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MikroTik RouterOS Announces Sniffer/Snooper Wireless Mode

Screenshot available here

MikroTik RouterOS Announces Sniffer/Snooper Wireless Mode

WISPs can now do an extensive analysis of wireless activity in a/b/g WiFi spectrum with version 2.9 of MikroTik RouterOS.

On Thursday of last week Valens Riyadi, an Indonesian associate and reseller of MikroTik equipment, joined the relief effort for the Tsunami victims and traveled to Banda Aceh to assist in setting up an emergency

Internet system for the relief effort in Aceh, Indonesia. The group is called the Aceh Media Center and can be found on the web at: http://www.acehmediacenter.or.id/ This group is composed of the Indonesian ISP association along with a number of other supporting institutions.

In the past, Valens has been key to building ISP systems and has organized seminars for Mikrotik. Support of his efforts will be an effective use of donations.

As the situation there is fluid and communications are difficult, this information may be old already. Here is the current information we have: Valens Riyadi is in Banda Aceh with a team of engineers now preparing an initial wireless backbone to connect local relief offices to an Internet satellite link that will:

1. connect victims of the Tsunami

2. connect directly to the Prime Minster's relief coordinators in Jakarta

3. connect the various Indonesian relief efforts locally in Banda Aceh

4. connect the NGO relief efforts

5. connect the press core

MikroTik has contributed a six point 5GHz backbone system, as well as hotspot routers -- these are currently on the ground in Indonesia.

The following is an appeal for supplies and donations for the relief effort. Please work directly with Aceh Media Center if you wish to contribute.

PRIORITY NEEDS REQUESTS

FOR ACEH IT-MEDIA CENTER

Despite the devastating Asian Tsunami, we are witnessing an amazing generosity of spirit and action from around the world to provide assistance for the massive relief operation in many places hit by the worst world's disaster in peace time. There is little doubt that the West Coast of Aceh, Indonesia was one of the hardest hit areas.

According with this situation, some IT Associations ; APJII (Indonesian Internet Service Provider Association), FTII (Indonesian Information Technology Federation), Indo WLI (Indonesian Wireless Association) and Sekolah2000 (IT Education Association), and AWARI (Indonesian Internet Kiosk Association), have collaborated with Indonesia Government and Journalist Organization.

Our Mission :

1. Develop some media center at Banda Aceh, Loksumawe, Meulaboh Simeuleu Island and other place which need

2. Facilitate journalist, NGO, and other organization who concern about Indonesian Tsunami Disaster for communication and Internet connection.

3. Publish real condition and information about Aceh to help others party to help them.

SITUATION REPORT

Sporadic relief effort in Aceh due to a lack of coordination due to poor logistics, poor telecommunications infrastructure and unclear command structure.

According to Bisnis Indonesia (31/12/05, Banda Aceh): Recovery and medical relief effort in Banda Aceh is hampered by the lack of coordination in the medical relief effort. According to Mr. Budhi Sardjana, the coordinator of the medical teams at four hospitals, the lack of telecommunications infrastructure is making the job of coordinating the field teams and the Humanitarian Coordinating Center. The government is having some difficulties in facilitating the volunteers to get the worst affected areas because of the limited transport and other resources. Therefore, IT Media Center Team would prioritize facilitating the free flow of information to support the relief effort through our website (http:://www.acehmediacenter.or.id) and the setting up of our IT-media center in Banda Aceh.

The number of refugees in North Aceh Utara is on the increase. As of Saturday (1/1) early morning, refugees in subdistrict North Aceh have reached the number of 50.023 people, while refugees in Lhokseumawe are as many as 10.811 people. They now complain of itch, Asthma, and Upper Respiratory Infection.

Villagers of Lambada, sub district Mesjid Raya, Aceh Besar, were almost vanished, swept by the Tsunami Flood. Based on the information from Faisa (Lambada’s villager) currently they were only left 105 people out of around 2100 villagers that lived in Lambada. 100 of them were male, and the rest were female.

