2p-research] Mesh - Not for profit Cooperative + "Megabytes" Currency

[Alex Rollin]

Very neat.  It is similar to the economy of scale that allows Vonic to
extend multiple routers into a neighborhood.

As you and I both mentioned there is little application for local area
networks, presently, but this could change quickly.

On Tue, Jul 20, 2010 at 12:33 PM, Sepp Hasslberger <sepp at lastrega.com>wrote:

> Alex,
>
> about the conundrum of a business model: The proposed spiderweb project
> builds an incentive around having an extremely high speed local connectivity
> and being able to collectively contract for high speed connection into the
> internet once there is a network of about a hundred or more nodes that
> collaborate. So the payoff is to have a proper internet connection at about
> half the cost of what we're being charged for now, for a slower ADSL line.
>
> Here is the article I translated from the Italian original
>
> *The Spiderweb Project – a citizen-owned WiFi mesh network*
>
>
> http://blog.p2pfoundation.net/the-spiderweb-project-a-citizen-owned-wifi-mesh-network/2010/07/06
>
> Sepp
>
> *
> *
>
> *
> *
>
> *
> *
>
> *
> *
> On 19/lug/10, at 12:29, Alex Rollin wrote:
>
> This brings up an interesting conundrum.
>
> If you say to people "There's a mesh network!  It's free!"
>
> They say "Free Internet!  Yes!"
>
> And you say "No!  It's an intranet, with strangers!"
>
> And they say "...oh...what do you use that for?"
>
> What would your answer be?
>
> As long as there is no plan for economic or other agreed upon interaction
> with node hosts there are no guarantees of net access, or the long term
> presence of the node itself.  They need power, shelter, the usual things an
> off-the-shelf robot needs.
>
> Freethenet's original model was to subsidize the node hardware for a
> business making a commitment to share an uplink with the public, within
> reasonable limits, for a duration.  In some cases the business would pay for
> it themselves, and those businesses got installed first.  The point was to
> increase traffic.  The business were enticed with advertising, but, in
> effect, it was a decision about whether they wanted people loitering with
> laptops.
>
> The main library in Amsterdam has recently removed power connections from
> the 7th floor, where the most comfortable couches are, and where the beer
> is.  It was a veyr busy spot.  They screwed the power connection covers
> shut.
>
> A
>
> On Mon, Jul 19, 2010 at 2:22 PM, Dante-Gabryell Monson <dante at ecobytes.net
> > wrote:
>
>> Hi Alex,
>>
>> thanks for your 11 points reply.
>>
>> http://freethenet.ca/ sounds like a nice model.
>>
>> ---
>>
>> I wonder if the first step could be to
>>
>> - evaluate the costs of setting up a few nodes/routers in a limited area -
>> without necessarily connecting them to the internet.
>>
>> - making it possible to anyone finding such nodes,
>> to download a software from these nodes on their devices ( options for
>> various OS ),
>> as
>> 1) enable their laptop/phone to be a participating node in the mesh when
>> they choose to
>> 2) giving them the option of sharing their internet, directly through the
>> wifi connection of their laptop/phone/...
>>
>> - I do not know *if such software already exists* -
>>
>> a later stage potentially being for people to modify the protocols of
>> their routers, or buy routers that are compliant with one/several
>> communication protocols ?
>>
>> ---
>>
>> for hardware , software, prices and protocols used,
>> openmesh hardware sounds nice.
>>
>> its nice to see *what is already available out of the box, and at what
>> price*.
>>
>> i do like the idea of being able to update and add multiple protocols,
>> even at a distance. ( although cracking concerns may be taken into account )
>> i also like the potential of using "batman" and "robin"
>> i guess all this is possible providing the expertise.
>>
>> ---
>>
>> *if cash is not involved* in exchange for internet data currency,
>>
>> the question for me becomes : *how to self-finance some of the ( purchase
>> of ) nodes* needed to keep a minimum permanent presence, especially in
>> areas where there are few participants, as to bridge zones with different
>> levels of mesh density ?
>>
>> / *what is the "cash" version of the "business model"* ,
>> even if it is a not for profit approach - which could partner with
>> existing not for profit mesh projects.
>>
>>
>>
>> Forwarded conversation
>> Subject: Mesh - Not for profit Cooperative + "Megabytes" Currency
>> ------------------------
>>
>> From: *Dante-Gabryell Monson* <dante at ecobytes.net>
>> Date: Sat, Jul 17, 2010 at 4:52 PM
>>
>>
>
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