Friday, May 22, 2015
Friday, May 8, 2015
Wireless
Fidelity: The History of Wi-Fi
Logan
Cason
ECPI
University
Wireless networks have connect the
world. Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs) use high frequency radio bands to
connect electronic devices; such as smart phones and tablet computers. WLANs
developed from smaller and more limited prototypes into todays ubiquitous standardized
version known simply as Wi-Fi. The earliest wlan prototypes were created in the
1970s and 80s. These prototype were solidified into standards in the 90s and
given the nickname Wi-Fi. This technology continues to advance with more speed,
security, coverage.
The history of this technology
stretches back to the early days of the Internet itself. The earliest prototype,
began in 1971 in a US state not usually known for its advanced
telecommunications tech. ALOHAnet was a wireless network that connected the
Hawaiian Islands via an Ultra High Frequency (UHF) radio band. Which is a much higher
frequency than those used by most terrestrial voice communication technologies,
such as radio and early cellular phones (Abramson, No date?). In 1985, the US
Government released the use of reserved UHF frequencies to the general public.
These bands had formerly been reserved for special uses in the industrial,
scientific, and medical fields (FCC, Nov 15, 2002). IEEE created a new protocol
for wireless communication in 1997 and labeled it 802.11 after the designation
for the committee in charge of its creation. A protocol such as this provides a
coded language that devices use to quickly transmit data. The 802.11 protocol
allowed faster transmissions using those newly released UHF bands (Lamstra,
2010). My first computer used a dial-up modem, so this is much faster!
The continued updates to the
protocol make WIFI technology faster, more secure, and able to transmit over
larger areas. These advances have taken shape many different ways over the past
two decades. Some people say the latest protocol version, 802.11AC, is capable
of up to one gigabit per second transmissions, and there’ll be over one billion
devices compatible with this latest version worldwide by two thousand and
fifteen. (Market Wired, Feb 08, 2011). Also, code security has gone through several
upgrades to its current iteration of Wi-Fi Protected Access, version two
(WPA2). This uses Advanced Encryption Standard, a more intricate level of
coding, it is now mandatory for all Wi-Fi certified devices (Wi-Fi Alliance,
2015). Finally, the race is on to provide Wi-Fi over greater coverage areas.
Entire university campuses and whole cities have began offering free Wi-Fi
coverage in the range of square miles, using out door Wi-Fi access points and
hotspots, a recent term describing an area of increased Wi-Fi coverage.
This
new protocol had meant that wireless transmissions were faster and easier to
achieve than ever before, but the public needed a name they could understand.
In 1999, a trade group comprised of
telecom giants—including nokia, lucent, and motorola—formed the Wireless
Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA) to promote the new technology to the
general public. WECA enlisted the help of a brand consulting firm called
Interbrand. The Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance asked Interbrand to came
up with a new name for the technology that was “a little catchier than ‘IEEE
802.11B Direct Sequence.’” Interbrand created the advertising slogan; “The
Standard for Wireless Fidelity.” This new slogan played on an older term, High
Fidelity or Hi-Fi, which is used to describe superior quality stereo equipment.
The name Wi-Fi was born. WECA soon changed its name to the Wi-Fi Alliance, and
they are now responsible for testing and certifying new devices for compliance
with the 802.11 protocol (Doctorow, Nov 08, 2005). As the protocol is
continuously updated to produce faster and more secure transmissions, new
devices must be checked for compliance with the latest version.
Conclusion
From the earliest prototypes of
limited coverage and speeds to the latest Wi-Fi covering entire metropolises at
gigabits per second, wireless Internet access has come a long way. Again, the
thesis statement is: those earlier versions of WLANs, although known by a different
name, gave us what we now call Wi-Fi. In 2014, the Wi-Fi Alliance celebrated
its fifteen year anniversary. The organization prides itself on its vision of
“connecting everyone and everything, everywhere.” On his website, the Wi-Fi
Alliance (2015) claims, “interoperability, ease of use, and innovation have
made Wi-Fi one of the greatest success stories of the last century, and Wi-Fi
has an extensive roadmap to carry the technology well into the future.” That
future may hold developments that connect the world in even more ways than ever
before!
References
1.
Abramson, N. (n.d.). ALOHA to the Web. HICSS Distinguished Lecture. Retrieved from http://www.hicss.hawaii.edu/hicss_31/specpl3.html
3.
Federal Communications Commission Spectrum
Policy Task Force. (2002, Nov 15). Report
of the Unlicensed Devices and Experimental Licenses Working Group.
Retrieved from https://transition.fcc.gov/sptf/files/E&UWGFinalReport.pdf
4.
William Lemstra, Victor Hayes, & Jenny
Groenewegen. (2010). The Innovation
Journey of Wi-Fi: The Road To Global Success. Cambridge University Press:
Cambridge, MA.
5.
Market Wired. (2011, Feb 08). “Zero to a
Billion; 802.11ac-Enabled Device Shipments to Soar by 2015, Says In-Stat.”
Retrieved from http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/zero-to-a-billion-80211ac-enabled-device-shipments-to-soar-by-2015-says-in-stat-1391854.htm
6.
Wi-Fi Alliance.15 Years of Wi-Fi. Discover Wi-Fi. Retrieved from http://www.wi-fi.org/discover-wi-fi/15-years-of-wi-fi
7.
Wi-Fi
Alliance. (2015). WPA2 Security Now
Mandatory for Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Products. Newsroom. Retrieved from http://www.wi-fi.org/pressroom_overview.php?newsid=16
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