Hundreds of children were separated from their parents due to the earthquake and tsunami that swept Aceh and North Sumatra. There were at least 200 children at Mata Ie refugee camp whose parents were lost or die. At Lueng Bata refugee camp, about 20 children experienced the same thing.

Our remaining six. members of the IT-Media Center Team were able to fly with his entourage and are now in the BRI Building. Two of them went to Banda Ache at Dec 28^th 2004, and at Dec 29^th 2004 we sent 4 others. Our aim is to set up a Network Operating Center (NOC) in Banda Aceh and an IT-Media Center there first. Then we plan to set up such Centers in five other locations ; 2 location at Banda Aceh BRI Building and Governor Office where a lot of journalist stay there, 1 location at Meulaboh, Simeuleu Island and Loksumawe. For your information, now our journalist arrived at Meulaboh, and find a lot information about condition of Tsunami Victim at some place which never publish on media a long his trip.

We also collaborate with some organization : Pena Indonesia as our official journalist partner, Indonesian Red Cross, we support them to make missing person and victim database, and publish it using Internet on our website, and some organization who want to publish their activity related with Aceh Tsumani Disaster.

PRIORITY NEEDS REQUESTS

1. LIVING EXPENSES:

We seek urgent assistance in funding to support the daily expenses of relief operation of a team of 6 people now in Banda Aceh for a period of three months. Each person is calculated to require about US$ 40-60 per day. Its not including operational cost for Jakarta Team Office.

(2)EQUIPMENT- IMMEDIATE NEEDS - FOR EACH IT-MEDIA CENTER:

The following list is the list of equipment needed for one IT-Media Center which is based on the one we are setting up in Banda Aceh. We are planning at least five other centers across the province.

1. 10-20 Notebook/Portable Computers

2. 2 Global Positioning System (Compas, Altimeter, Barometer)

3. Satellite Phone – Ericsson (5-10 units)

4. 5 pairs of wireless 5.8 ghz units complete with omni antennae and parabolic grid and mounting plus cables, connectors, power over Ethernet dll. including outdoor box with amplifier (0.5 - 1.0 watts)

5. Complete VSAT unit (ODU, IDU) with 2.4 m antenna either DVB, RCS or SCPC, ethernet output.

6. 7 unit Wifi Hotspot equipment include Local Access Point for two locations (BRI Housing Complex and Central Post Office/Wasantara Internet café in Banda Aceh) and 5 other locations in the province.

7. 5 Unit hub/switch 8/16 port.

8. 5 unit Converter V35 to Ethernet plus cabling

9. 5 pair of HDSL point to point

10. Crimping tools and cable tester.

11. 10 unit Slim PC Router

12. 10 UTP/STP Cable, with RJ 11 and RJ 45 connector

13. Walkie-Talkies, with long-range capacity (5-10 units)

14. Electricity Generator, 1.5 KVA

15. Batteries AA-size rechargeable for Walkie Talky VHF radio
    and the battery chargers (60 rechargeable batteries and the battery packs)

16. Cable RG8 VHF (for transmission radio/HT) minimum 30 meters, with connectors

17. 5 roll cable power NYM @ minimal 50 meter

18. 5 10 unit Power supply minimal 30A, 12 volt DC

19. Repeater VHF with duplexer and antenna omni-directional high gain (standard)

20. VSWR meter VHF/UHF

21. HT VHF duplex mode and tone control

22. Antennae HT mobile/for cars VHF and bracket + cable

23. Converter DC to AC 300 - 500 watt

24. 10 Unit Mobile Solar Panel (min 300 VA)

25. 3 unit Hand Scanner

Beside, we also need survival equipment and logistic for our team at Aceh for 8 person.

Please send equipment to:

Indonesia Information Technology and ISP Association (IITF/FTII - APJII) Office
Cyber Building 11th floor, Jl. Kuningan Barat No 8, Jakarta Selatan 12710 Indonesia Phone: +62-2-5296 0634, Fax +62-21-5296 0635, email: nina@apjii.or.id, Ms. Nina Kencana (Secretary to IITF/ISP Association, APJII).

