Re: [amsat-bb] RE: [Fwd: ARLB035 FCC declines to grant amateur LF

[Bruce Bostwick <lihan161051@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> So I don't think that we need to have a worry with the idea of 
> uplinking on
> 2.4 GHz being a problem with interference to WLAN.

There are two aspects to this question:  the *technical* issue of 
actual non-interference, which I believe isn't much of an issue, and 
the *perception* issue of "non-interference", which could be 
considerably thornier.

There are altogether too many people in this world nowadays that not 
only don't have a basic understanding of the technology they're using 
in their daily lives but don't WANT to have that understanding.  
Whether it's because they believe this is something best left to the 
nerds or because they feel understanding how the stuff works will be 
bad for them somehow (and don't laugh, I've known people who have said 
that to me with a perfectly straight face) doesn't matter -- they 
honestly have no desire to understand how the "stuff" that they use in 
their home works, they just want it to work and they don't care how.

This has always been a problem for hams, as anyone who's ever dealt 
with TVI knows all too well.  The guy down the street whose TV isn't 
working too well and tends to have somewhat twitchy reception, and can 
SEE a ham tower just a couple of houses down, is bound to "just know" 
that that ham operator is goofing up his TV signals and is likely to go 
pound on said ham's door if his reception gets particularly bad, 
especially if he's trying to have a Super Bowl party.  This isn't as 
much of a problem these days because most people have a better 
understanding of how to hook up their TV's correctly, and their cable 
systems are *generally* more immune to TVI than broadcast TV (and a lot 
of hams tend to stay off 6 meters during the Super Bowl), but the 
perception is still there, and people who are non-technical or 
anti-technical are pretty good at making stuff up to support what's 
essentially a gut level reaction to something they don't like.

I suspect the WLAN systems are going to be a somewhat similar bone of 
contention in the near future, as WLAN's become more popular and more 
and more people go wireless at home.  I'm no exception -- there's an 
802.11b WAP in my house too.  It's just too convenient.  Sooner or 
later the density is going to get high enough that interference is 
going to become a regular thing, and as soon as people realize this, 
whether or not they're QRM'ing each other, and whether or not it's 
their WLAN or their 2.4 GHz cordless phone or whatever other Part 15 
gimmicks they're blasting away with, the most visible "culprit" is 
likely to be the nearest visible dish.  Folklore and fantasy travel a 
lot faster than technically factual information, and until the latter 
catches up, educating our neighbors will be a big part of our hobby.  
Just like the TVI days ..

"Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve
life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out
death in judgement. Even the very wise cannot see all ends." -- Gandalf

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