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Semper WiFi
Posted by
michael
on Thu Aug 19, 2004 08:53 AM
from the better-than-MARS dept.
from the better-than-MARS dept.
Roblimo writes "Armed Forces personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan increasingly use the Internet to communicate with their familes back home, but there are not nearly enough computers and connections for them. Lt. Phillip Geiger, Medical Officer with the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, suggested using a privately-funded, long-range WiFi network to help troops stay in touch. The idea has grown from there, all funded privately with cash and equipment donations. Joe Barr has the details on NewsForge (which, like Slashdot, is part of OSTG)."
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Troops (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Troops (Score:4, Insightful)
The logistics and security of a WiFI system obviously would take a lot of work; let's hope independent developers can work it out instead of our ummm "thrifty" federal government.
Parent
Re:Troops (Score:2)
For usage limited to "morale" (to friends & family) traffic it's usage may be okay.
The proposal seems to ignore filtering, not only to stay within DoD harassment policy, but filtering & confidentality (against network sniffing) is also important to ensure stragetic information is not leaked through benign comments fro
Re:11,000 dead civilians in iraq (Score:5, Insightful)
They took the risk of having to hurt someone to get what they wanted. There is no way you can blame their youthful ambition or ignorance. If you are young, you have it. And if you are older, you laugh at yourself for having so much of it (but you still miss it).
Parent
Re:11,000 dead civilians in iraq (Score:4, Informative)
Wow, you really are ignorant. Given the choice, most people wouldn't risk their lives overseas just to "see some action." Most of these people are doing it because they have no other choice. It certianly doesn't pay well, especially for the risks involved. Maybe you're somehow not aware of current tuition costs, but I know of alot of people who cannot even afford to go to a state or community college. Going into the military for a few years then having them pay your tuition is a great way to go to college and be able to get a job that is better than being in the military. Consider yourself lucky that you didn't have to take this route and don't condemn other people who have no other options. You can disagree with the war in Iraq, but the troops did not make those political decisions.
Parent
Re:11,000 dead civilians in iraq (Score:4, Insightful)
However, US soldiers who enrolled (i.e. all US soldiers in Iraq), did so willingly. They didn't get that job to play tennis, they knew they could very well be asked to go do some killing on behalf of the government. So, I don't care if they went there to get money for tuition, or to make their families proud, or just to "see some action", they're hired killers and they're this administration's accomplices in starting this illegal war and invasion of a sovereign country.
So, what are you saying?
Are you saying that all soldiers in all armies in the world are "hired killers"? Is it your position that no good person should ever join the military?
Or are you saying that soldiers should independently evaluate each conflict that comes along and decide whether or not they think this one is "moral"?
Or are you saying that people should only join the military whey they know there's a war coming up that they think is worth fighting in?
Or are you saying something else? Please explain, so we can tell you why you're wrong.
Parent
Re:11,000 dead civilians in iraq (Score:3, Insightful)
I don't think you can claim that soldiers aren't killing people for pay.
So do cops.
Most soldiers never kill anyone. It's a possibility that comes with the job, just as it does with being a policeman. It's the unfortunate nature of the world that, sometimes, killing people is a good thing to do.
My suggestion is that should your country be invaded, then you arm yourself and fight - no one can hold a country when the populace is motivated to resist.
This is technically true, but the brutal reality o
Re:Fighting for us ? really ? (Score:3, Insightful)
They didn't go over there to make money for someone, they went over there because they were told it would make the US safer.
Now, you can argue whether or not that's true, and you can certainly accuse the top of the chain of command of betraying the country, but don't blame the troops for it. They still want to believe they're doing it for us.
Re:Fighting for us ? absoulutely! (Score:5, Insightful)
Now Saddam Hussain has gone, the occupying force has an absolute responsibility to hand the country over to responsible governance. The alternative would be balkanisation and the development of mini states led by fanatics. Many of these warlords would benefit greatly from supporting global terrorism.
Dont kid yourself, Iraq is most deffinitely a threat now and it is a vital responsibility of the occupying forces to support the development of the new government - for our sakes as much as for the Iraquis
For many people opposition to the war before it began was for this very reason - that we doubted that the US would be capable of returning Iraq to peace and prosperity after removing their vile dictator. In particular we doubted that the American electorate had the stomach to take responsibility for the winning of the peace after the war.
Whatever the rights and wrongs of starting the thing, it is now of vital importance to finish the job.
Parent
Protection is not the goal; it's money. (Score:3, Insightful)
Making money from an unnecessary invasion is not protecting your family. Your family is now in far more danger now that the U.S. government has invaded an oil-rich Arab country that was, at the time, not threatening other countries. Nothing a Madison Avenue advertising company could do would have given more support to crazed terrorists. It was an effective move for those who want more war, because there is profit in war.