Or IT-Media Coordination Center (POSKO) Banda Aceh, at Head of Branch, BRI Housing Complex, (Rumah Kantor Kepala Cabang) Jl Sudirman, In front of USAID Office 4 Km from the Governor's House (Pendopo Gubernur).

(3) SUPPORT FOR ADDITIONAL BANDWIDTH

As in all previous crisis situation, there appears to be a major crisis of bandwidth capacity. We seek urgent assistance in from satellite bandwidth providers.

(4) SUPPORT FOR TECHNICAL EXPERT VOLUNTEERS

We seek urgent assistance in funding for technical volunteers to help set up the media centers there. While have offers from individuals and organizations in Indonesia, we welcome others from all places. Some individuals in the United States and the Barbados (Caribbean) have come forward to assist with setting up the equipment and maintenance support so that we can cover the other locations outside the capital Banda Aceh.

In summary, to the victims, relief workers, journalist and all those assisting the relief effort, help in getting you connected is on the way. Our IT-Media Center in Banda Aceh has just now come online, hotspots at the IT-Media Center and Central Post Office is our next priority. Please donate and provide us with equipment to get these and more places connected.

Our deepest sympathies to the families of victims who have been killed, and to all those who have been injured.

Thank you to all those who have contributed in various ways towards this major relief operation.

Regards,
IT – Media Center

Cyber-Elektrindo Building 11th Floor

Jl Kuningan Barat No.8, Jakarta 12710 Indonesia

Phone: +62-(0)21-5296-0634, Fax: +62-(0)21-5296-0635

Website: http://www.acehmediacenter.or.id

http://www.airputih.or.id

________________________________________________________________

NOTES ON BANKING DETAILS FOR CONTRIBUTIONS:

We welcome any financial support towards daily expenses and for equipment to be purchased locally. Please send your donations to:

Bank Account for Support of the IT-Media Field Team:

Bank Name: Bank Central Asia (BCA)

Account Name: Yayasan Sekolah2000 (School2000 Foundation-IITF/APJII project)

Account No.: 587-007222-0

Swift Code: CENAIDJA

Branch Office Name: Pembantu Pembangunan

Bank Address: BCA Kantor Cabang Pembantu Pembangunan

Jl. Pembangunan I No. 25,

Tel: +62-21-634-1428 , +62-21-6343-630 Fax:+62-21-634-11

(2) We have set up our English language website

<http://www.acehmediacenter.or.id/> to coordinate with our IT-Media Field Team's assistance effort and as a medium to provide back-up to the humanitarian relief operations (see below Red Cross and other information).

(3) For further information, please contact the Coordinating Center (POSKO) Jakarta
Principal Coordinator: Heru Nugroho,

Vice-Chairman, IITF & Chair-ISP Association/APJII

(HP: +62-8888-000-263 email: hn@melsa.net.id)

IT Team Coordinator : Edwardo Rusfid

(HP: +62-856-786-0897 email: edo@myindo.net)

International Affairs Advisor: Idris Sulaiman

(HP: +62-811-11-1312 email:idriss@indo.net.id).

Deputy Coordinator 1: Ahmad Khalil Alkazimy

(HP: +62-813-1608-5757 email:ahmad@apjii.or.id)

Deputy Coordinator 2: Ahmad Suwandi

(HP: (+62-815-900-5631 email:becandaers@yahoo.com)

iyonder Ltd's exceptional customer service at prestigious UK Hotels is powered by MikroTik Hotspot Routers

Islington, London, 22 January 2004 - ..iyonder Ltd, a cutting-edge technology company for the hospitality market, today announced that it had selected MikroTik's RouterOS Hotspot system for yet another WiFi Hotel in London.

..iyonder uses MikroTik platforms to meet hotel requirements and to satisfy guests demands for reliability in 10 of their current Hotspot locations, otherwise known as ..iyzones. The MikroTik RouterOS Hotspot platform is used at the following locations: Holiday Inn (Camden Lock), Country Inns & Suites (Kensington), Days Hotel (Birmingham West), Days Hotel (London Waterloo) Comfort Inn (Paddington), Comfort Inn (Kings Cross), Highdown Hotel (Worthing), St Lawrence (Luton), Express by Holiday Inn (Wembley), Express by Holiday Inn (Limehouse), Express by Holiday Inn (Royal Docks), Express by Holiday Inn (Southwark) and Express by Holiday Inn (Park Royal). And the technology will imminently be used at a further 28 locations recently contracted to iyonder.

