HOME OF HSMM IN OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN

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http://www.arrl.org/hsmm   - Check out our group's official page on the ARRL web site.

    What is HSMM?  HSMM stands for High Speed Multimedia.  This refers to wireless amateur radio networks with broadband speed.  We are using off the shelf computer parts to build networks to share voice and high-speed video.

    What frequency is this stuff on?  HSMM equipment run on the I.S.M band at 2.4 GigaHertz.  The I.S.M. stands for Industrial, Scientific, and Medical.  This spectrum of frequencies is shared amicably by amateur radio operators and ordinary folks who buy this equipment "off the shelf."

    What makes HSMM operation different from non amateur use of this equipment?  Amateur operators use this spectrum of frequencies in compliance with FCC part 97 regulations for licensed amateurs.   Amateurs are bound by many rules regarding the content, and quality of any radio transmission that they produce.  Operators must identify themselves in a timely manner, and are not allowed to "encode transmissions to obscure their meaning."  By aderhering to these rules of operation amateurs are allowed to use high gain antennas and run higher power than users without a license.

    Will all the high power Amateur radio operators make this equipment unusable for non licensed operation?  Amateur radio operators utilizing this mode of operation realize that consumers have made this equipment possible and are helping to lower equipment prices constantly.  With this is mind amateur operators are especially careful not to interfere with friends and neighbors who may not (for whatever reason) be a licensed amateur and run low power.  Amateurs run different antenna polarity than non licensed users.  This practice substantially reduces the interference that we pose to users running low power.

    Is this part of the Internet?  Can I surf the web if I connect to a HSMM station?  Maybe!  This is one of the possibilities of the mode.  Any application that runs on the Internet should run on the HSMM mode.  Amateurs have been using Microsoft Netmeeting software to communicate live video and audio messages.

    Can't you come up with a better name for this than HSMM mode?  Yes, we have started to call it the Hinternet.  Like sailors of old voyaging into the land beyond the horizon, the Hinterland.  Or maybe Ham Internet?

    How far can you talk on the 2.4 GigaHertz equipment used for Hinternet?  The equipment "off the shelf" has enough power for you to connect any where in a normal house and even out into the back yard!  With High gain antennas and power amplifiers we will connect stations 20 miles and beyond.  The trick will be to route traffic over longer distances by using multiple stations to "relay" the messages.



    This may not be a safe way to mount a 24 dbi parabolic antenna.