[RFI] Metricom wireless network

[Tyler Stewart]

That's a good one.  Metricom went bankrupt Ch 7 years ago.

I heard just a few months ago that the company that bought the Ricochet
leftovers was teetering on the brink of extinction as well.

PEPCO had a bunch of their WAP sites and they are all derelict and I dont
expect them to come back...at least not as a public network.

There are probably thousands of the white Ricochet boxes around the DC area
on street lights....all still connected but no longer in operation.

PEPCO is using a product called Utilinet that is based on the same type of
radio and was designed by Metricom but sold off to a real company when they
dissolved.  900 mhz spread spectrum packet radios.  We use them for a
variety of purposes and will be using them for outage management and
probably meter reading soon.  They are in the identical white box to
Ricochet, but not quite the same and totally different network design.

The business model for Ricochet never made sense and it still doesnt for
public broadband access.  BPL is similar...it has no long term appeal.  They
are both too slow and too expensive to survive.

Tyler K3MM


-----Original Message-----
From: rfi-bounces at contesting.com [mailto:rfi-bounces at contesting.com]On
Behalf Of David Jordan
Sent: Saturday, March 27, 2004 4:11 PM
To: dj2001 at mn.rr.com
Cc: rfi at contesting.com
Subject: Re: [RFI] Metricom wireless network


What would you like to know about Metricom?  I'm one of a few guys that
is re-lighting the network here in VA.  The company is back.  They have
turned up Ricohet in Denver, San Diego and looking at some of the other
17 major metro areas.

73,
dave
wa3gin

dj2001 at mn.rr.com wrote:

> Ok, I went up to one of the boxes hanging from the street light and
> wrote down the name with the aid of my Nikon binoculars.  It is by
> Metricom.  Check out the link below.
>
> http://news.com.com/2100-1033-269362.html?legacy=cnet
>
> Dale
>
>
>
>
>
>
>> Hi John, dident recognize you with the new/old call.
>>
>> The boxes according to the power company guys I talked to are not the
>> same ones for reading the meters.  They are bigger square metal units
>> mounted on power poles, these are small white things hanging from the
>> light standards with antennas hanging under them, unless I was fed
>> some incorrect information.  I should take my binoculars out and read
>> the lable underneath and take a picture too.  By the way how do the
>> meters get the signal to the receivers?  I don't see an antenna
>> anywhere on my meter.
>>
>> Dale
>>
>>
>>
>>> Hi Dale -
>>>
>>> I believe the boxes you are referring to are very much in use for their
>>> designed purpose - remote reading of utility meters.
>>>
>>> 73,
>>>
>>> John  W0DC
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: <dj2001 at mn.rr.com>
>>> To: <rfi at contesting.com>
>>> Sent: Saturday, March 27, 2004 3:52 AM
>>> Subject: RE: [RFI] Bush and BPL
>>>
>>>
>>>>      only
>>>>   >they will involve broadband wireless access points and future
>>>>   >technology.  I  don't believe this is showing up on anyone's radar
>>>>   >screen yet.
>>>>
>>>>   They tried that around here and the company went BR.  The boxes with
>>>>   the little antennas are still hanging on the light standards.  i
>>>>   should get a pix and post it just for fun.
>>>>
>>
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>
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