The extensive options of the RouterOS platform allow ..iyonder to set up highly specialized systems and remain flexible to the demands of their clients. For this reason, the Radisson Edwardian group, which will now offer WiFi Hotspots in their relaxing and luxurious hotels, chose ..iyonder over the competition.

..iyzone
..iyzone is a high-speed guest internet package for the hospitality industry; its focus is to add value to a location, to attract new and existing customers and ultimately gain revenue through usage ..iyzone is fast, reliable and 'ubiquitous'; the service allows travellers to access their networks and email whenever and wherever, using fixed terminals or portable PCs; the package also includes training for the hospitality staff and unlimited support to guests. The deployment is quicker, cheaper and inconspicuous compared with traditional room-by-room less-than-high-speed installations; iyzone also allows users to roam seamlessly wherever they are comfortable in the world, since the account can be shared with other major wireless operators. Additionally ..iyzone is flexible and scalable: the login page can be customised to allow advertising when a guest opens the internet browser. ..iyzone presents a location with a fresh appeal, improving revenue through customer retention and guest acquisition.

The MikroTik RouterOS Platform
The MikroTik RouterOS platform includes a range of network and wireless features optimized for the highest-growth communication market segments such as wireless ISPs and hotspot providers. The Hotspot solution on the MikroTik RouterOS platform allows customer management servers to control and account for each user’s time, bandwidth, and access to the internet. It is also compatible with a number of national hotspot access providers such as iPass and Airpath. This allows ..iyzone customers the freedom to roam between locations. A single RouterOS Hotspot box is scalable to support thousands of concurrent users. The RouterOS features include: Wireless Access Point, Wireless CPE, RADIUS authorization and accounting, IP telephony, Bridging, Stateful Firewall, NAT, Universal Plug and Play, Proxy, Client (allowing the support of staitcally configured corporate latops) and Remote administration and upgrading. See webpage for additional features.

About ..iyonder Ltd
..iyonder is forward-thinking technology company for the European Hospitality Industry. It is UK based with global partners which enable it to assist with all a venue's technical needs. . The company is dedicated on meeting locations requirements and developing an experience : accordingly it is a leader in providing responsive supportfor a wireless internet service throughout the venue and not merely in the public areas. The company has been privately held since it was founded in August 2002; the headquarters are in Islington, London, England and the website is located at www.iyonder.com.

About MikroTik
MikroTik has been developing its RouterOS routing platform since 1995. MikroTik offers wireless network solutions to ISPs and corporate customers around the world. Many features of the RouterOS platform have become the core authentication and network management solution of many large networks around the world. . Additional information about MikroTik is easily accessible at www.mikrotik.com .

..iyzone is a trademark of ..iyonder Ltd. MikroTik and RouterOS are trademarks of MikroTikls, Inc.

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MikroTik Hotspot Routers Power Major US Airports Served by Concourse Communications

Concourse Communications Uses MikroTik Hotspot Technology at Two of the Largest US Airports

RIGA, Latvia, November 10th, 2003 - MikroTik (Mikrotikls SIA), a leading router solution maker, today announced that Concourse Communications, a leading operator of neutral-host wireless networks in airports and other large communication-intensive properties, has selected MikroTik's RouterOS Hotspot system as the management system for its hotspot wireless access systems (commonly known as WiFi Hotspots).

Concourse Communications Group uses MikroTik RouterOS platforms to provide access control and several other key functions needed to deliver high-speed, wireless Internet access to the public. The MikroTik RouterOS Hotspot platform is in use at New York's LaGuardia Airport (LGA), and the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP).

The Hotspot solution on the MikroTik RouterOS platform allows customer management servers to control and account for each user's time, bandwidth, and access to the Internet. The MikroTik RouterOS is compatible with a number of national hotspot access providers such as iPASS and AirpathWireless. A single RouterOS Hotspot box is scalable to support thousands of concurrent users with Gigabit throughput. The extensive options of the RouterOS platform allow networking companies to set up highly specialized systems for demanding network environments.

