Wi-Fi and WiMAX, Part 2

As mentioned in the previous post, WiMAX has some issues to deal with before it becomes widespread. One of these issues is compatibility with current computers. For this issue, consider the following:

These two technologies are like two sides of the same coin. WiMAX sends a signal out that covers large areas, but doesn't have the penetration to go through walls. Wi-Fi is a local area connection (LAN) network which covers smaller areas well, but doesn't have the signal quality to cover large spaces. In order to successfully install a WiMAX network, each building needs a Wi-Fi receiver to send the signal within each building. Without them, network users will get little to no connectivity.

Additionally, security is an issue with WiMAX. Even if people are able to get onto the wide area network (WAN), there is a limited amount of security available to protect those users. This broad signal is open, which limits the amount of security allotted to protect users from viruses, malware and other virtual attacks. By connecting through a Bountiful Wi-Fi access point, users are protected by the robust security afforded through this virtual local area network (VLAN).

In summary, WiMAX alone is not the solution that some make it out to be, but with the addition of Bountiful Wi-Fi's high-powered wireless equipment, WiMAX can serve a great public need for widespread wireless coverage for businesses and homes around the world.

Wi-Fi and WiMAX, Part 1

Special Note: Make sure to tune in next month, where the discussion will continue on WiMAX, and how Bountiful Wi-Fi can help with the issues mentioned below.

The wireless industry keeps talking about "WiMAX." It's the newest craze in wireless technology, but it's not the only wireless solution. There's 3G (a wireless phone and Internet solution), but soon there's going to be 4G; there's also Wi-Fi, the big player in the wireless computer market.

There are several hurdles that WiMAX must jump over before it can be widely accepted and used. First, there are problems with laptops and desktop computers. Most are now equipped with Wi-Fi capabilities, which is NOT the same as WiMAX. Some say that WiMAX is Wi-Fi on steroids, which is pretty much false, because even if a person has a Wi-Fi card in their computer, they can't automatically get on a WiMAX network.

The phrase should be, "WiMAX is 'like' Wi-Fi on steroids"; it's like Wi-Fi in that it's wireless, but it's on a different signal, and the signal needs to be converted into a Wi-Fi band transmission before individual, Wi-Fi-enabled computers can use it.

Secondly, the door is wide open for new players to enter this market. Cellphones - they seem more favorable to 4G - and PCs - thoroughly grounded in Wi-Fi - don't seem super-enthused about the technology, so other groups (yet unknown) are free to come into this WiMAX space to take root.

The third strike against WiMAX is really the most powerful one, and it has to do with businesses. Will business owners be in favor of a nationwide wireless network that their employees can use anywhere? You would think the answer would be a resounding, “Yes!" Unfortunately for WiMAX, businesses like privacy, and there have been no mentions of security over a WiMAX network. The idea of the technology is for a widely broadcast, open network. Wi-Fi, on the other hand, has multiple encryption methods to protect users.

The Take-away
That's three strikes, WiMAX, but people are holding on to their dreams of nationwide wireless coverage. This year has been a critical developmental time for the idea of wide area coverage.

WiMAX may fail miserably for now, but may emerge as a viable solution in another three to five years. The country, right now, is too well-rooted in 3G and Wi-Fi as the preferred solutions for cellular phones and computers. The need for WiMAX is not where it needs to be; the solution is currently being covered well enough by the other two. It must offer a unique set of advantages before businesses will accept it as a standard.

Wi-Fi on Steroids: What can 1 Watt do for you?

Consider the following comparison:

Most routers and access points put out a signal that's between 100 and 500mW. The signal strength of Bountiful® Wi-Fi's signature products is 1000mW; that's one full Watt of power! Plus, it isn't just the out-going signal strength that's blasted; the receive sensitivity is amplified to 1000mW, too!

With that kind of power, what could YOU do?

First of all, it means you will need less equipment to cover the same OR MORE area. For example:
- a two story, 7500 square foot house with ONE router or access point.
- a three story, 192 unit apartment building, leasing office and club house with 14 access points.
- send signal from one building to another up to a mile away.

Secondly, less equipment means you can spend less time maintaining an installed network and use that time to do other money-making jobs. It effectively boosts the return on your investment in time and money.

Also, if you manage the networks you install, Bountiful® Wi-Fi has the perfect solution for you: the controller. For any install with more than two access points, this manages everything from a central location. Just plug all of them in and the access controller will do the rest of the work setting up the access points. Then, this unique device will allow you to remotely monitor, control and change what you want to on the network. For more information on the BWRACWALL Series access controller, go to www.bountifulwifi.com.

In summary, Bountiful® Wi-Fi's powerful suite of 1 Watt products will allow YOU, the integrator or VAR, to:
- set up networks more quickly and with less hassle.
- monitor installed networks with ease from anywhere in the world.
- save money on equipment and installation time.

VARSense makes sense

How much money does the average VAR make off of wireless networking equipment? Many add an automatic 30% to what they paid so that they can make any money at all from the equipment. It doesn't seem fair, does it? Now imagine a wireless networking solution that gives you 2 to 4 times more coverage, and then imagine your business paying 20%-30% less than what anyone else is getting it for. Where could you find such a thing? The answer is the VARSense program at Bountiful® Wi-Fi.

