WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY

WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY. According to Encyclopedia.com: “Wireless technology provides the ability to communicate between two or more entities over distances without the use of wires or cables of any sort. This includes communications using radio frequency (RF) as well as infrared (IR) waves.” Livewire.com says: “Wireless’ is a broad term that encompasses all sorts of technologies and devices that transmit data over the air rather than over wires, including cellular communications, networking between computers with wireless adapters and wireless computer accessories.” The term may also refer to devices that draw power without using cables. A smartphone that we can recharge without wires has wireless technology in it. However, in most cases, the term refers to communicating without wires or cables. (1)

Wireless technologies started with German physicist Heinrich Hertz (1857-1894) when he discovered electromagnetic waves. The first wireless conversation occurred in 1880 when Charles Sumner Tainter and Alexander Graham Bell invented the photophone, a telephone that conducted audio conversation over modulated light beams. Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937), an Italian inventor and electrical engineer, pioneered work on long-distance radio transmission. In 1909, Marconi and Karl Ferdinand Braun shared the Nobel Prize in physics for the development of wireless telegraphy. (2)

During the 20th century, many types of wireless technologies were developed. The radio, which Marconi invented, and television received broadcast communications without using wires. Satellites are also examples of wireless technology as are laptops, tablets, smartphones, and modems (routers). (3)

There are currently two main types of wireless technology. Wi-fi is a technology that allows computer tablets, video game consoles, printers, and smartphones to communicate with the Internet. Medical devices, laptops, and digital audio players also use Wi-Fi. The term ‘Wi-Fi’ was coined in the 1990s from the words ‘Wireless’ plus ‘Fi,’ which was an arbitrary second element, after ‘Hi-Fi.’ People often mistakenly interpreted the term as a short form of ‘Wireless Fidelity.’ Cellular networks (mobile phone networks) allow electronic devices to communicate over long distances. (4)

Kevin Lynch, president of Net-Smart, a local company, announced in June, 2001 that his company planned to provide wireless Internet service for business and residents throughout the area within a year. The company tested wireless service in its building and reported employees were able to take laptops from room to room without losing Internet connections. LORAS COLLEGE and the DUBUQUE COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT were expected to have similar systems for use in the fall. Their networks were to allow students and educators to use the Internet through laptops in classrooms and certain common areas. The educational network was only designed to work inside buildings and did not allow Internet connection other places. (5)

In 2001, You Squared, whose CEO was Wayne BRIGGS became the first local business to provide wireless Internet service reaching from Epworth to Maquoketa in Iowa, Cuba City to Kieler in Wisconsin and Eagle Ridge to East Dubuque in Illinois. Prior to that, wireless Internet service was provided commercially only around Dyersville and in areas close to other local Internet providers. Company officials announced the company would soon be able to service 90% of the residences and businesses in the tri-state region. (6)

This choice was not a substitute for fiber-optic networks which were much more expensive but offered top-of-the-art quality. Wireless could cost less because it did not depend on the use of copper wires or cables. Prices beginning at an estimated $40 per month depended upon options including the speed of connections. Digital signals traveled by line-of-sight requiring signals to be transmitted from multiple towers. (7)

At the time of the announcement, T-1 connection transmitted information at speeds of 250 kilobytes per second or more. Two other choices for high-speed Internet access included DSL which provided 200 kilobytes or more and ISDN that provided 128 kilobytes per second. Dial-up access transmitted information at speeds up to 56 kilobytes. The fastest connections, T-1 and wireless Internet, had the potential in 2001 of transmitting information at 1.5 megabytes per second. (8)

You Squared was immediately met with competition. In May, 2001 Midwest Wireless, a Mankato, Minnesota-based company, announced it had signed a letter of agreement to purchase digital personal-communication services licenses from McLeodUSA Inc. With an estimated 216,000 customers in Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin, Midwest Wireless was one of the largest telecommunications providers in the area. Cities included in the PCS licenses were Dubuque, Fort Dodge, Marshalltown, Mason City, Sioux City, Waterloo and Cedar Falls. The purchase of McLeodUSA added more than 1.2 million potential customers. Plans were announced for a retail office in Dubuque. Competitors of the five-year old company with revenues in 2000 of $100 million, included Verizon Communications and Sprint. (9)

In 2002 Iowa Wireless was charged with building a cellular-communication tower near Bellevue without consulting proper officials. The Iowa State Historic Preservation Office filed its complaint with the Federal Communications Commission after it was found that the tower, constructed in 1999, was infringing on Native American burial mounds. It was found that two other towers had been improperly constructed in Guttenberg and Clinton. In a similar case in 2001 another cellular company had to remove the tower and restore the disturbed area--work that cost about $1 million. In 2000, the FCC had ordered a company to cease operations on eight of its towers for one year while its siting procedures were investigated. (10)