The MikroTik RouterOS Platform
The MikroTik RouterOS platform includes a range of network and wireless features optimized for the highest-growth communication market segments such as wireless ISPs and hotspot providers. The RouterOS features include: Wireless Access Point, Wireless CPE, RIP 1 / 2, OSPF v2, BGP v4, equal cost multi-path routing, policy based routing, firewall marked packet routing, PPP (ISDN, PPPoE, modem pool), RADIUS authorization and accounting, IP telephony, Bridging, Stateful Firewall and NAT, VLAN, DHCP, Hotspot, Tunnels (PPTP (VPN), IPIP, EoIP, IPsec), IP traffic accounting, firewall actions logging, Bandwidth Management (per IP / protocol / subnet / port, CBQ, RED, SFQ, byte FIFO, packet FIFO), Tools (ping, traceroute, bandwidth test, ping flood, SSH, telnet), DNS cache, Web cache, SNMP, NTP (Network Time Protocol), Remote administration and upgrading, DS3, T1/E1, v.35 synchronous, HSSI, frame relay, fast Ethernet, Gigabit, see webpage for additional features...

About Concourse Communications Group, LLC
As the leading developer of neutral host Wireless Access Systems, Concourse Communications Group is redefining wireless communications services at major U.S. airports and other commercial venues including LaGuardia, JFK, Newark Liberty, Detroit Wayne County Metropolitan Airport and the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. These systems support wireless voice, data and video services offered by commercial wireless service providers, airport operators and their airline tenants. For more information, please visit www.concoursecommunications.com

About MikroTik
MikroTik has been developing its RouterOS routing platform since 1995. MikroTik offers wireless network solutions to ISPs and corporate customers around the world. Many features of the RouterOS platform have become the core authentication and network management solution of many large networks around the world. Headquartered in Riga, Latvia, the company employs thirty-five people. Additional information about MikroTik is easily accessible at www.mikrotik.com .

MikroTik and RouterOS are trademarks of MikroTikls, Inc. All other brands, product names and marks are or may be trademarks or registered trademarks used to identify products or services of their respective owners.

MikroTik Ltd. is releasing its
multifunctional Router.

The RouterBOARD 200 is the first professional router made
and designed in Latvia.

03.03.2003

MikroTik Ltd.

MikroTik Ltd. is pleased to announce that it has finished the development of its next generation professional router - The RouterBOARD200. The new compact and multifunctional router can fit all the needs of internet service providers, or any other organizations which require a simple way to create a reliable computer network. The development of RouterBOARD 200 started in August 2002, and now, in cooperation with Hansa Electronics the mass production of it is planned to begin at the end of March 2003 in Latvia. The RouterBOARD 200 is the first high-end professional router made in Latvia. As this new device can be used in a variety of applications, it will be used by not only ISP's in Latvia and other parts of the world, but also small and medium class companies, which require a serious and reliable protection of data with a powerful firewall, or which want to create a HotSpot network in their office, or elsewhere. HotSpot is the client authentication and accounting system, which can create an easily controllable network in places, where the internet is used by many people - like for example internet cafe's, hotels, schools etc. It is planned that the most RouterBOARD200 devices will go to the United States; - MikroTik has already received a huge number of pre-orders even before the RouterBOARD200 was announced officially. In the beginning MikroTik will produce 6000 units per year, which will take their place in the market by proving their high quality, many usage possibilities, and extremely low price- at approximately 200 $. In comparison to most routers on the market, MikroTik now is offering routers with the same possibilities and the same reliability, but for a price many times lower. What capabilities will the RouterBOARD200 have? The device created by MikroTik, maker of the famous software router - RouterOS, will comply with the highest standards of the current router market. It will be configurable as router, wireless access point, bridge, firewall or bandwidth limiter - or even all in one. Together with the MikroTik RouterOS software, used by thousands or large scale ISP's all over the world, you can use all these features of RouterBOARD200: Firewall - to protect your computer network against unwanted access, and to create a custom internet usage policy. Our Firewall won't allow unwanted data to be sent to/from your network, and will protect it from any hacker attacks. VPN (Virtual Private Network) - the VPN will allow you to connect many networks with secure tunnels. MikroTik RouterOS offers you many VPN solutions, for example PPTP, IPsec or L2TP. By connecting remote locations with MikroTik routers, you can also use the IP Telephony feature, making free phone calls between the locations - anywhere in the world. For smaller companies this can mean the reduction of the monthly internet service fee, because with the RouterBOARD200 you will be able to make internet connection sharing easier than ever - only one internet connection can be shared for all the computers in the office. The RouterBOARD200 will include many more features - Web Proxy, PPPoE Access Concentrator/Client, PPTP server/client, Advanced Bandwidth management, NAT, VLAN, DNS and DHCP servers/clients, SNMP, NTP, and many many more. About MikroTik (www.mikrotik.com) MikroTik was established in 1995 and since then is developing wireless networks, and has created the RouterOS. Our clients include computer hardware developers, business centers, and large scale internet service providers - all over the world. Now MikroTik RouterOS is used almost in every country. The goal of MikroTik - make the Internet technology faster, more reliable and more accessible. About Hansa Elektronika Hansa Electronics is an industrial electronics developer, established in 1999, which is manufacturing electronics upon request. The most clients come from Scandinavia - Sweden, and also Latvia, United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland and Japan.

