SAWUG [Stellenbosch Wireless User Group]

simons

simons

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Thought i should start a thread seeming though there are a number of people interested. Maybe put up a website.

Can someone make this STICKY!

ADD your names ppl!
 
well so it can be a more attractive topic.. just like the Jawug. maybe one of the moderators can make it sticky and why the hell not!
 
Well well

There seems to be a website.

I know of about 40 people scattered through town who'd like to be connected; Also would like to help out.

Problem is, for a commercial enterprise to do this legally will cost R16000 in license fees, yearly. (Plus R6000 for an application that may well be turned down - hah but ICASA needs the cash, don't they? Doubt it) For 100 users that is ~R20/month each, whoop dee doo and then they dont even yet have internet access or a signal hahah. So, the infrastructure to support this, will cost about R1500-R4500 per AP unit, of which you'd need 3-15 to cover all of town with reasonable quality. Say.. 9 or about R34000. So we're up to ~R50000, thats a startup of R300 per user and R160 yearly. Hmm, divide it by 6: R50000 - R80/month and the infrastructure is paid off in 6 months. Include the user Hardware which may be anywhere between R150 and R1500, lets say an average of R500/user x 100 users = another R50 000. So we're up to R100000 if clients cant afford startup fees. Thats R166/user to cover the costs in 6 months. So we'll have to do it in 10-12. Bad business. So say we do it.. R82/month...

Hey, guess what! That may just be doable!

Tell you what. Within this YEAR I will put up a site, where people can leave their Name, email, number and Address securely. Soon as I have 100 people's locations, all saying that they'd sign an R82/month debit order to be connected to a wireless semi-pseudo-mesh LAN of about 2~20Mbit throughput, I'll figure out a legal way to do it.. draw up the business plans (non-profit it need be), register a cc, get the licenses, bank loan, design a rock solid network with QoS so everyone gets their fair share, or evertything if theyre the only one online, do whatever it takes.

Keep in mind, the calculation does not include compensation for all the work involved - or markup - and is just raw hardware! Also, 2-3 months of the year, this place is a near Ghost-town. Also, the hassle of getting permission to put up AP's in crucial locations... bah bah bah.

I'm a madman. Maybe you should do it.
Or maybe we can get together a core of 5-10 people willing to invest their time and money to administer a "Community Lan".

See, the only room for feasibility in a project such as this, would be the advertising as well as other value added service possibilities. Such as offering Internet over the LAN. Technically there can be multiple service providers.

*sigh* So much time, effort, & what needed. For what? SO you can put up a webcam in Nubar to see if its worth going out?

Just drive over there, man!

Sure, I'll do the website... give me 5.5 x 50 days.
Burning to take on 5 guys who think theyre hot at Generals at the same time.
You each owe me a beer.
 
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You'll have my backing, I might be able to assist in the business plan. I whoever dont have much time to invest.
 
Who has!?

Cool. Well things are picking up speed... I'm almost ready to post a website address... the business plan is no big deal, we just need a shortcut on the market research.

But you know what... from what I've seen in the last week, thats no prob either. We put up a site, tell a few people about it, put up a poster here and there, and wait a month or two, we'll have pretty much everyone interested's contact details. I may have some time over the uni holidays.

Later guys...
 
Piranatjie...

Kyk 'n bietjie hoe laat is hierdie post! Dink jy ek het gisteraand geslaap....?

Besig om aan die system te werk...
Ek is nou so gatvol vir PHP, MySql etc etc bla bla Apache BLAH

Ook gatvol vir die internet... wil nie meer online wees nie :p

Sal nog so paar daggies neem.
 
Iemand kry koue voete...

you better take your Apache and fly it untill its online. Cool, I will wait till July, otherwise I have no choice other than to fork out the R2000, and join snowball.
 
Well...how about this? I wanted to start something similiar earlier this year...but the response was pathetic, so the website at http://swug.atspace.org/ has fallen into disarray. I'm way too busy atm to update it, or start a new one.

I was initially very enthusiastic, until I realised, that I'm a student. The costs and amount of work needed just can't be justified for the 2 or so years I have left here.

I guess if you are a permanent resident, you could make a plan, but the commercial services out there are probably the best bet for students.
 
I agree, it is alot of work, even just to put up the website. but the benefit of everything is knowledge !!! , Students should know better. we pay universities thousands just for educating us, sometimes it is cheaper or easier to let some1 else do it, but the knowledge that we gaid trying to DIY is "PRICELESS"
 
Yep, but I've had enough experience for this year...I've got my flatblock up and running, all wireless, about 7 clients...and the plan was for other flatblocks to do the same, and then connect everything by nodes. But like I said, there wasn't enough interest.
 
Compl33t said:
Yep, but I've had enough experience for this year...I've got my flatblock up and running, all wireless, about 7 clients...and the plan was for other flatblocks to do the same, and then connect everything by nodes. But like I said, there wasn't enough interest.
Click to expand...


so you r now off from the idea? :mad: I thought the more ppl that gets connected, the better for every1.

then in this case the only option is tunashishimi or snowball. i have some big payments for the next two months so i guess i can(will) just have to wait
 
Oh, I'm not off from the idea. Far from it, but we need cohesion in something like this.
If I know for sure that a node will pop up close to me, I'll put in the effort.

It was just a bit despiriting when I was so enthusiastic abou the whole thing, and almost no one showed interest.
Tunashishimi does have a good thing going, though. Apparently, those in the know tell me that the university is also getting up off its arse wrt wireless access for private students.
 
Like to know about the project

Hi.
Are you guys still busy with the wireless project of yours in stellenbosh ?
It sounds interesting to me that you guys are looking for a 24h connection in stellenbosh.
 
So sad that we haven't been able to get a community network moving forward.

I think the reality is that most of us have got some kind of network/internet access for <R300/month, so it's not really a priority.

But I do dearly want to start something, and will, soon as I can afford the time+money. Which may be never, seeing as I spend all my money on bank charges and cell phone calls.
 
John Nash, the guy that movie "A Beautiful Mind" is about, has some cool ideas about money. He equates it to a lubricant. :D

Haven't finished reading the whole paper. Anyways, if you guys are bored, go check out http://www.stwug.za.net/ and take charge or something....
 
How is this project getting on?

CTWUG will soon have some 5.8Ghz repeaters on Botlerey Hill. There is clear LOS into Stellenbosch if you are interested in joining the network.
 
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