Hot Spot Problem Gets Hotter ...

Computerworld - ... with a compact, 6 oz. 802.11b Wi-Fi device that can turn a simple dial-up line into an online access point for an 11Mbit/sec. Ethernet wireless network. The WiFlyer from Houston-based start-up Always On Wireless Inc. will up the ante in ease of Internet access when it ships in mid-October. The $149 device creates an instant wireless LAN that connects up to 14 PC or Macintosh users. It can use its two Ethernet ports to connect to a broadband network or its RJ-11 connection to link to an ISP for Internet access. This creates potential security issues for IT, though. If the WiFlyer is connected to a corporate LAN inside the firewall by some enterprising data thief and then linked to the outside world via an unsecured dial-up line (and which of your dial-up connections are secure?), it could be a way to bypass your network security systems. On the other hand, as a tool for teams of corporate road warriors, the WiFlyer can be a real asset by making it possible to set up instant workgroups in hotel and meeting rooms and other locations with or without broadband access. Just another technology miracle you need to worry about.
Real-time RFID data capture ...
... hits 10,000 events per second with the ObjectStore RFID Accelerator, set to ship in Q4, from ObjectStore, a division of Progress Software Corp. in Bedford, Mass. Although you might be facing more than data-capture hurdles in your RFID exploits (see "RFID Adventure," QuickLink 49441), this tool is at least based on ObjectStore technology that's currently used for gathering data about high-speed events in financial markets, such as stock price updates. The stored data can be queried from its object database via standard XML expressions. Pricing starts at $25k, and the software runs on Linux, Solaris or Windows servers.

WiFlyer turns dial-up into hot spots.