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Sep 10, 04, 10:59 am
Wi-Fi Gets Even More Complicated
...Announced earlier this year, these new programs have now officially launched with a first round of certified products for each. One is for the IEEE's 802.11i security standard--the most robust security to date for Wi-Fi networks. The Wi-Fi Alliance has its own name for 802.11i, however: The certification program calls it WPA II. That's because it's the successor to WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), a partial version of the standard that the Alliance promoted as an interim measure to remedy the seriously flawed security of WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), which was part of the first 802.11x specifications.
Never mind that the original WPA is far from universally available: WPA II uses AES encryption, which apparently is a requirement of certain highly security-conscious organizations (such as some U.S. government agencies). But before you run out to replace your router with a WPA II-certified product, know that you may not be able to upgrade your existing Wi-Fi notebooks and PC Cards to the new and improved standard. Check with your vendor.
The other new certification program addresses an anticipated demand for the ability to stream multimedia--audio and video, and everything from movies and music to voice-over-IP phone conversations--across a Wi-Fi network. Unlike data files, where the pace of transfer doesn't really matter as long as the file arrives intact, this type of data needs to move in a timely manner in order to ensure a decent end-user experience (i.e., the video, music, or phone conversation doesn't stutter). To handle this requirement for what the industry calls quality of service, or QoS, the IEEE is working on another new standard, 802.11e.
But 802.11e won't be finalized for a couple of years at least...
http://blogs.pcworld.com/staffblog/archives/000194.html
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Wi-Fi targets TVs and mobiles
http://www.vnunet.com/news/1157952
...Announced earlier this year, these new programs have now officially launched with a first round of certified products for each. One is for the IEEE's 802.11i security standard--the most robust security to date for Wi-Fi networks. The Wi-Fi Alliance has its own name for 802.11i, however: The certification program calls it WPA II. That's because it's the successor to WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), a partial version of the standard that the Alliance promoted as an interim measure to remedy the seriously flawed security of WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), which was part of the first 802.11x specifications.
Never mind that the original WPA is far from universally available: WPA II uses AES encryption, which apparently is a requirement of certain highly security-conscious organizations (such as some U.S. government agencies). But before you run out to replace your router with a WPA II-certified product, know that you may not be able to upgrade your existing Wi-Fi notebooks and PC Cards to the new and improved standard. Check with your vendor.
The other new certification program addresses an anticipated demand for the ability to stream multimedia--audio and video, and everything from movies and music to voice-over-IP phone conversations--across a Wi-Fi network. Unlike data files, where the pace of transfer doesn't really matter as long as the file arrives intact, this type of data needs to move in a timely manner in order to ensure a decent end-user experience (i.e., the video, music, or phone conversation doesn't stutter). To handle this requirement for what the industry calls quality of service, or QoS, the IEEE is working on another new standard, 802.11e.
But 802.11e won't be finalized for a couple of years at least...
http://blogs.pcworld.com/staffblog/archives/000194.html
---
Wi-Fi targets TVs and mobiles
http://www.vnunet.com/news/1157952