Wireless Networks That Build Themselves 56
ScienceDaily has an interesting article that looks at ad-hoc wireless networks and how they might be even more useful on a large scale. The RUNES project is featured as an example of software projects that might be able to make mobile devices that form self-organizing wireless networks to help promote this goal. "RUNES set out to create middleware: software that bridges the gap between the operating systems used by the mobile sensor nodes, and high-level applications that make use of data from the sensors. RUNES middleware is modular and flexible, allowing programmers to create applications without having to know much about the detailed working of the network devices supplying the data. This also makes it easy to incorporate new kinds of mobile device, and to re-use applications."
Re:Responsibility (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Responsibility (Score:5, Insightful)
The day when this becomes real will be the day that traditional ISPs die. The only way to reliably monitor the traffic will be some kind of "seeding" where the monitor-er will put out relays that monitor the traffic that passes across them.
I think this is really possible in the long run, but in the short run I don't think most things have sufficient computing or broadcast power to make it a reality. Cool that they're working on it though.
Recipe for Cash (Score:4, Insightful)
ISP-less internet topology (Score:3, Insightful)
Thus a natural progression to further decentralization is exactly what is happening. Expect to see ISP trying to pressure legislators to ban this kind of technology, and spreading FUD about.