SF WiFi: Mayor loses vote on EarthLink Google WiFiinitiative

Todd Boyle tboyle at rosehill.net
Sat Feb 17 19:44:05 PST 2007


At 05:48 PM 2/16/2007, Matt Westervelt wrote:

> > ... people might buy a thing if it was like, $50 to 100.
>At $50 to $100, you're never going to find anything that does what you
>want.


It is not *my* supply and demand curve.   It's 
the whole region's supply and demand 
curve.  There's 4 million other people in the 
puget sound region.   You can address your statement just as well to them.

I'll quit complaining about the pricing on the 
supply side if you quit blaming me for the low 
prices offered on the demand side,  two sides of the same coin.

You're completely missing the point, the spirit 
of my email.  I'm presenting my theories of why 
SWN didn't get mass adoption or grow 
geometrically etc. only because somebody 
asked.   I am not making a statement of what the 
device is worth, or even what it's worth to 
me.   The only thing that matters is, what's it 
worth to the people in my suburban area?  Such 
that a sufficient number of nodes got installed.

I've told you the device would have to be 
turnkey, and it would have to be real cheap.  I 
could be wrong.  But that's still my belief.

Should I be ashamed to admit that I don't know 
how to configure a linux host or an AP for bandwidth sharing?

Maybe.  But that would not make one bit of 
difference if I study, and learn, and practice, 
unless my neighbors also learn how to do 
it.   I'll be happy to introduce you to some of 
my neighbors--- they are nearly TOTALLY 
impervious to any stimuli that doesn't come 
either from their family, or their boss or 
client.  It doesn't matter what you try to talk 
about.  They just don't absorb.  They have 
attention spans of only a few seconds.  And they 
are so far from wanting to learn linux sysadmin 
or wifi configuration!   Seriously!    It has to 
be something you plug in, and it just works.

Todd

ps this was written by an earlier generation of highly talented unique guys,

  Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,
  And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
  Sunwards I’ve climbed and joined the tumbling mirth
  Of sun-split clouds – and done a thousand things
  You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
  High in the sunlit silence. Hovering there,
  I’ve chased the shouting wind along and flung
  My eager craft through footless halls of air,
  Up, up the long delirious burning blue
  I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace,
  Where never lark, or even eagle, flew;
  And, while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod
  The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
  Put out my hand, and touched the face of god.

Somehow, this by Jethro Tull seems more appropriate,

So you ride yourselves over the fields and
you make all your animal deals and
your wise men don't know how it feels to be thick as a brick.

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