Washington state ferries eye Wi-Fi

Bob Brewin   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other Mobile and Wireless Stories  

Enhancing Business Mobility with Convertible PCs Forrester Consulting Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World Case Studies Real Customers, Real Results Seven Steps to Secure and Seamless Field Mobility Sign up to receive Security Resource Alerts

October 24, 2002 (Computerworld) -- In the latte-fueled and Internet-obsessed Seattle region, 15,000 daily commuters who cruise to work on 25 Washington state ferries face dual withdrawal on a trip that can last as long as an hour: No Internet access, and, if they don't have cash, no caffeine either.
That's because until recently neither the funding nor technology existed to provide Internet access aboard the ferries, meaning passengers can't surf the Web or charge a latte and Danish because the boats' registers lack a link to process credit card transactions.
But Jim Long, IT director for the state ferry system, said Internet access for crew members, food service operations and passengers could be available as soon as next summer -- if the U.S. House backs a $1 million wireless project that won Senate backing earlier this year.
The measure, with the support of Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), could come up in the House when it returns to session after next month's elections.
"Washington state has the largest passenger ferry system in the nation," Murray said today. "Each week, commuters spend hours on ferries. I'm working to make wireless access available on ferries so that commuters can take advantage of the Internet and other communication services while they travel to and from work."
If the project gets the go-ahead, Washington State Ferries would become the first ferry system in the world to provide passengers and crew with continuous, high-speed Internet connectivity.
The Alaska Marine Highway System has installed wireless LANs on its ships for the use of the crew (see story), but it works on a store-and-forward basis with connections established only when the boat comes within range of access points installed at shore terminals.
Long envisions what he called a floating-area network (FAN) that would blanket each ferry with coverage from industry-standard 802.11b, or Wi-Fi, wireless LANs. These would provide the kind of high-speed connections needed to run credit card point-of-sale systems in ferry restaurants as well as help automate many onboard paper processes, such as crew scheduling and time cards.
He believes the public-access part of the FAN will answer a real demand from high-tech commuters who work at companies such as The Boeing Co., RealNetworks Inc. and Microsoft Corp. and are frustrated by the lack of Internet connectivity. Trips on the ferries can take as much as two hours a day round-trip on the 12-mile Bremerton-Seattle run and slightly less on the eight-mile Bainbridge Island-Seattle route.

Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"User finds that in the dairy barn, Bluetooth wireless beats a cellular connection hoofs down...." Read more... Read more Mobile & Wireless posts or See all Blogs

DNS hole prompts synchronized patching effort by IT vendors Microsoft plugs nine holes in Windows, DNS, SQL Symantec warns of new Word attack More top stories...

Microsoft sets XP SP3 automatic download for Thursday Don't give Google a free pass on data collection, privacy advocates say after YouTube ruling XP SP3 to reach most users 'shortly,' says Microsoft

