WiFi in Nepal

May 27, 2004 5:39 PM

Yak farmers in the mountains of Nepal are using WiFi to keep in touch with their families thanks to the Nepal Wireless Networking project. [Via /.]
posted by homunculus (14 comments total)

That's really neat. And I know this is immature, but I like the fact that the word "yak" gets used frequently.
posted by Salmonberry at 5:49 PM on May 27, 2004

I love stories like this. Another project in the same spirit is the Sámi Network Connectivity Project.
posted by homunculus at 6:21 PM on May 27, 2004

I love the dish-on-a-stick/dish-on-a-tree pictures. They also seem to be using primarily renewable, free energy sources (solar and wind). I can see WiFi VoIP handsets (when they become available) being a big hit in this community.
posted by snarfodox at 9:10 PM on May 27, 2004

"Are you ready?"
posted by scarabic at 11:59 PM on May 27, 2004

In other yak news: US Ranchers Look to Shake Up Cattle Industry with Yak Meat.
posted by homunculus at 12:17 AM on May 28, 2004

I like yaks. I bet that they are tasty too.
posted by troutfishing at 4:16 AM on May 28, 2004

Also - with laptops, WiFi networks, and solar panels = one can create a low density-high culture rural civilization unlike any likely ever seen before on Earth.

High level, collaborative cultural projects are possible - yet without the anomie typically associated with urban, high population densities.
posted by troutfishing at 4:24 AM on May 28, 2004

Sounds like the beginning of a Monthy Python routine.
posted by Fupped Duck at 6:43 AM on May 28, 2004

Nice links, thanks homunculus.
posted by carter at 7:27 AM on May 28, 2004

So they can now yak about yaks?
posted by DrJohnEvans at 7:29 AM on May 28, 2004

Troutfishing, your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.
posted by signal at 7:32 AM on May 28, 2004

signal - OK. I'll be moving to a subscription model soon, but it will be worth it, at least, for the delicious recipes - like my legendary curried yak with cilantro.
posted by troutfishing at 10:56 AM on May 28, 2004

Excellent article (and the project site was interesting.)
I have to admire the irony, though - I can't get DSL in my neighborhood, but a friggin' yak farmer in Nepal can get hooked up on WiFi. *grin*
posted by FormlessOne at 12:51 PM on May 28, 2004

FormlessOne - so, set up your own WiFi !

High speed WiFi networks are the way to go :


Bounce signal from one WiFi station to the next until you can reach a fat data pipe - cut out the middlemen.

With enough WiFi transmitters running the same sort of switching protocols as the wire-net, eventually even those fat data pipes would be mostly unecessary.

Then, there's the nonprofit ISP service - in the middle somewhere - which sells it's service, at cost, fo' the public good.


The only downside of this I can see would be a tremendous increase in the level of electronic haze.
posted by troutfishing at 7:32 AM on May 29, 2004