RouterBOARD200 Specifications

• 266 Mhz NSC SC1100 system on a chip CPU (Pentium level architecture)
• one SoDIMM (up to 256MBytes SDRAM)
• 2 Mbit Flash BIOS on board
• IDE CompactFLASH I/II socket (support for standard CF and IBM Microdrive)
• 44 pin boxhead IDE connector for Laptop Hard Driver (2.5 inch)
• two 10/100 Mb/s Ethernet using the NSC DP83816 (DP83815 driver compatible)
• one Serial port with DB9 connector
• one USB 1.1 connector
• Power LED, Activity LED, Error LED
• Mini-PCI type III
• PCI Slot with universal support (+/-12v, 5v, 3.3v)
• dual PCMCIA/CardBUS
• PC mini-speaker
• LCD out header
• nine GPIO
• CPU temp, Motherboard temp, Power supply area temp, PCMCIA area temp
• Voltage monitor for CPU, 12v, 5v, and 3.3v supplies
• enclosure intrusion detector header
• 3.3v out power header
• 5v out power header
• board size 105mm x 215mm (4.13 inch by 8.46 inch)
• operating temperature in enclosed case -20°C to +70°C (-4°F to 158°F)
• two separate watchdog controllers
• Power over Ethernet 802.3af standard
• onboard power jack 20-56vDC in
• onboard power header 48v in (to connect telecom 48v power wires)

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Using the Web to reconnect and rebuild in Kosovo

PRISTINA, Kosovo (CNN) -- Just across the street from the shattered glass and concrete rubble of the bombed-out police station, people line up. Nervous, impatient, anxious. Not for food, or shelter, or handouts. They are waiting to get online.

Welcome to the EasyNet Cafe, where the crowds never thin out. Last year, the 20-year-old owner of the cafe says, there was not a single Internet cafe here; now there are at least nine in the city and about 20 in the Kosovo region.

"I have 15 computers now, and if I could buy another 15, they would all be busy," said Luan Oruqi, one of Kosovo's homegrown dot-com adventurers. Like many young ethnic Albanians, Oruqi was forced to spend years abroad; when he and his generation came back, they were infected with the Internet bug.

Oruqi keeps his downtown cafe open 24 hours a day, connected to high-speed servers by satellite. At less than $2 an hour, going online is cheap enough for even hard-pressed Pristina residents to afford a short visit. Oruqi drops his price by half after midnight, when young people flock to the terminals to log on to chat groups so they can speak to relatives in the United States and around the world.

Daily life is still precarious here, more than one year after NATO airstrikes in response to Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's repression of ethnic Albanians in the southern province of Kosovo. NATO troops still patrol to keep the peace between the Albanian majority and the remaining Serbs.