This old laptop: Revitalizing an aging notebook on the cheap All it takes is a couple hours and about $125 to breathe new life into an old laptop. Here's how. Bill Gates moves on Is Microsoft's Golden Age over? What are Gates' most memorable quotes? Find out in Computerworld's complete coverage of the end of the Bill Gates era at Microsoft. Five things you should never tell your boss There are some things your CIO definitely doesn't want to hear. Also don't miss the flipside, Five things you should always tell your boss. Hands-On: Firefox 3 fixes what's broke and keeps what's right With its latest version, Mozilla's browser continues to raise the bar for what Web browsers should be. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland SecurityAsk a Premier 100 IT LeaderBlackBerry Legal BattleData Security BreachesElectronic VotingFirefoxH-1B VisasHP's Boardroom ScandalHandheld DevicesHurricane Katrina AftermathMicrosoft Legal IssuesMicrosoft's VistaOpen SourceRFID TechnologySCO's Linux FightSarbanes-Oxley ActSpamVoice Over IPWi-FiWindows Meta File VulnerabilityWindows XP Service Pack 3 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders2006 Salary Survey2007 Best Places to Work in IT2007 IT Forecast2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders40 Years of ComputerworldASPs, Take TwoBest Places to Work in IT 2003Best Places to Work in IT 2004Best Places to Work in IT 2005Best Places to Work in IT 2006Business Intelligence Home RunsBusiness Intelligence: Smarter BIBusiness Intelligence: The Future of BICRM Goes VerticalCRM: Sober CRMCareer Planning Guide 2005Careers: IT Profession 2010Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005Data Management: Mining for GemsData Management: Taming Data ChaosDevelopment: Hard-Workin' Web SitesDevelopment: New Tools New ChoicesDevelopment: The New World of Application DevelopmentDevelopment: The Web Services TsunamiDevelopment: Web Services HurdlesDisaster Recovery: Preparing for the WorstE-commerce Grows UpE-mail/Groupware: Big DecisionsFaces of Mobile ITForecast 2006Global MobileHardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple ChallengesHardware: On-Demand Un-HypedHardware: The Shape of Things to ComeHorizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge TechnologiesIT Management: Guide to Managing VendorsIT Management: Navigating Global ITIT Management: Recovery AheadIT Management: The Future of ITIT Management: The Resourceful Project ManagerInnovative Technology Awards 2004Management: Reinventing ITMicrosoft in TransitionMobile/Wireless Leaders and LaggardsMobile/Wireless: The Untethered WorkerMobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge CostsNetwork Management: Taking ControlNetworking: Turbulence Ahead!Networking: VoIP Goes MainstreamOperating Systems: In the Slow LaneOperating Systems: Linux Goes GlobalOperating Systems: Should You Nix Unix?Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's GuideOutsourcing: Outsourcing DangersPremier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in ClassPremier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in ClassROI: Do the Math!Salary Survey 2003Salary Survey 2004Salary Survey 2005Security Action PlanSecurity: Compliance HeadachesSecurity: Proactive SecuritySecurity: Risk and RewardSecurity: Tips From Security ProsSouped-up SecurityStorage: Battling ComplexityStorage: Cheap & Secure Data StoresStorage: Stretching Your Storage DollarsStorage: The Lean Storage MachineStorage: The New Rules of StorageStorage: The Ultimate Backup GuideSupply Chain: Missing LinksSupply Chain: RFID Reality CheckThe Business of SecurityWeb 2.0 SecurityWireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Business Continuity Zone Data Center Management Zone Enterprise-Class Security Zone The File Data Management Zone Grid Computing on Windows Zone Security Management Zone ITIL Best Practices Zone The SAS Zone Storage Virtualization Zone Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone See your link here

The Untethered Worker (Source: Computerworld) Today's roaming employees expect to be able to work in a conference room, airport, customer site or coffee shop. This report - covering wireless LANs, mobile applications and cellular networks - tells you how to get the job done, avoid chaos and maintain security! Download this executive briefing  Virtualization Everywhere Download this white paper, free, compliments of Citrix. (Source: Citrix) Adoption of virtualization is concentrated among large enterprises, while adoption by mid-sized companies has been much slower. For these companies, the cost and complexity of server virtualization solutions has been a barrier. In this paper, we'll discuss how Citrix XenServer" provides simple, economical server virtualization for any size company. Download now! Download this white paper  Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Long Tail Supplier Collaboration - What's In It For You? Download this webcast, free, compliments of Sterling Commerce Go to the webcast  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Virtualization Analysis for VMware A Guide to Understanding Messaging Archiving Archiving Compliance with Sunbelt Exchange Archiver View more whitepapers

• DNS hole prompts synchronized patching effort by IT vendors
• Microsoft plugs nine holes in Windows, DNS, SQL
• Symantec warns of new Word attack
• More top stories 

Computerworld Executive Briefing: Automating Network Management IThis briefing looks at the basics of network management, which tend to get lost in the dizzying array of products and processes. It also examines new tools that are on the way to help IT executives deal with management in the new era of automation. Download this Executive Briefing now (a $195.00 value), compliments of ProCurve Networking by HP.