Additionally, VARs and integrators receive the following benefits:
- price protection to ensure that you have the best price on every project you bid on.
- an exclusive VARSense community on Bountiful® Wi-Fi's website to get ideas, tips and tricks from other members of the program.
- training from the staff at Bountiful® Wi-Fi on how to install, optimize and market your offering.

Here's how it works:
1. You choose from our list of distributors (Synnex, D&H, Ad Hoc, Insight or Zones).
2. Order a Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Bountiful® Wi-Fi BWRACWALL demo kit.
3. Read the information included in the demo kit, try it out, then go online to apply for VARSense membership.

It's that simple, and you'll receive an additional 20%-30% savings for using Bountiful Wi-Fi's products as a VARSense member. You'll already be buying the most affordable wireless networking solution on the market, and if you sign up to be a part of this special list of integrators and VARs, you'll be saving even more!

Go to www.bountifulwifi.com for more details about the VARSense program.

Senior care facility unifies patient care with Bountiful® Wi-Fi

Background
Before implementing the Bountiful® Wi-Fi solution, their sites were disorganized mixes of various wireless network equipment. This mix of products never covered more than the administration office in each facility.

The owners had been looking for a solution to completely cover their sites in order to incorporate BlueStep®’s software, installed using existing network products. BlueStep® recommended Bountiful® Wi-Fi.

Site Overview
Guardian Angel Homes’ sites have between 4 and 6 wood-framed buildings, with each structure having between 40,000 and 70,000 square fee. They are a mix of single- and two-story, rectangle-shaped facilities. One building has an elevator. All are equipped with Ethernet connections that run back to the main building’s office space.

Solution
Bountiful® Wi-Fi’s powerful BWLWAPG1000 series wireless access points provide a signal that is 2 to 4 times more powerful than that of the competition, allowing for a quicker, less costly and simpler installation process. The multi-faceted Bountiful® Wi-Fi access controller, BWRACWALL series, provides an opportunity for Guardian Angel Homes to implement BlueStep®’s mobile medication tracking software at their facilities. They needed the network to do the following things before they would be willing to install the equipment:
• VPN tunneling to provide a secure connection for patient records.
• Auto-detect access points for hassle-free setup and use
• Connect the data pipe directly into an access controller’s WAN port and have it act as the DHCP server to avoid adding additional pieces of equipment
• Provide firewall and NAT capabilities to create a secure network
• Central management to create one place from which to manage the network

BlueStep® recommended Bountiful® Wi-Fi for its powerful networking solution and excellent customer service. Bountiful® Wi-Fi has worked with the company in other installs and has found that it offers a unique solution to senior care centers that are looking to mobilize their medical delivery and tracking systems, as well as, in some cases, offering Internet access to residents by utilizing Bountiful® Wi-Fi’s quad-SSID-capable BWRACWALL series access controller and BWLWAPG1000 series access points.

Implementation
Each Guardian Angel Home has a BWRACWALL series access controller and, depending on how many buildings are in the complex, between 4 and 8 BWLWAPG1000 series lightweight, 1000mW access points. The integrators installed one BWLWAPG1000 series lightweight access point in each single story building (40,000 sq. ft.) and two access points in each two-story building (70,000 sq. ft.). All were connected with CAT-5 cable directly to the BWRACWALL series access controller, located in the office space in the main building.

Result
The previously spotty, single building coverage was turned into a full, complex-wide solution with Bountiful® Wi-Fi.

The full coverage is exactly what Guardian Angel Homes’ was looking for. They are now able to reliably and affordable centrally manage each location.

Comparisons
Option 1
2.4 GHz AP (18) at $280.00 each
Controller (1) at $2,100.00
Switch (4) at $162.99 each
Cabling (4) at $200.00 each
Grand Total $8,591.96

Option 2
2.4 GHz AP (18) at $225.39 each
Router (1) at $159.99
Switch (4) at $84.99 each
Cabling (4) at $200.00 each
Grand Total $5,356.97

Bountiful® WiFi
BWLWAPG (8) at $289.00 each
BWRACWALL16 (1) at $1,491.84
Switch (1) at $150.00
Cabling (1) at $200.00
Grand Total $4,153.84*

In every instance, Bountiful® Wi-Fi beats the competition in cost savings. With Option 2, no controller is quoted because the ability to manage, control and change the network from one central location is not offered. With Bountiful® Wi-Fi, the integrators provide so much more than just a cost benefit. They have complete control and remote management of the network.

Option 1 has a centrally-managed controller with some of the same features as the Bountiful® Wi-Fi BWRACWALL series access controller, but the solution provided by Bountiful® Wi-Fi is 106% less than Option 1.

*Further discounts are available for VARSense® members.

What does this have to do with Wi-Fi?

Here is a video someone at Bountiful Wi-Fi found. It's hilarious, but it also sends a message about the power of online content. Additionally, the language is technically French, but in a world of global "relevance," language has become an obsolete barrier.

