When it comes to access to broadband infrastructure, users are usually dependent on the services of ISPs, telcos or mobile phone providers. For several years now, radio network communities have been showing an alternative and autonomous path, providing freely accessible broadband coverage via connected WLAN routers. Projects of this kind initially emerged primarily in densely populated metropolitan areas, but recently an increasing number of such private networks can also be found in areas with poor infrastructure.
{jumi [plugins/content/jumi/newsgrafik.php]}Private, decentralized network 
"In view of the acutely rampant surveillance ideas and the data protection debate on the Internet, the concept of a privately built, decentralized broadband network with local servers and services is more topical than ever," explains Aaron Kaplan, chairman of the Vienna wireless network funkfeuer.at http: //www.funkfeuer .at, in conversation with pressetext. In principle, the network is freely accessible and can be used from anywhere within the entire network area. The prerequisite, however, is that you set up a WLAN node yourself and make it available. The association contributes the necessary bandwidth, which in turn can count on some sponsors such as the City of Vienna, but also ISPs such as Silver Server or next layer.
From a technical point of view, the nodes are not WLAN hotspots, as is intended by commercial providers or, for example, by Fon http://www.fon.com. Rather, the mesh routing technology used ensures that the fed-in bandwidth is intelligently distributed over the WLAN nodes. Thanks to the radio antennas used at each node, the nodes can be linked up to 30 kilometers without any problems. In order to achieve optimal network coverage, however, the equipment must be mounted on the house roof, which is a certain obstacle for potential new users, especially in the city.
WLAN network for the Alps 
"In addition to our endeavors to create an independent citizen network, the network always had an experimental character from the start. Using the technology, it is theoretically possible to span a solar-powered WLAN network from mountain peak to mountain peak and thus also to reach remote areas have so far been cut off from broadband technologies, "explains Kaplan. Even today, rural areas that are neglected by ISPs can benefit from such projects. Such a WLAN network is currently being built in the Weinviertel, Klosterneuburg and around Bad Ischl.
Regardless of the technical challenges, the Funkfeuer community is by no means made up of pure IT professionals and computer nerds, says Kaplan. "Of course, it helps if you have a little technical knowledge. But the community gives everyone the support they need who wants to participate in the project," explains Kaplan in a press release interview. "Almost all professional and interest groups are represented by us, from highly educated IT people to construction workers."
Wireless network boom also in Germany and Spain
In Vienna, the project, which was officially started in 2003, now has around 500 WLAN nodes, which means that practically the entire city and even far-away places such as Hainburg or the Leitagebirge are covered. The European front runner is currently Barcelona, which already has 9.200 nodes and an area coverage of over 10.000 square meters in its radio network http://www.guifi.net. But Athens (5.000 nodes) and several German cities such as Berlin, Rostock, Weimar and Leipzig have also been working on building private networks for years. In Germany, freifunk.net http://www.freifunk.net is the higher-level platform. (ck)
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