Internet mail via radio link @ PC-Expo
Rick M Plavnicky
>Like many people, I have no use for anything but a pocket cellphone,
>and little use for one I can't plug into a portable computer,
>preferably my HP 95LX, without having to use a bunch of clumsy
>interface devices, so I am waiting for one that supports that. Any
>rumors?
I saw something at PC-Expo last week that, while it's not what you're
looking for, impressed me as being pretty neat.
In the Hewlett-Packard exhibit there was a guy demoing a package
which included an HP-95LX and a radio device which plugged into its
serial port, packaged in a compact leather zipper case. Software
(which appeared to be System Manager compliant) was running which
provided wireless internet mail. I had it send mail to itself, and
it seemed to work quickly and easily. Then I sent mail to the
account I'm posting from and, according to the routing info attached
along the way, the received message seemed to have made it across the
country in several tens of seconds.
Pricing of the package, when available late this year, was quoted as
$1795 for the hardware (including the HP), software, and case. Radio
carrier service extra, of course.
The message I sent myself originated at name_d...@radiomail.net.
The guy doing the demo claimed there is radiomail.net coverage in
most major metro areas now, with expansion planned for the future.
Anybody know anything about this site/outfit?
My apologies for the lack of specifics in this article; it was the
end of the last day of PC-Expo and they were literally kicking us out
while I was playing with the demo unit. Perhaps someone who also saw
this can elaborate.
>j...@starflight.corp.sun.com, sta...@uunet.uu.net
/* Rick Plavnicky pl...@cup.portal.com */
Scott R. Myers
srm
--
Scott R. Myers
Snail: 8544 Temple Road Phone:215.247.2551
Philadelphia, PA 19150
Voice Mail:215.440.6066
Arpa: s...@dimacs.rutgers.edu Uucp: ..!dimacs!srm
"Every time I think I'm wrong I realize that I was mistaken!"
Rick M Plavnicky
>I can tell you that it's made by GE/Ericsen. Hope that helps some...
A bunch of stuff arrived from them in the afternoon mail. I'll
digest it and post a summary later, if there's interest.
Rick M Plavnicky
which I mentioned in an earlier article. The other day I received
information from the vendor about this product/service, quite a bit
actually, which I'll try to summarize here. 99.9% of what follows is
taken from the product literature and is not based on personal
experience with the described products. This article also corrects a
mistake or two I made in the original.
But first, note that I am not employed by or an agent of any company
that might be mentioned in this article, and that I stand to gain
nothing by the posting of this information. This is not a commercial
message. I feel better now.
The product I mentioned centers on a small, one pound (including
rechargeable battery) radio transceiver called the Mobidem M1090
Portable Wireless Modem. The device is not specific to the 95LX, but
connects to any computer with an RS-232 port. A supplied connecting
cable is a male DB-9 on the PC end, with an RJ45 on the other. The
M1090 measures 1.3x2.6x7.87 inches (not including the fold-down
antenna), and averages 10 hours of use between battery charges. User
controls and displays are spartan; an on/off switch, a mode switch
(allows choice of `power saving' or `express' mode), an LCD display
(indicating signal strength, battery remaining, network contact
status, message waiting, subscriber number, and mode), and an
annunciator (signals incoming messages or status changes). Supported
are a number of data rates: 1.2, 2.4, 4.8, and 9.6 kbps, and the
transfer protocol is MASC (proprietary Mobitex Asyncronous
Communications Protocol), full duplex.
The M1090 is powered by a V20 8088 CMOS CPU, with control software in
a field-upgradeable flash EPROM. Software-wise, APIs for DOS and UNIX
are available.
In normal operation the M1090 scans the network at regular intervals
for incoming messages. When one does, the unit beeps and the user is
able to read it on their PC. The following paragraph on deferred
communications is quoted directly from the literature.
"The Mobidem offers several types of defferred
communications. (1) If the user is within the
Mobitex coverage area and the PC is turned off or
disconnected, messages are received and stored in
the Mobidem. The LCD display shows the number of
stored messages. (2) If the user is outside of
the Mobitex coverage area, outgoing messages can
be deferred until network coverage is
reestablished. (3) If the user is outside of the
Mobitex coverage area or has the Mobidem turned
off, incoming messages can be stored within the
Mobitex network itself until the user
reestablishes a connection. At that time,
messages are automatically relayed."
Mobitex, mentioned above, is a packet switched, wireless network. It
offers seamless roaming, and user accounts are associated with the
user, not with a location. Networks are now operating in the United
States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland, and Norway. At
PC-Expo, the representative claimed that most major metropolitan areas
of the United States were covered.
The M1090 is designed to work with the Mobitex network, and will not
function on either cellular networks or other mobile data networks.
List price for the M1090 Mobidem is US$1,795. Mobitex network service
pricing is not listed.
What I saw at PC-Expo was an integrated system called the Viking
Express Wireless E-mail Package.
The system consists of the Mobidem (described above), an HP95LX
palmtop, RadioMail Remote software, a User's Manual, serial cable,
battery charger, and carrying case. The claim is that it allows
communications with many email networks. Listed are the Internet,
LAN-based cc:Mail, and public mail systems ATTMail, MCI Mail, and
CompuServe.
The software provides inbox/outbox capability and sports an
easy-to-use interface (I tried this - it's pretty intuitive). All
modem and network functions are automatic, and the user merely has to
worry about reading and writing their messages. It's System Manager
compliant - you can optionally compose messages with the Memo
application.
The following is quoted directly from the literature.
"In addition to the Viking Express package, you
will need a subscription to the Anterior RadioMail
gateway. The gateway allows for the transparent
exchange of email with most popular LAN-based mail
systems."
It seems to me that current 95LX owners should be able to obtain the
Mobidem, RadioMail Remote software, and a gateway subscription, but no
explicit mention is made. They don't say whether the software
requires a 1 MB 95LX, so I assume the 512K model is sufficient. It's
expensive no matter how you look at it but, like they say, if you need
it it's worth it. Like I wrote earlier, when I saw it *I* was sure
impressed!
Further information can be gotten, probably, from the same guy that sent me
this stuff:
Albert Danza al.d...@radiomail.net
That's not the same address that the mail I sent myself came from :-)