The Federal Communications Commission(FCC) was also called upon to solve the problem of hundreds of accidental calls to the emergency number 911. Older wireless phones were designed to dial 9-1-1 if the 9 button was held for several seconds. Some cellular phones allowed calls to the emergency number if other keys were used. When accidental calls were made, important time for first responders was wasted. In October, 2002 of the 1,060 cellular emergency calls, 703 were accidental. The FCC working with wireless phone companies assured customers that by January 1, 2003 certified handsets would no longer be pre-programmed to dial 9-1-1. Dispatchers, who always attempted to call the wireless user back, advised the customers, if the call was accidental, to lock their keypad, a function of most phones. (11)

Envision2010, a community-planning procedure and document, listed in 2006 as one of its "10 Great Ideas for a Greater Dubuque": (12)

                Community-wide Wireless
                Make Dubuque a "wireless city by creating community-wide wireless
                accessibility to the Internet, available to residents, businesses,
                law enforcement, governments and visitors.

Phase II Wireless Enhanced 911 was announced in September, 2006. The system was available in Jo Daviess County, Illinois; Grant and Crawford counties, Wisconsin; and Dubuque County. The system allowed emergency call centers to automatically determine the exact location of a wireless caller. Prior to the new technology, the dispatcher had to obtain the location of a wireless caller verbally. Phase I of Enhanced 92 gave responders the cell phone user's call-back number and the cell tower transmitting the 911 call. (13)

Free wireless access to the Internet made the news in 2006. On January 29th, CARNEGIE-STOUT PUBLIC LIBRARY officials announced the library had received a donation of wireless Internet from Mediacom Communications. The company had previously provided free Internet connections for the library's public-access desktop computers. (14) FINLEY HOSPITAL (THE) announced in September that patients and visitors with laptop computers with wireless interfaces could access the Internet for free. The first hospital in the city offering the option, Finley and other Iowa Health System affiliates were named the nation's "most wired" and "most wireless" health system in the July issue of Hospitals & Health Networks magazine. (15)

Wireless audio is sent on frequencies within the radio spectrum. Low-end radio waves, like AM radio, are weak although they are able to travel great distances. Powerful radio waves do not have the ability to travel great distances. With so many users of the radio spectrum competing for space, the federal government decided which devices could use which frequencies. In 2012 Congress allowed the FCC to auction off a portion of the radio spectrum--the 600 MHZ band where most microphone packs and receivers operated. Among the bidders were T-mobile, the winner at $8 billion; Dish; Comcast; and AT&T. (16)

In 2012 the Dubuque Community School District was immersed in difficulties with instructional technology (IT). In 2010 the board approved a $228,000 consulting contract with Dell. Oversight and implementation, however, did not smoothly. David Cagigal, interim director of technology for the district, admitted that over the last decade the IT staff had been "very cautious and frugal on technology updates in the schools." Of the $4 million spent on technology infrastructure, $143,000 was paid to companies other than Dell, $50,000 was paid to Dell for a Microsoft license, and the remaining money went to Dell which occasionally subcontracted. He went on say,"The IT staff struggles with the money that has been spent because they thin they could do it cheaper and better on a school basis. I still believe the IT department has a myopic view of the world. They don't see the big picture." (17)

Installation of wireless did not proceed as planned. Two schools were without wireless for a day or two. One classroom that integrated 20 Netbooks into learning was without wireless for two weeks before Dell resolved the problem. Although Dell installed more than 400 new access points for the wireless network, Superintendent Larie GODINEZ admitted there were places in buildings where wireless was not available. The old wireless network was one gigabyte, while the new wireless system was one gigabyte with a path to ten gigabytes. Although the district paid Dell $75,000 for 400 hours of professional development, the majority of the work had not occurred. The district had neither developed a plan to pay teachers taking the professional development. The district had also spent $133,688.25 on KACE-a help desk that allowed district staff to submit IT problems through the Web and track the resolution. Although the product, according to Cagigal, was working fine, it would have been unnecessary if the district had co-sourced technology because the company it co-sourced with would have had its own help desk. (18)

A new wireless Internet connection at Dubuque County's juvenile detention center in 2015 allowed the teacher to keep lessons consistent with those students would normally take at school. Working with Keystone Area Education Agency, jail officials established a dedicated wireless connection allowing the teacher at the center to reach websites and programs used in class. Students used programs like Khan Academy for math lessons and Edmondo for other course work. They were also available to students after they left detention. (19)

Responding to the tremendous growth of wireless devices, in April, 2017 the Dubuque City Council approved a master licensing agreement with Mobili-tie, a California-based business and one of the largest privately held telecommunications infrastructure companies in the nation. The company installed antennas, towers, and other infrastructure needed to provide improved 3G, 4G, LTE and Wi-Fi service. The intent of the agreement was to attract national carriers, who might overlook Dubuque due to its typography and size, to lower the lost and time to improve mobile service. The agreement would "pave the way" for the industry movement toward "small cell" technology to expand coverage and capacity. (20)

Chart courtesy: Telegraph Herald

The popularity of social media made the word "revolutionary" seem tame. In 2015 Pew Research Center found over 70% of children ages 13-17 used more than one social network. In 2016 an estimated 86% of adults between the ages of 18-29 used as least one social media site compared to 80% of those ages 30-49 and 64% of adults ages 50-64. More than 30% aged 65 or older used at least one platform. (21) This put pressure on cities to provide access.