Pristina is a city with a split personality: Chic teenagers flirt on the sidewalks while younger children rollerblade in the central plaza, but barely a day goes by without news of another shooting, an ethnic flare-up or a political crisis.

In a battle-scarred city where phone service is spotty, national television is on the air only two hours a day and a functioning postal service does not exist, the Internet remains a lifeline to the outside world.

E-mail is not a luxury in addition to the regular mail. For many people in the new Kosovo, it is the only mail.

"Everyone has friends and relatives in Europe and in America. It's the cheapest way to stay in touch," Oruqi said. "It's a way to break the walls between Kosovo and rest of the world."

News from the home front

Journalists in Kosovo are taking bold steps to break down such walls.

Radio21, a popular independent station in Pristina, is poised to broadcast its news 24 hours a day on the Web by this fall. Given the tens of thousands of Albanians around the world, the station thinks a market exists.

"We will be giving Albanians a voice in the decision-making process about our future wherever they live," said station general manager Alfredita Kelmendi, pointing to the satellite dishes that will beam her Web feeds to a server in San Francisco.

By trying to keep those who live abroad more informed of what is happening at home, she hopes to encourage many to return, or at least to invest funds in the new Kosovo.

Taking in new views and building bridges

I came to Pristina this summer as part of a program run by Reseau Liberte (Freedom Network), a media education group, to teach journalists about using the Internet.

More than 30 journalists from seven newspaper and broadcast outlets crowded into a hot room filled with sleek new laptops, provided by European governments that are investing heavily in Kosovo's reconstruction.

Since telephone lines are unreliable, newsrooms are commonly plugged into high-speed LAN servers via satellite. IPKO (Internet Project Kosovo), a nonprofit group originally set up by the International Rescue Committee, provides wireless Internet access here to every U.N. agency, major nongovernmental organizations, diplomatic missions and the media. Many journalists have the latest desktop computers and browsers.

Many of the ethnic Albanian journalists were disturbed during our Web training courses when I showed them critical reports about their own people. Human Rights Watch has criticized Albanian mistreatment of Serbs; we read the organization's full report online and looked at the disturbing pictures.

At a site run by the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, the reporters were conversely surprised to read about Serb journalists imprisoned for exposing atrocities committed by Milosevic's troops.

But some of the younger journalists also had things to teach me.

At 28, Ilire Zajmi has seen more war and destruction than most veteran journalists have. She covers security issues for RTK, the main television network. "Security" in Pristina means everything from bombs and shootings to ethnic riots.

Zajmi often uses the Web to get the news about what is happening right in Pristina, because news about Kosovo often travels faster on the Internet than it does in the jammed, chaotic streets of the city. She gets military briefings, photos and U.N. and NATO press releases online, and checks the wire services for updates on breaking stories to compare different versions of events.

Zajmi also uses the Web in other creative ways.

The nearby town of Mitrovica is often the site of ethnic tensions between Serbs and Albanians that sometimes escalate into violent skirmishes. But Zajmi has a problem: She cannot cross the town bridge that separates the two communities.

"I need to get the Serb point of view, but I can't go to the Serb side of town. As an Albanian, I could likely be attacked," she said. "So I get to the other side on the Web."

Zajmi finds Serb sites with news and details of the fighting, even sound bites. "It's a way to build bridges -- at least in the news business."

And maybe that is a good start.

By Julian Sher
Special to CNN Interactive
August 24, 2000

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/views/effect/2000/08/sher.kosovo.aug22/index.html

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, "MUST READ" article, Aprill 2000

Peace-Over-IP

What does a bombed-out war zone really need? A good ISP.