REMI GAILLARD MARCHE SUR LA LUNE
Uploaded by nqtv

IT professionals needs to keep up to date with IT developments, but with so much happening on the Internet, they need to keep up to speed with what's being discussed on blogs and on various relevant websites.

Senior living center uses Wi-Fi to go paperless

Company Overview
For eleven years, Brittany Park Care has been located in the heart of downtown Woodinville, Washington, offering 205 luxurious apartment homes in a fun and active retirement community. The 220,000 square foot facility provides “Five Star Fun” for senior living and is a subsidiary of Leisure Care, which operates retirement communities across the U.S. and Canada.

Background
The Brittany Park Assisted and Independent community needed a fully nomadic Wi-Fi solution for their BlueStep software, a dynamic, web-based technology that allows for full integration between the pharmacy, the community, the residents, and other care providers. The desired end result was a complete wireless paperless system accessible inside every apartment via small hand-held devices and laptops.

The Challenge
The main challenge for providing the fully nomadic Wi-Fi solution for Brittany Park was providing full coverage in all 205 apartments, reducing the overall hardware installation and management costs without compromising full-feature support and product reliability.

Brittany Park searched for the most cost effective and reliable Wi-Fi solution to achieve a full wireless, paperless system using their new web-based software. They began by requesting bids on hardware and installation costs to cover their entire 220,000 square foot 205 room facility. The bids on the Wi-Fi network ranged from using 29 to 130 Cisco access points. The price points for installing and managing these networks were unacceptable for Brittany Park. Implementing a hardwired solution was equally cost prohibitive because of wiring costs.

The Solution

Brittany Park chose a Bountiful® Wi-Fi integration specialist to perform their installation after receiving a competitive bid. Bountiful® Wi-Fi’s BWRG1000 and BWAP1000 offer the most powerful 802.11 Wi-Fi signals allowed under FCC regulations at nearly 1 Watt compared to the competition’s 100mW. The additional signal strength enabled Brittany Park to reduce its hardware and install costs significantly by reducing the number of access points to 14 Bountiful® Wi-Fi BWAPG1000s. By reducing the number of access points Bountiful® Wi-Fi minimizes the competition on the three non-overlapping channels in 802.11 thus increasing stability and reliability. Bountiful® Wi-Fi’s products are patented and currently outperform 802.11n products in both coverage and reliability. Because of Bountiful® Wi-Fi’s superior range and “huge ears,” even the weakest clients enjoy abundant and constant speeds. The integration specialist took advantage of the free offsite integration application team at Bountiful® Wi-Fi to determine the number of access points and other accessories needed for the install.

Implementation

The Bountiful® Wi-Fi integration specialist performed an initial site survey to determine where the access points should be located. Three access points were placed in the ceilings on the bottom floor, seven were placed on the middle floor and three more access points were located on the top floor. Because of HIPAA regulations, they could not run power supplies in the ceiling where the access points were installed. Instead, they relied on the fully compliant 802.3af PoE support built into the BWAPG1000. The plenum-rated mountable housing allowed the integrator to mount the Bountiful® Wi-Fi devices and comply with fire hazard regulations. Bountiful® Wi-Fi's setup wizard walked the integrator through the install in an easy three step process. The Bountiful® Wi-Fi devices come with the highest forms of security, 802.1x (radius), WPA, WPAPSK and WPA2-Enterprise. Other features offered for flexibility on the BWAPG1000 access points and BWRG1000 wireless routers include: Quad SSID, Remote Administration, VLAN support, WDS bridge and repeater, MAC address filtering, Port Forwarding and much more.

The integrator used an eight port switch with four PoE ports to supply power to the Bountiful® Wi-Fi BWAPG1000 access points. To increase the overall coverage of each access point they purchased high gain 7dBi BWANT7 Bountiful® Wi-Fi antennas. Brittany Park plans on adding a Bountiful® Wi-Fi WLAN access controller to centrally manage the 14 Bountiful® Wi-Fi BWAPG1000 access points.

Results

The end result for the Brittany Park implementation of Bountiful® Wi-Fi products to achieve their fully integrated nomadic Wi-Fi solution was successful in reducing the overall hardware and installation costs per facility. The reduction of hardware pieces has made ongoing management minimal on the new network and has created a stable and reliable environment for the 802.11 devices. Every apartment is fully covered with seamless roaming capabilities and high throughput speeds.

The Bountiful® Wi-Fi PoE support reduced the need for additional power supply cabling costs and its plenum-rated housing ensures Brittany Park's compliance with federal and state fire laws for mountable 802.11 access points in their facilities. Brittany Park successfully established a complete wireless paperless system accessible inside every apartment at a low cost and high reliability they needed with Bountiful® Wi-Fi products.

Feedback About The Install

“Before we came across the Bountiful® Wi-Fi solution, there was no way to make the wireless integration of our product cost effective for our customers. Their technical support and pre-sales support was unlike anything we have seen in this industry. Implementing the units went as smoothly as one could hope for.”

- Jeremiah Johnson, 4care Pharmacy