Just what we need.... (Score:3, Funny)
Is that... Wi-Fi? (Score:3, Funny)
Major security issues... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Major security issues... (Score:3, Insightful)
That said, they aren't talking about deploying one here. This is commercial off the shelf equipment they are talking about in the article. Grossly insecure.
In Iraq, this might work. Good line of sight and all. In Afghanistan - listen, i've seen pictures people brought back from Afghanistan in the last 2 ye
Wifi Rifles (Score:3, Funny)
"Better than MARS" FAQ (Score:5, Informative)
FAQ is at http://public.afca.af.mil/LIBRARY/MARS1.HTM [af.mil]. Another article explaining the Air Force MARS is http://www.asc.army.mil/mars/history.htm [army.mil]
Re:"Better than MARS" FAQ (Score:2)
Re:"Better than MARS" FAQ (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:"Better than MARS" FAQ (Score:4, Informative)
- You'd type out a phone number and a short message (limited to something like 64 words) to a loved one and save it to a floppy in a special format.
- Give said floppy to the guy onboard who was running our end of the MARS network - basically, one of your shipmates entertaining his off-duty hobby.
- He'd batch up all of the outbound messages and blast them out via packet modem.
- Your message would be routed through HAMs until it reached one in your local area code, who would call your recipient on the phone and read the message to them.
- If they wanted to reply, the HAM would transcribe their message, route it back to the stateside MARS station, and broadcast it back to the ship.
- The shipboard MARS guy would print out a few pages of messages, cut the page into strips (one per message), and send them out via the intra-ship mail envelopes.
The total turnaround time from when you first typed your message to when you received the response was on the order of 48 hours. Compared with a roughly two-month turnaround on snail mail, it just practically like making the phone call yourself.Did I mention that this was completely free of charge for both of the end parties involved? I've never actually met a MARS operator, but if I do, first drink's on me.
As a side note, MARS is directly responsible for me working with computers. I was a surgery tech on ship, but I knew enough programming to write a little BASIC app to run on our 8086 laptop to let anyone type their message, apply the appropriate constraints on it (checking for word length, number of words, etc.), and correctly save it to a floppy. People in the department would wander by, type their little message, and get a nice surprise two days later. My coworkers were happy enough to tell my boss, who was good enough to point out that while I didn't seem to like being a surgery tech, I definitely liked programming, and I should get out of the Navy and go to college to study CompSci. Ken Schnapp, in the unlikely chance that you read Slashdot: thanks, man!
Parent
Security Nightmare... (Score:5, Insightful)
Remember, information wants to be free...
Did you ever get the feeling... (Score:2, Interesting)
I did check it out though, and the term 'Semper Wi-Fi' was used previous to mean wireless Internet for Marines... by the Marine Corps itself. http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/0/B2C90 2831D9E2D8A85256E7D004BA4A5?opendocument [usmc.mil]
Re:Did you ever get the feeling... (Score:2)
Wikipedia has a small blurb [wikipedia.org] on the phrase.
Hoorah!
Other Prominent Corps Mottos (Score:4, Funny)
"In case anyone doesn't get it, "Semper Fi" is the Marine Corp motto."
Other prominent mottos we've use include:
Parent
It is more a case of terminals (Score:5, Interesting)
I would suggest wireless dumb terminals with certificate based security, going through a WEP that is MAC configured and keeping a tabs on all terminals as much as possible.
No, the thing that shocks me is the reference to ehowa...
Governments spend unbelievable ammounts of money on military equiptment, can't some of it be appropriated to communications?
I thought 'battlefield' communications would be very good - I am utterly mystified how a country can have so many troops in a place and not have a solid redundant communciation netwrok that could be accessible to the troops.
Perhaps this could be an oppourtunity for some community aid? Let the students get involved in configuring the units (after all, we are talking email and video messaging, nothing secret?)
This may be nice.
Re:It is more a case of terminals (Score:3, Insightful)
The military views this much like entertainment, it is not an operational priority, and for the DoD that is in a massively spending spreed yet knows it needs to limit it's spending, it cuts from the bottom of "non-operational" activities not the top like Space Weapons.
I thought 'battlefield' communications would be very good - I am utterly mystified how a country can have so many t
Old Computers (Score:3, Informative)
The military has special sites setup for where the families can get free webmail, inet access, etc..
I took two old P3-450s and gave one to my wife's friend and another to the local Marine Reserve base, that they can pass out to other family members.
Josh
Not a great thing (Score:2, Funny)
How about a missile that homes in on a particular MAC address?
Unrestricted WiFi connectivity to soldiers... (Score:2)
Modern-day censors? (Score:2, Insightful)
And, in response to the article, does anyone see a security issue with a "privately-funded,
Re:Modern-day censors? (Score:4, Interesting)
Parent
Giving a whole new meaning (Score:5, Funny)
wither Halliburton (Score:2)
Armed Forces personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan increasingly use the Internet to communicate with their familes back home, but there are not nearly enough computers and connections for them.
