I get asked a lot of questions about wireless networking. So, I'm posting this One-Size-Fits-All Wireless Networking FAQ in the hopes of clearing things up.

Q. I'd like to try doing ___________ with 802.11b. Will it work?

A. Dunno, maybe. Wireless networking depends on so many different factors that it's impossible to say for sure. Try it and let us know.

Traditional housing is bunk. Uneconomical, unsustainable, non-portable, and just plain boring. I designed and built a two-frequency geodesic dome to shelter seven people at Burning Man 2001. (Meng took some great photos, both of the exterior and interior.) The PVC was kind of a pain in the ass to work with -- not to mention made of toxic chemicals -- and I just don't have the tools to fashion a dome out of metal conduit, so I might just shell out for a Pacific Dome this year and spare myself the trouble. (All hail Buckminster Fuller.) But what reminded me of all of this was an article recently published in Wired about yurts, which are traditional semi-temporary structures that have been in use in Central Asia for centuries. I know some people in the Cazadero Hills in Sonoma County that live in yurts, and they seem like another cool option for progressive housing in this day and age. Maybe I'll get a yurt, instead.

Elaine, I think you've done a bad thing. Our friend geoffeg from #perl has started a weblog that looks astonishingly familiar. He writes: "I've made attempts of maintaining blogs on other sites... but so far, I've never liked the fact that I don't have more control over the look and design.... I don't think my life is very exciting but apparently these blogs are just the wave of the future!" And look who's on Geoff's list of links. I guess Great Minds Think Alike (also q.v. Fools Seldom Differ).