With a spate of commercials for mobile phone services, cell phone manufacturers, and Internet service providers announcing the arrival of 4G wireless service, a number of terms that were previously the preserve of information technology officials are coming into play. the vocabulary of the general public. One of the most repeated terms is WiMax, a strange but memorable word with an intriguing combination of upper and lower case letters. The context in which WiMax is used seems to indicate that it will allow mobile phones to navigate the Internet with exceptional speeds, but this does not answer a very basic question: what is WiMax?
WiMax stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, the name given to a communications technology that provides data transmission at broadband speeds without the need for cables. The technology was developed as a way to provide widespread wireless broadband access as an alternative to cable DSL, especially in places where DSL or cable lines are unlikely to be installed in the near future, such as rural, sparsely populated or economically poor in the country. Land.
While the term WiMax is most often seen and heard in connection with cell phone service and wireless Internet access, it has a variety of applications. The first of these potential applications is the connection of Wi-Fi access points to the Internet. Due to the fact that a WiMax tower covers a substantially larger geographic area than current Wi-Fi technology, this will probably be the first and one of the most important WiMax applications. Also, due to the coverage area of a WiMax tower, it will likely be an alternative to DSL and cable for “last mile” broadband access, which refers to delivering broadband access to areas that are not physically wired. for this, as referenced above. Last-mile applications have already been used in emergency response situations, such as the December 2004 tsunami that hit Indonesia, in which WiMax restored communications after much of the rural communications infrastructure was destroyed, and in Hurricane Katrina, where it was used in the same way.
The provision of data and telecommunications services, as evidenced by the large number of cell phone-related advertisements promoting WiMax, is another application of the technology, and one that is also becoming one of the first applications used. It also highlights the use of WiMax for internet connectivity and communications services as part of a business continuity plan. For example, businesses with serious concerns about continuity in the event of a disaster can use WiMax and a fixed Internet connection, so that if one type of connection is interrupted, the other will allow business communications to continue. .
Finally, because WiMax technology allows for high-speed data transmission while senders and receivers move at high speeds, it is ideal for providing portable connectivity. This is one area where WiMax represents a significant improvement over the communications currently used, as anyone who has tried to access the Internet with a cell phone while riding in a car or train can attest.
