Gossip

WiFi org starts testing for fast 11g compatibility. A secret at WiFi org!

The new, faster version of ordinary WiFi wireless networking is now being tested by the WiFi Alliance, and "802.11g" has joined 802.11b on the list of standards which are certified interoperable. But does the Alliance know this?

Eight products, from six companies, have already passed the Alliance's testing, Sniffer notes. The standard was ratified a month ago by the IEEE.

So Sniffer was a bit tickled to read, in the FAQ on wireless published by the WiFi Alliance, that the latest bulletin on that page explains:

"The IEEE 802.11g standard is not final. Therefore there is a potential for pre-standard products to be based on different 802.11g drafts, and thus multi-vendor interoperability cannot be assured. Interoperability will only be assured when the WiFi Alliance has its final interoperability test plan, and all products get tested."

Someone ought to tell the WiFi Alliance ... here's a list they might find interesting reading!

First Wi-Fi CERTIFIED IEEE 802.11g Products

The following products have received interoperability certification from the Wi-Fi Alliance for IEEE 802.11g functionality:

* Atheros AR5001X+ Universal 802.11a/b/g Wireless Network Adapter

* Broadcom 54g AP Reference Design – BCM94306-GAP

* Intersil PRISM Duette PCMCIA Adapter Model ISL39000C

* Intersil PRISM Duette Access Point Developer's Kit Model ISL39300A

* Melco AirStation 54Mbps Wireless Notebook Adapter-g Model# WLI-CB-G54(A)

* Proxim ORiNOCO AP-600b/g

* TI TNET1130 WLAN Cardbus Reference Design

* TI TNETWA622-g10-DP Access Point Reference Design

These 802.11g products have not only been tested to work with each other, but also for backwards compatibility with 11b. That includes the ability to handle both 11b and 11g users simultaneously, at full speed (54 megabits nominal) even though the IEEE spec allows a device to be accepted as standard 11g if it runs no faster than 24 megabits (nominal).

Sniffer wonders if it is polite to ask WiFi Alliance chairman Dennis Eaton if he's heard about Intersil's withdrawal from the WiFi market ... he's Intersil's chief technologist on WLAN matters.