Doesn't Halliburton [halliburton.com] provide these services (among many others) to the troops? Why not start there and see if a couple of those billions of dollars of tax payer money can be spent meeting this need?
When the troops pull out..... (Score:3, Insightful)
If I could turn back time...If i could find a way (Score:2)
If the US, Europe, and all other developed states could rebuild the infrastructure from a clean slate, wouldn't they implement WiFi (and GPS & cellular/PCS) solutions instead of the mesh(mess) of wires that criss-cross our landscapes and obscure our views?
If the above is true, then Wifi (and the aforementioned GPS & cellular/PCS) solutions are obvious in a place like Iraq that does not have the infrastructure that can support the needs of thousands of 21s
No Need For Alarm (Score:3, Informative)
This is not a situation where military details will be disclosed or data stolen from the hard drives of military planners laptops (they have to go to Los Alamos for that - groan).
This is an initiative to send equipment to troops who need to keep their families apprised of their condition.
Help Needed in Iraq with Internet Access (Score:5, Interesting)
My name is Michael and I'm a civilian contractor out here in Fallujah, Iraq working with the Marine Headqaurters in their Information Office. On my free time my roomate and I keep the current internet cafe running on base for a large number of Marines and service members.
I can tell you want is needed. There are over 20 internet cafes, which consist of one 1mb/512 satellite and 20 computers and 8 IP's phones. Some cafes have multiple satellites with this configuration. We have 3, which is 60 computers with webcams and IP phones.
The problem is that there was no support included with this package. Most cafe's are not working becasue there aren't any IT or computer geeks to keep them running. And if there are any Marines who could they are busy doing other things.
A wide wireless LAN is risky. The reason is Operational Security. Information is easier to leak if not controlled. So when a Marine sits down in the internet cafe we have signs posted and of course their background reminds them about OPSEC.
Also I have been looking for simple Internet Cafe software on Freshmeat and other places but have not found a good solution.
Currently we are reworking the contract. We are going to use this Internet cafe as a template for all others. I would LOVE suggestions from the Slashdot community on what they think. Please drop me an email or IM on your thoughts.
Re:Iraq (Score:3, Funny)
Reminds me of the USA Today headline a couple of months ago: Occupation of Iraq to End. Troops will Remain Indefinitely .
Re:Iraq (Score:5, Insightful)
That said, even though you're trolling you have somewhat of a point...
Parent
Re:Iraq (Score:4, Interesting)
If more frequent contact can be made, their morale will increase, and this leads to more effective troops.
If YOU wish to start a Rebuild Iraq fund, feel free to do so. Like a Habitat for Iraq-ity.
Our military is not supposed to rebuild Iraq (they are demolition/enforcement, not construction). The rebuilding is supposed to be done by the 'contractors' already hired (and a fine job they are doing, too).
Parent
Re:Iraq (Score:2)
I can see there are enough flag-waving fanboys here to make this debate one big cry-in, so I'm outta here.
One last thing - the Army IS supposed to rebuild Iraq. That's their job. If they can't put back all the stuff they blew up, then they can't do their jobs properly. The contractors are the muscle.
Re:Iraq (Score:4, Insightful)
1. Kill that guy.
2. Keep that guy from killing someone else (method: see #1).
3. Train for 1 and 2.
This is the reason Vietnam turned out the way it did. If you expect the military to effectively do anything but kill the enemy, be prepared to be disappointed.
IMHO, Civilian contractors, US, Iraqi, or otherwise, should be doing the reconstruction. It is the Iraqi government's responsibility to oversee this task and the US government's responsibility to assist as appropriate.
Parent
Re:Iraq (Score:2)
They're probably reacting to the fact that you didn't read the story which is about a privately funded network before posting a suggestion on how the government should spend its money.
Re:Iraq (Score:2)
Where did I once mention the Government should fund it? Oh, I didn't. I'm suggesting that if people really want to spend their money helping people, then maybe those without food and water should be helped, before installing satellite & wireless internet access for the troops. Kind of like how they should turn the power back on before creating an Iraqi national soccer team.
Re:Iraq (Score:2, Interesting)
Oh, and I don't consider the grandparent a troll, it seems a valid point to me. If people are so concerned about rebuildin
Re:ofcourse it will be secure. (Score:4, Funny)
Parent
Re:Call me ignorant perhaps.. (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Call me ignorant perhaps.. (Score:4, Informative)
Parent
Re:Why not use Internet at home ? (Score:2)
None the less, while it's fine to say why don't they come home... I suggest you take that up with the leaders in Washington who call the shots regarding such things.
Re:secruity? (Score:3, Interesting)
When he shipped out earlier this year, he made sure to bring is entire war driving setup including cantenna... although when we do see him on it's always been from the local and legitimate network connection from where he is stationed.
Re:Donations? (Score:2)
Consider this - the gov is contracting civilian security personnel who are paid many times more than the normal troops are. Both the troops and these contractors are paid with your tax dollars. Is that the act of a government that cares?