  Last year, Paul Meyer, an aid worker with the International Rescue Committee, decided to start up Kosovo's first Internet service provider. Meyer is no stranger to disaster areas; in West Africa in 1999 he set up a database that helped reunite refugee children and their parents.
  "After a crisis or a war, all these international organizations move in and it's chaos," says Meyer. "All of them need a communications link to the outside world, but there's no coordination." Satellite phones are expensive, leaving balkanized relief groups to make do with what's left of the local infrastructure.
  So Meyer and colleague Teresa Crawford launched IPKO.org, a network that connects the area's aid organizations to the Internet via a shared satellite link. "Basically," says Meyer, "I wanted to build the AOL of Kosovo."
  Meyer convinced Akron, Ohio-based Aironet and Latvia's MikroTik to donate wireless local routing equipment; InterPacket, a Santa Monica, California-based satellite-communications company, threw in a dish and year's worth of free downlink time. The UN interim government was harder to deal with - almost "totalitarian," says Meyer - but finally granted regulatory approval.

IPKO.org's Paul Meyer: serving Kosovo, wirelessly.

While Meyer, who was trained as a lawyer, took care of the negotiations, Akan Ismaili, a Kosovar Albanian engineer, hacked together a wireless network that sidestepped the local phone system altogether. (Five years ago, Ismaili was the Kosovo sysop for a Balkans BBS called ZaMir) Meyer's service has been up and running since last September.
  So far, IPKO.org has about 70 clients. Relief agencies pony up $1,000 a month for the service, while local organizations receive it free. Most of the fees go toward purchasing and maintaining the antennas needed to build the wireless infrastructure. Kosovo may include online voting in the elections projected for this autumn, though Meyer isn't sure he'll stick around: "Where I'll be depends on where the next crisis is, I guess." - Adam Fishe

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JOINT CISCO/AIRONET AND MIKROTIK PROJECT IN KOSOVO 1999

Unique Wireless Application Aids Relief Effort in War Torn Kosovo

MikroTik and Aironet Wireless Communications Partner to Provide Wireless Connectivity to Aid Relief Efforts in Kosovo

Pristina, Kosovo November 5, 1999: MikroTik -- an OEM and "Solutions Provider" -- and Aironet Wireless Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: AIRO) -- a leading provider of wireless local area networking solutions -- have joined forces to design and install a wireless Internet network in Pristina, Kosovo that will help connect various organizations charged with helping the citizens of Kosovo rebuild their lives in the aftermath of war. The International Rescue Committee [IRC] -- founded by Albert Einstein in 1933 -- is coordinating the Kosovo Internet project that will wirelessly connect aid organizations, the UN mission, and educational institutions in the main city of Pristina, Kosovo.

"The project eventually will connect more than 45 organizations to the local MikroTik/Aironet wireless Internet networking system, and then through a 4Mbps backbone satellite they will link to the United States," according to Paul Meyer, project coordinator for the IRC. "The wireless Internet system is especially appreciated here because of wireless' low reliance on communications infrastructure, quick installation, high-speed, and low cost."

The system installed in Pristina consists of Aironet leading high-speed11Mbps bridges and MikroTik 11Mbps wireless routers. The base unit consists of an Aironet BR 500 Bridge with omni directional antenna installed on an 18-story tower located in downtown Pristina. MikroTik wireless routers with directional antennas are installed at the client sites. MikroTik wireless routers - using Aironet wireless interfaces -- make it possible to allocate Internet bandwidth and provide multiple client networks with firewalled Ethernet ports. All configurations can be remotely administrated through web browsers.

"Aironet continues to develop award-winning wireless LAN and bridging products for the enterprise and specialized markets. We are pleased that our wireless technology can help the people of Kosovo as they rebuild their lives," said Ron Willis, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Aironet. "We hope that by donating these products we can help expedite the recovery process for the people of Kosovo."

"We have worked with Aironet for several years," said John Tully, president of MikroTik. "We have designed advance controls for wireless Internet routers using Aironet wireless equipment. We have also installed wireless Internet systems for many ISPs around the world using Aironet Direct Sequence products. We have been pleased with the exceptional quality and performance of the Aironet devices, including the latest 11Mbps high-speed 4800 Turbo DSo/oo Series."

"The successful deployment in war torn Kosovo has proven the viability of our products in these kinds of environments. We are presently working with various branches of the US military in deployment of Aironet products for field use," said Ron Willis.

http://www.aironet.com/markets/gov_kosovo.asp

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