[clug] Wireless network over belconnen

[Rohan Mitchell]

Hi all,
Some friends and myself are planning on setting up a wireless mesh 
network across belconnen, using 802.11b/g cards with debian, high gain 
omnidirectional antennas 
(http://www.amsterdamwireless.net/workshop-15-12/3.html), and AODV 
routing (http://w3.antd.nist.gov/wctg/aodv_kernel/), which means that 
instead of using standard access points in a hub and spoke formation, 
each node routes packets between its neighbours. A map of the planned 
area is available at http://undefined.homelinux.net/~zero/map.png . I've 
seen www.air.net.au, but last time i checked it looked pretty dead. Is 
anyone interested in reviving the concept with this project? At the 
moment we have around one person interested per suburb for a number of 
suburbs spanning from dunlop to aranda, but it is likely to be too 
sparse for good signal strength with factors like interference from 
trees is taken into account. Does anyone have some first hand experience 
of what sort of ranges and speeds you can get under these conditions?
In addition to more interested people to help bridge gaps, we could use 
some legal advice as to whether there are any complications with power 
levels if we use directional antennas, and also issues with requirements 
for a carrier licence if people share their internet access.
Also, any hardware donations (old server boxes, with at least one pci 
slot) would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Rohan