Most excellent news:
By next week, downtown Champaign should be covered in an invisible wireless net making free Internet access available to almost anyone with a wireless laptop and other mobile devices using the common Wi-Fi standard.
Employees from Champaign-based Pavlov Media, which is installing the system as a community gift and publicity tool; Go Networks, the wireless equipment provider; and the city of Champaign began deploying the necessary hardware Thursday morning.
The project will place wireless access points, or nodes, on 10 locations downtown in an area bounded by State Street, Church and Main streets, Walnut Street and University Avenue.
The Champaign City Council cleared the way for the project in June by approving an agreement to allow the wireless access points to be placed on traffic signal and light poles.
Since then, city officials have been reviewing the system as Pavlov has settled on the equipment it will use, said T.J. Blakeman, the Champaign city planner who has worked on the project. The city is helping with the installation, particularly connecting the nodes to power.
"They'll be hard-wired into the lights," Blakeman said.
The city is allowing the installations at no charge as long as the service remains free, which is Pavlov's intention.
Hooray!
People looking for internet solutions (whatever those might be), and who appreciate this gesture of community service might want to take a look at Pavlov's website (it does use flash and have some sound effects).
Link: http://pavlovmedia.com/property/index.php
Let's hope the new downtown internet actually works, too.
"...the service remains free..."
There is no such thing as a "free" service.
awesome!