Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Internet, cable, and wi-fi

[Max Tite (maxtite]

Generally, installing WiFi in an organized manner is the way to go in my
opinion. Our community of 15 existing households wanted to put in WiFi for
about 6,000 square feet of common space. We evaluated several options and
ordered a single wired 100MB business-grade internet feed, and installed a
network of wired and wireless access points. The coverage now serves most
of the common areas (indoors and out) and also the residence units.

We divided the cost of the equipment and installation by our number of
units as an assessment, although you can also amortize the costs and recoup
via monthly dues over time. The wholesale monthly cost for internet is also
currently divided equally.

This approach gives everyone a low cost way to have pretty fast WiFi
internet on all their computers, tablets and cellphones. Some residents no
longer use or pay for cable or DSL Internet at all. Reliability and
performance is consistent, and maintenance of the system is not too time-
or cost-intensive.

However, it helps a lot to have some sound knowledge of wireless tech and
data services, preferably within the community. I would not recommend this
sort of project as an On The Job training venture. Plan to spend some money
up front on implementation consulting.  One thing to ask for is a site
plan. It will include a 'heat map' that predicts what your actual WiFi
coverage will look like. You should expect to invest thousands of dollars
going in.

The WiFi equipment we put in has been excellent, is very reasonably priced
(and even available on Amazon), and has a support community of many
thousand of experienced network operators. The brand is Ubiquiti Networks,
learn more here: https://unifi-sdn.ubnt.com

Three is also a period of 'tuning and debugging' as you work out the kinks
in the deployment, weed out competing wireless signals that can interfere
with your throughput, and assist residents in switching over to the new
platform. Don't underestimate the importance of this personal support
phase, which helps set the stage for acceptance and success in your
community.

Max Tite
Monterey Cohousing Community
Minneapolis MN USA
cell/text 626-629-8483

On Friday, May 18, 2018, Linda Hobbet <linda [at] hobbeton.com>
>
>
> I have heard about communities bringing in a high-speed cable but that it
> requires knowledge to maintain. What does that entail and how hard is it to
> learn?


>
What is the best way to go these days to get high quality
> Internet/streaming video/phone service/etc at the best price? Can anyone
> suggest resources to learn about the options in relatively simple English?
>
>