Mesh
Feb 21: Launched "Snow Crash" release candidate v.0.1.0 - now deploying the first batch of experimental nodes!
We are an all-volunteer organization building the People's Open Network, a community-owned and operated non-profit internet infrastructure in Oakland.
A mesh network is a way of freely sharing internet connectivity with one's neighbors and creating a community-owned 'internet' that doesn't necessarily have to be connected to the Internet as we know it now. It consists of routers running software that allow them to communicate with other routers around them. The users who join the network enable others to be on the network and support net neutrality. These networks are resilient to disasters because the routers are distributed throughout the community rather than being dependent on the infrastructure developed by service providers.
The software we've created is open source and we're using it to develop free internet for Oakland and the surrounding areas. We hope the community will use our software to create a network that's available everywhere for free. It's a project that will give access to internet, regardless of income, and reduce the divide between communities. We hope these networks will connect our neighbors, support local businesses, and enable community collaboration. In the event of disaster or censorship, a mesh network is a resilient means of communication and sharing of information.
| Documentation | Technical | Outreach | Operations | Research | External Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Install Instructions | Overview | FAQ | Minutes | User Research | peoplesopen.net |
| Net Topology | Hardware | Blog | To-Do's | SF Bay Area | network map |
| Presentations | Power | How to Help | Legal | Interviews | code on github |
| History | Security | Wishlist | Inventory | Other Meshes | DisasterRadio |
| Press | Backup | Website | Meetings | Software Tools | BuildYourOwnInter.Net |
| Firmware | Hosting | Propaganda | Funding | Local Services | |
| Mounting | Decisions | Self-Education | |||
| Next gen |
Join Us
- Join the email list!
- Follow us on twitter and like us on facebook.
- We have weekly hack nights on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:30-11:00pm at Sudo Room. The first three Thursdays of the month are work nights -- help us change the internet!
- Learn more at our general meetings, which are the last Thursdays of every month. We have focus groups and we collaborate on different parts of the or join the mailing list for details.
- Chat with us on IRC: #peoplesopen.net
- We generally collaborate on meeting notes at each meeting. Look at our archive of past meeting minutes!
How to Help
We successfully concluded a crowdfunding campaign on WePay (July 2013) to buy the first 100 wifi routers for the mesh! Thanks to all who supported with a donation. See Mesh/Purchases for details on how much was raised, who contributed, and what we've procured thus far with the funds!
There are many ways you can help us:
- Support us with a small weekly donation on gittip.
- Send bitcoins to our wallet address: 12RxU4DpLpdWcmEBn7Tj325CCXBwt5i9Hc
- Come to our meetings in Oakland! (listed above).
- Improve our documentation.
- Talk to your community about joining the mesh.
Be a User
We need more users on the network to improve the quality of the service. We have a user introduction that should When you setup a node, you're able to access the internet for free and give more people access. Also, we encourage users to ask their communities to join their network because it will improve their signal strength and service.
Be a Developer
We need hardware and software engineers to help us with our code. We have an overview of technical documentation that will be helpful in understanding the network.
Be a Designer
We need artists and designers to make things look nice! We have design scheme we already use, but we're always looking to improve it. We need to improve our presentation content and diagrams too!
Mesh pages
- Mesh/ToDos - Tangible To Dos! Add some on, take some on!
- Mesh/Wishlist - List of hardware we'd love to experiment with!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Mesh/Legal - How do we use exit nodes, relays and legal structures to protect node owners and ourselves?
- Mesh/Hosting - How are we hosting and what does it cost?
- Mesh/Backup - How do we handle backups?
- Mesh/Server security - How do we ensure server security?
- Mesh/Naming - What do we call ourselves?
- Mesh/Marketing - Inspiration and links to marketing materials in progress.
- Mesh/Purchases - Details on our purchases, made by either individuals or through our crowdfunded money.
- Mesh/Inventory - What we currently have.
- Mesh/Donations - List of donations
- Mesh/Decisions - Decisions on how to operate
- Mesh/Challenges - Challenges faced. Problems to be solved.
- Mesh/Checkouts - Who took what gear home
- Mesh/Funding - Ideas on funding structures and list of grants to apply for.
Background Research
- Mesh/Interviews with other meshers - In which we attempt to extract the results of their hard-won experience.
- Mesh/Other mesh projects - List of active and inactive meshes we know about
- Mesh/Documentation - Books, articles, wikis, blog posts.
- Mesh/Oakland - Information and resources pertaining to Oakland community organizations, wireless initiatives, policy and research initiatives
- Mesh/Other muni networking projects - Examples of progressive uses of muni-networks
Firmwares / groups
Web Resources
- 510pen - East Bay community wireless mesh network spawned in 2009 by Mark Burdett
- Tidepools - Jenny Ryan designed local use cases for a community mobile mapping application built to run on mesh networks.
- Project Meshnet - Extensive wiki on the /r/darknet project, including extensive list of projects coordinating with them.
- Long Range Wifi - Info on the longest-range wifi connections ever made.
- Adafruit's Web IDE built for Raspberry Pi but probably good for editing code on any device and ensuring it is managed with a code repo. By default it uses bitbucket.org but it could probably be configured for Github.