Toronto Hydro announced in March 2006 that it wants to turn a 36-square-kilometre area of the city's downtown into a giant Wi-Fi "hot spot" by the end of the year. Similar municipal Wi-Fi networks already exist in Ottawa, Fredericton and in the village of Whistler, B.C. Many U.S. cities (such as San Francisco and Philadelphia) also have launched city-wide Wi-Fi networks.Steve Del Bosco of VIA Rail Canada, demonstrates wireless technology, February 27, 2006. (CP Photo/Aaron Harris)
These networks all use the Wi-Fi standard which governs the same kind of wireless internet access now available in hundreds of smaller hot spots at airports, hotels and coffee shops across Canada. Many Canadians have also set up wireless networks in their own homes, normally with routers, so they can access the internet from basement to backyard with no wires needed. These, too, are on the Wi-Fi standard.
What is Wi-Fi?
Wi-Fi is a way of getting high-speed access to the internet via a wireless signal. With Wi-Fi, there's no need to hunt for a phone jack or a network cable. The name is a play on the old term, hi-fi – short for high fidelity – but actually doesn't stand for wireless fidelity. Wi-Fi is a trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance, the trade group that certifies that wireless equipment complies with the "Wi-Fi standard" (also known as IEEE 802.11 technology) All Wi-Fi networks operate within the 2.4 or 5 GHz (gigahertz) radio bands.
What do I need to get Wi-Fi?
You have to have a wireless-enabled laptop or notebook computer or other wireless device like a personal digital assistant (PDA). If your equipment doesn't have built-in wireless capability, you must install a Wi-Fi-compatible network adaptor or card. These are available for less than $60 at most electronics stores. They're not too hard to install, but if you need help, many stores offer installation at an extra charge.
Many people with more than one computer have set up wireless networks in their own homes. In addition to wireless cards, they must also buy a router, which costs up to $150.
How does Wi-Fi work?
Wi-Fi access to the internet is provided through wireless access points, known as "hot spots." In the wireless home network scenario, that access point is provided by the router. But hundreds of other hot spots exist in many public areas. Some cafes, airports, convention centres, universities, libraries, and hotels have set up wireless net access for their visitors and customers. Some access is provided free. But with others, such as the Wi-Fi access Via Rail offers on many of its trains in the Ontario-Quebec corridor, there's a fee.
Within the immediate Wi-Fi area, users have merely to switch on their wireless-enabled computer or PDA and their wireless network card will sense a signal. The locally-installed Wi-Fi access point transmits an RF signal to Wi-Fi-enabled devices that are within range of the particular access point. That range is often 100 metres. Once the strongest signal is established and the web browser is opened, the user can then connect to the internet.
To turn an entire city the size of Toronto into a hot spot, you need to create a mesh of thousands of smaller hot spots. In Toronto, the city's local power utility will do that by installing Wi-Fi radio transmitters on every fourth or fifth streetlamp pole throughout the downtown core. That would make wireless net access available everywhere in the blanketed area and will avoid the connectivity problems that sometimes exist around smaller hot spots.
Cities that have set up wireless municipal area networks say they boost tourism and convention business.
Is Wi-Fi the same as Bluetooth?
No. While both are wireless technologies, they operate in different technology protocols. That means that Bluetooth-enabled devices can't talk directly to devices that are just Wi-Fi-enabled, and vice-versa.
Bluetooth allows devices and peripherals to connect to each other without the need for wires or cables – a personal area network, as it's called. So a cell phone can be connected to a wireless headset, or you can use Bluetooth technology to wirelessly synchronize data between your PC and your PDA. Bluetooth uses short-range radio frequencies and is effective at distances of up to 10 metres.
It uses much less power than Wi-Fi and cannot transmit at Wi-Fi's speed. That's why Bluetooth is more suited to devices like PDAs and cellphones, which deal with smaller data transfers than laptops. Some devices are enabled for both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
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