Wireless Networking → Re: community wireless network

I checked broadband Internet access, it looks like Verizon Fios is available at the Pittsburgh Student Achievement Center, what package should we aim for? This is the highest at $130 a month Speeds up to 300 Mbps/65 Mbps. Is that how we should be thinking about it?

Of course situations vary, but on the networks I'm familiar with (mix of mostly home users with some businesses), a good rule of thumb is 10-30x overprovisioning. In other words, if you have 1000 customers with a 10 Mbps connection each, then your minimum bandwidth need is calculated as:

1000*10/30=333

So you will probably need at least 333 Mbps of pipe to provide for peak usage in that scenario.

Presuming Verizon allows you to use it as you intend to in this project, that would work.

Yes, it will be interesting to see what Verizon thinks about it. I plan to encourage the youth to build some high power social capital in case they should need some convincing. Also interesting in the context of the FCC's idea of a public wireless network.