wrote:
I heard this on the local NPR radio station this morning. They made
BPL sound rosy. They did mention that the ham radio guys were against
it but came up with some "notching" solution that would take care of
ham radio guys concerns.

The "notching" solution is simple: Their BPL system does not use
frequencies that are also ham bands. Whether it works or not is an open
question.

You can listen to the stream at:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...toryId=4801446

I did - interesting piece. What they neglect to mention is that:

- BPL is a "last mile" delivery method, not a complete system. Still
needs a 'head end'

- BPL bandwidth is shared between users on the same line, so as your
neighbors sign up and use the system, your performance degrades.

- There are several BPL technologies out there, not just the one they
profiled.

- There are other technologies (like Wi-Fi) which can do the same job
without all the fuss and bother.

- The big danger of BPL is that it turns the whole idea of spectrum
protection and allocation upside-down, and sets a bad precedent.

I wonder how rosy a solution they would think it was if BPL interfered
with FM broadcasting, reducing the utility and availability of that
mode of communications?

If would be great if a qualified ham could respond to their article.
They usually take listener comment and broadcast those comments the
next day or so.

A qualified ham was part of the article. The rest of us should comment,
too.

---

One thing the piece proved was that the media, and particularly
National Public Radio, are not all a bunch of 'tree-hugging liberals'.
BPL is a
poster technology for the Bush Administration, who thinks BPL can do no
wrong. The best BPL analogies I've seen describe BPL as unnecessary
spectrum pollution, and you'd think a bunch of 'tree-hugging liberals'
would be against anything that pollutes half as bad as BPL has been
shown to do. The article also accepts without question the idea that
fast internet access is a necessity for all Americans and their
communities - another Bush Administration bit of rightthink.

Thanks for posting the link. Anybody besides me and the original poster
actually listen to it?

73 de Jim, N2EY