firstly, the image above is not the 'freedom tower' box.

at the moment i'm having all kinds of problems with iphoto11 and it is just locking up everytime i try and open it.  i'm going to go through all my applications briefly this morning to update them just in case something in the last update needs a certain app to function properly.  in the bug report i'm seeing errors with 3ivx so i might need to explore there.

anyway!

so while in austin, texas recently for sxsweco i bumped into day two of the occupy austin movement and met a guy(s) who were operating the 'freedom tower' a big box with a ups power unit connected to some clear modems, various breakout boxes and a cradlepoint router.

Oct 7, 2011 | Source: Keek.com

out of this box rose a metal scaffold style tube with six antenna aerials facing in different directions giving both 2.4ghz and 5ghz range coverage.  i recorded three little interviews with a guy that was help run it on the day providing occupy austin with connectivity for the site.  i did ask if they have the plans up but it was a recent build.

Oct 7, 2011 | Source: Keek.com

the missing link for my own 'bandwidthinabox' was the ups - i had never considered to use a computer ups before but it makes perfect sense.  i'm not sure however if it should be a two man operation.  i'd prefer to make a more streamlined one person unit that can be pulled along - on top of the existing 'ammobox' we had but i need to look at some lightweight cooling if i go that way.

Oct 7, 2011 | Source: Keek.com

it was great to meet someone that was thinking about multiple carriers and cellular drop in hot spot boxes.  i'm sure this area is going to explode in the next six to 12 months.  i'm really interested in learning a lot more about mesh networks too.

now if only cradlepoint would send me that mbr1400 i would have a go at building one myself - maybe i'll point them to this blog post! :)

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greetings!

finally got around to pulling together this brief interview with scott wilcox, the chief technology officer for the south by southwest festivals in austin, texas.  sxsweco is a brand new conference that is spaced six months apart from the main interactive, film and music one normally held in march when it's complete bedlam and it's like watching all your favorite avatars wandering around.

i'll not be going to southby in march next year (i know, scary right) because i have the ark project taking off in january so it was the perfect time for me to go to the first sxsweco event and at the same time take in that slice of austin to get my fill for another year.  i'm going to miss it like crazy and this would have been my fifth year but the ark project is much bigger than any conference i could go to.

i went to make some connections with a variety of different people and ended up in the press room talking to scott.  this was a highlight for me because i wanted to get across about the ark project and the possibility of streaming a wide/internal shot into south by southwest from across the pond from the heart of the national forest into the hallways of southby.

connecting the two sxsw events together by using technology and using me as the link - i've been to both events and the ark project is a groundbreaking year long project from someone that uses technology but wants to tell the story of creating/consuming energy off the grid but living within the digital cloud.

i'm pushing out a newsletter in a few days time, do sign up to get the details as they hopefully expand - we still need a yes from scott and others to see if we can make this happen - i think it works on multiple levels from the sustainability message of streaming the video over, a view inside the ark and the surrounding area of the national forest and yet with a tech flavour.

we even might have a satellite uplink for it.. .. more on that soon. .. 

it's been six months since texas saw any rain, they are going through the most terrible drought right now. i felt i had bought some uk rain with me when the heavens opens while out doing the grocery shopping with my friend sarah.

it's rained, thunderstorms cracked and the sidewalk and brush sucked up the water like a vacuum. some concerns about trees actually splitting because of the sheer amount of time without water.

my flight from austin to houston was pushed back all day, i arrived into houston in a blur, crossing time zones and confused by gates - i had missed my flight to heathrow.

so had others, in fact i stood in a line for two hours with everyone else who had missed connecting flights because of the weather. my feet were hurting - i was fighting tiredness of spending a day in an airport.

after sorting out a free hotel for the night and being told to always carry $50 for emergency i was given a free hotel for the night, $20 of food vouchers, a freshen up pack and sent on my merry way to find the shuttle buses for the hotel.

that was at 10pm last night, it's now 10:20am monday morning and my flight is later on this afternoon. i'm using the time to catch up on blogging and thoughts. the weather system really hit home about traveling in the future and the delicate balance we constantly live in via mother nature.

so, gonna try this flight again today - let's just hope the weather holds out, rain and thunderstorms are said to be happening again later today.

props to the continental team at the service desk in houston (some up since 5am) that hung in there and dealt with screaming kids and old folk and brits like me - i'm pleased that i didn't have to sleep on the floor of the airport! :)

someone back home said i should probably 'drop' in to the occupy wallstreet like i'm some kind of unlimited fund traveller that could just 'hop on a plane' over to nyc.

i'd forgotten that these occupy events were starting to sprout up all over. it was kinda of a good feeling for 'the people' to be showing a presence in austin about it.

while i was there i met a guy that told me about the 'freedom tower' system - a mifi enabled tower with both 2.4ghz and 5ghz aerials attached to a pole with a massive ups in the bottom powering the routers and kit.

elsewhere i saw guys on the street side shouting at people driving foreign cars, saying it was 'foreign junk' - i smiled. whatever you make think about america they are very proud of their country. i think you would be hard to find a person that is not proud of the country they live in.

it's just most of the time, the 'people' are pissed with they way they are treated and how the system 'does' them over. i was interested to see lots of people wanting to take roles to put a structured approach to communicating those annoyances.

fair play to everyone who is in 'occupy' mode - i personally think those not in the corporate world and not in jobs should all be out making their voices heard about their stories.

we are in a golden time when the social media message and storytelling is a brilliant way to amplify your wants and needs - the mainstream media need something more creative to do as well so it's a perfect story piece for them.

i'd like to think that we can as the 99% of people have an input on what we see as fair but i do very much feel trying to break down the barriers that seem to be in place protecting those at the top of the money tree hard to break.

i think we all wish that people do the right thing by people. i think re-energizing our local communities, extracting the good out of people and enabling them with a 'what have you' approach is the only way forward.

the money seems gone from the system, the financial system seems to be in tatters constantly and people everyday are battling between the gaps. on top of this the environment is taking a constant daily beating adding to the mix.

it's certainly made me think about what i want the ark project to project outside to the wider world. the conversation about how we consume, creation and share are ultimate aims.

as for the people on the streets, on the web who are fighting against those corrupt and squandering your tax i applaud you. please maintain your clarity and your level headed approach and keep documenting your distain.

we are all now the media.

it's been a different trip to austin this time around. less people, less buzz and not as noisy with a bit of time to wander and chill into the city.

i had a few occasions to use public transit this time around and found that the 100 flyer from the airport was a super easy experience - and it cost $1

on top of this i bought a weekly travel ticket for $9 that gave me unlimited travel for the whole of the week while i was here - trust me i used it!

at the closing party at the mohawk i accidentally let me ipad2 slip out the bag smashing the screen badly. using google maps i was able to not only get a route but also date overlaid on cost and when the next bus was!

i've never seen this integration back home yet, probably because we don't allow people to mashup the data - you really do change the metrics of public transport when you have it on demand.

i took a bus out to the barton creek mall apple store and they not only swapped out my ipad2 they added an extra key on my keyboard.

that is when thou i encountered the food mall and the insane amount of different food stuffs on offer - see my other blog post coming up about that after my occupy austin post.