UC Santa Cruz First to Pilot Wide-Area Wireless

  • 10/01/95
Utilizing the Ricochet wireless data network, from Metricom, as well as Ricochet wireless modems, students at UC Santa Cruz with portable computers can accessnetworked resources from any spot on campus&emdash;under a tree, at the student cafe, in a parking lot, etc.Metricom has installed 25 pole-top radios to provide the wireless network infrastructure. Net user rates of Ricochet range from 10-40 kilobits per second (Kbps),with a raw data rate at 100 Kbps, thus enabling download of real files, not just e-mail and text.Students get a special rate for subscribing to the service with unlimited use.Pilot networks are also operating at Stanford University and the Cupertino School District; Palo Alto is installing Ricochet boxes on its light poles citywide.Metricom, Inc., Los Gatos, CA, (408) 399-8165.

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