Here’s an idea to gain independence from centralized internet service providers (ISP).
There’s a mobile app that connects smartphones via bluetooth to create a personal peer-to-peer network. The purpose is to connect groups of people in remote areas where there is no cellular coverage or wifi such as outdoor concerts and events in the countryside.
I think it would be possible to extend this idea to a hardware device that would act like a router to connect with other routers to form a decentralized P2P network. For example, I would have one at my home with the ability to connect to my neighbor’s, forming a P2P network from house to house throughout the entire neighborhood and city. These routers would just need to be powerful enough to communicate short distances. They would be on all the time just like regular home network routers. Maidsafe would be completely free of ISP-snooping if it can operate on such a network. This network couldn’t replace ISP’s entirely but just enough to make it difficult to monitor everyone’s activity.
Does anyone know if such hardware exists? My bet is that someone tech-savvy has thought of something like this.
This might be strange to follow on the the illustration; yet with a mesh network, on a white band is possible to eliminate the ISP, at least eventually
System on Chip (router) → SDR → WhiteBand → MaidSafe → Applications
The safe network is easily the content delivery network for the mesh network, and as enough nodes on the mesh network store enough chunks eventually the entire network will not differentiate between ISP connected orgins and Mesh Networked origins… (that’s depicted with the circle with 32 dashes and 17 are black meaning connected through the mesh network, and the blue ones through ISP)
So cool. It would be mind-blowing when this thing gets built. The implications could not be overstated too many times. If millions or even billions of people had one and participated in the network, it would send a clear message to governments about the world’s desire for free speech with no censorship and surveillance. Net neutrality would be secured. Anyone can host their own website free of cost and persecution. We would all be closer to a true global democracy. With Maidsafe, it would elevate the power of the individual to communicate and exchange ideas. Social apps would be bigger than Facebook, etc. etc. Internet on steroids. Internet on hyper-drive.
Check out the freedombox project, I think this is what you are looking for. From their site:
“Egyptian Democracy activists had trouble talking to demonstrators in the streets because the Mubarak regime shutdown parts of the internet as well as many cellular networks. If our internet plug is pulled, the box will use mesh routing to talk to other boxes like it. If any of them can get a packet across the border, they all can.”
I’m on their mailing list and I know they are aware of maidsafe too
ken Code posted on the Maidsafe dev forum about this. He’s apparently been talking to the Maidsafe team and mentions Maidsafe in his paper and crowd funding site. Looks pretty cool and workable. Availability, then time and promotion, to broad adoption is the key.
I can see that working, in countries where the Internet is censured especially. But as to replacing ISPs altogether, I think this is a bit too far fetched.
I think I understand your skepticism. If, however a wifi device was created that used the old television bands, then all bets are off. Those bands carry signals much further than conventional wifi - a hundred times further. If bandwidth increased or even remained about the same, then mesh networking combined with maidsafe could, well down the road, replace traditional ISP’s completely IMO. Not everyone would have to have one of these special wifi’s either - only a handful in a city who could then act as hubs for existing wifi tech - albeit, they’d then be akin to ISP’s.
ISP’s and those who own the current infrastructure will still be needed where long distances need to be traversed – e.g. for trans-oceanic transmission. The idea is to have enough P2P with SAFE networks scattered around the country and the world to make it difficult, if not impossible, to track everyone’s IP addresses as ISP’s/NSA do today. This illegal dragnet policy by the NSA to monitor the world, including US citizens, has got to go.
Agreed. Outernet would be another step towards a free internet albeit still a centralized one – someone would need to maintain and be responsible for the satellites. Ultimately, it can be shut down or filtered. It would also have to compete with SpaceX and Virgin Galactic who are each planning to launch hundreds and later thousands of satellites for a global internet via space.
I was surprised to find, that government level security (P25) for radio transmission still has issues i.e Transmissions are sometimes being made in the clear for reasons outside my scope…just seems like yet another limitation that a SAFE network could overcome.
eventually enough machines will have this that
ISP will be irrelevant
enough chunks of the safenetwork will be stored on mesh network connected devices
@faddat, considering wifi is not ideal for long distance; even though it is possible with a dish and line of sight;
What do you think about exploring mesh network capabilities in the white band - low frequency wireless networking, computers and routers instead of TVs this time…
The idea, to make a city wide mesh network using fewer devices, eventually making the cell phone tower equivalent mesh network between cities; I imagine that using wifi we’d need 100 times more devices, at same costs, it would makes sense to look into the lower frequencies, or perhaps combinations of both -
city wide at <900Mhz and then beaming those signals over wifi 5Ghz long distance a few miles away;
I don’t know, actually. Is it legal? If so, where / where not? I thought only 2.4Ghz & 5Ghz were unlicensed. This said, what people do with their routers is their business. Can you point me to any other hardware that does this? If there is no pre-existing standard, it could be difficult, and I am unsure if the radio we are currently using would support those frequencies.
phew that was a mouthful!
tl;dr:
I’m happy to assist with this in any way I can.
I’ve only read this which is about indoor mesh networking with white band;
Also I’ve seen a configuration which has a 1 mile radius and costs around 800 dollars for a full node of that;
Alongside these 1 mile radius devices, this a motherboard the size of a pci-e card - a graphics card size that runs at around 260 bucks -this however currently is way too expensive;
However as those graphics card size relays get smaller and frabricated for less expensive perhaps they will cost around 50 dollars and have high radius mesh network capabilities, through walls trees etc at less than 900 Mhz.
The 800 dollars rigs would suffice for seed routers throughout major cities;
If Qi can get code over to us, that code can be added to firmware. I, for one would love to check it out! We’re of course in no way opposed to being a part of a movement to limit ISP control of the internet :).
