KMi recently hosted a series of events focused on localised wireless information systems, led by Saul Albert (WirelessLondon) and Jo Walsh (co-author, Mapping Hacks). Jo Walsh led a KMi Podium presentation outlining the possibilities provided by localised semantic web applications, describing some of her theoretical work and the practical applications she has been building in the London free mapping and open source communities. In the hands-on session that followed, members of KMi had the chance to practice building their own networks using domestic wireless access points flashed with Freifunk firmware and configured as an ad-hoc Mesh network. Wifidog captive portal software was then installed on the access points and used to create localised portals by aggregating semantic web data such as maps and reviews from free sources such as OpenStreetMap and OpenGuides. The final event was a morning brainstorm to find grounds for future collaboration, and it looks like there a lot of exciting possibilities to explore – watch this space for future developments!
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