Re: [Discuss-gnuradio] Deeper story on FCC versus open source SDR

[John Clark]

John Gilmore schrieb:
> http://news.com.com/Feds+snub+open+source+for+smart+radios/2100-1041_3-6195102.html
>
> This story had more details and investigation than the others I'd seen.

This article was sent out on the list a few weeks ago. I personally see 
such a ruling as sinster. As it
stands with 802.11 and 'FreeBSD' + Sam Leffler's HAL, while allowing for 
much more application
variablility than the 'access point', and 'station' model of using 
802.11... the closed 'HAL' has presented
many obsticles to applications which would operate in the regulation 
limit, such as lower than X power
or within X bandwidth, but because of the FCC's paranoia (and other 
regulatory agencies around the
world...), such applications as 5 MHz bandwith 802.11 operation, are 
very difficult to acheve without
paying '3-rd' party developers to make crappy software 'attempts', then 
charge more for 'fixing', or
even eventually saying that 'you needs are such small potatoes that we 
don't want your business'.

For companies that have the funding, I'm sure such regulations are minor 
obstacles, just part of
the development costs. However for many smaller operations, or even 'low 
funded' operations
in bigger companies these sorts of regulations are basically brick walls 
to innovative products...

John Clark