In March 2018 the Dubuque City Council first considered an agreement with Southwestco Wireless, doing business as Verizon Wireless that would provide a process through which Verizon could add "small cell" devices to city-owned poles. Verizon would be permitted to install the devices at a cost of $150 annually for each pole utilized. The agreement was intended to streamline the eventual use of signal-boosting technology. (22)

The Federal Communications Commission in 2018 ordered that wireless microphones then using the 600 MHZ frequencies to move to frequencies between 470 and 534 MHZ. This made equipment then in use obsolete or illegal. The ruling forced the BELL TOWER THEATER, as one example, to replace eighteen wireless microphone packs and receivers at a cost of about $22,000. Fortunately grants and donations paid most of the cost. Churches, stadiums, conference rooms, and schools among others misusing the 600 MHZ frequency faced steep fines. (23)

An estimated 225 million electronic devices, an estimated 75% of all mobile phones in the nation, were involved at 1:18 p.m. on October 3, 2018 CDT in the first test of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The buzzing of the wireless devices continued as long as the device was turned on. Cell towers broadcast the signal for thirty minutes to ensure that people who turned on their cell phone later than the start time would receive it. (24)

In January, 2019 the City of Dubuque made an official publication of Ordinance No. 3-19. (25)

                 Requiring the City Manager to develop, with the approval of the
                 city council written guidelines to establish general procedures
                 and standards, consistent with all applicable federal and state
                 laws, for the siting, construction, installation, collocation,
                 modification, relocation, operation and removal of small cell
                 wireless technology with the city's right-of-way and on city
                 property.

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Source:

1. "What is Wireless Technology? Definition and Examples," Market Business News. Online: https://marketbusinessnews.com/financial-glossary/wireless-technology/

2. Ibid.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. Coyle Erin, "Out of Line," Telegraph Herald, June 17 2001, p. 45

6. Coyle, Erin, "The 'Surf' Soon Will Be Up in Tri-State Area, Telegraph Herald, October 15, 2001, p. 3

7. Ibid.

8. Ibid.

9. Kittle, M. D., "New Player Entering Local Wireless Market," Telegraph Herald, May 2, 2001, p. 3

10. Nevans-Pederson, Mary, "Officials File Complaint Over Iowa Wireless Towers," Telegraph Herald, June 10, 2002, p. 34

11. Greene, Kylie, "Cellphone Calls Tie of 9-1-1 Lines, Telegraph Herald, January 5, 2003, p 1

12. "10 Great Ideas for Greater Dubuque," Envision: The Community Projects by 2010, Online: http://p8080-10.30.40.140.ezproxy.dubuque.lib.ia.us/ResCarta-Web/jsp/RcWebImageViewer.jsp?doc_id=76d75574-3467-4ecf-9df4-c2b7da149f1e/ResCarta/00000050/00005040

13. Hogstrom, Erik, "Phase II Adds a Level in Finding Source of 911 Call," Telegraph Herald, September 3, 2006, p. 1A

14. "Library Now Offers Wireless Internet," Telegraph Herald, January 29, 2006, p. 1A

15. Hogstrom, Erik, "Finley Offers Wireless Web," Telegraph Herald, September 30, 2006, p. 5

16. Gloss, Megan, "Signal Change," Telegraph Herald, August 28, 2018, p. 8

17. Becker, Stacey, "District: Still No Done Deal with Dell," Telegraph Herald, March 17, 2012, p. 1A

18. Ibid., p. 2A

19. Yager, Alicia, "Freeing Up Options," Telegraph Herald, October 4, 2015, p. 54

20. Barton, Thomas J. "Dubuque Invests in Wireless, Mobile Tech Expansion," Telegraph Herald, April 23, 2017, p. 19

21. Goldstein, Bennet, "Staying Connected," Telegraph Herald, August 13, 2017, p 1A

22. Jacobson, Ben, "City Council Will Consider Plan to Boost Cell Signals," Telegraph Herald, March 17, 2018, p. 1A

23. Gloss

24. "FEMA to Test Emergency Mobile Alert System Today," Telegraph Herald, October 3, 2018, p. 8

25. Official Publication, Telegraph Herald, January 11, 2019, p. 25