mattw.fn_blog()

MTL3P (Michael Lenczner) points out a writeup of the IS4CWN in Government Technology *Beta* (not sure if it’s a magazine or just a website).

He rightfully quotes the following:

“Compared to the more professional attendees of other wireless conferences like MuniWireless and W2i, the people at the International Summit for Community Wireless Networks are a ragtag bunch. They do things like walk up to a McDonald’s drive-thru window at 2:30 in the morning impersonating a car in the hopes of scoring some late-night food.

But its folks like this that invented wireless networking and, judging by the Summit attendance, they have spread their innovation to every corner of the globe. Their gusto was on clear display at the three-day affair in Columbia, Maryland, May 18-20, but so was a sense that big challenges are on the horizon.”

And it’s true, ISF-ers did impersonate a car in the hopes to score food. But what actually got the food in hand? Talking to strangers.

There’s probably a lesson here.

I just got back from the IS4CWN, and I have to say, Sascha throws a pretty good conference. This year, things were held in Columbia, Maryland, a prime example of American suburbery, but the conversation was anything but suburban. European and Latin American community wireless networks are growing faster and bigger than ever while North American CWNs tend to go muni or turn back into the pre-press-frenzy *fun* geek gatherings that they started out to be.

There are a pile of pictures on Flickr tagged IS4CWN. Dan Blah has a few over on Picassa that include the ‘mcdonalds’ story.. I took a few, but found myself conversing or consuming much more than capturing. Funniest/saddest of all, even in strobist country, with a pack full of flash gear, I didn’t even once break out a light, relying on sunlight and the dim flicker of flourescent tubes to fill my sensor.

By the way, captive portals are the devil to eye-fi and other browserless devices. I brought a battery powered kit with me for getting through them, but my guess is not everyone has one in their bag. I talked with the ISF guys a little about a global whitelist, but that’s probably not the right answer either. Any ideas?