The Wireless Internet And Wifi
History: The U.S Federal Communications Commission, in 1985, made bands of the radio spectrum available for use by the public, with no license needed, and this opened the way for Wireless Internet. The inventors of WI-FI (Wireless Internet) originally developed the technology for use with cashier systems. This was the NCR Corporation with AT&T , later known as Lucent Technologies and Agere Systems.
The person responsible for making the public aware of WI-FI is Vic Hayes, and is called the father of WI-FI, and the first Wireless Internet product was called WaveLan.
Today: Local area networks can be used for client devices, without the use of wires with Wireless Internet, decreasing the cost of networks and aiding in growth for many companies. Anywhere your laptop can go, you can use wireless internet. Manufacturers are now, from 2010, incorporating wireless internet into almost all the new laptops available. The networking option of wireless internet, because of the continuing drop in chip-sets for wireless internet devices, is a popular choice for both large corporate infrastructures, and small businesses. The beauty of wireless internet, unlike the mobile phone, is that any standard wireless internet enabled device can be operated from anywhere in the world.
Large infrastructures such as airports, even some municipalities, hotels and restaurants offer the free use of WI-FI hotspots to attract clients and new business. Wireless internet is so popular for the benefits it offers. The costs, freedom from wires, make it affordable and attractive for use in most businesses and in the home. It is widely available, and is very popular with laptop users who can take their wireless internet with them, as they are not restricted by wires.
Most Personal Computers, Laptops, Video Games consoles, and palm sized computers, MP3 players, smart-phones, mobile phones and personal digital assistants, as from 2010, have installed as standard, an IEEE 802.11 device, which makes them wireless internet compatible. All of these devices, and many other wireless internet enabled devices can connect to the internet, while within the range of an access point (wireless network) already connected to the internet. These wireless networks are called hotspots (access points).
The area covered by a hotspot can be square miles or square feet, depending on the overlap of the group of access points covered by the wireless network, which are all interconnected.
The Future: Wireless internet has made networks used by large and small business environments all but redundant. All the former wired technology is offered with much better benefits and capabilities as wireless internet offers a secure computer networking gateway, firewall, an detections system for intrusion, and a DHCP server plus many other benefits, cost being a large factor taken into consideration.
