Warning: possible drivel ahead.

Thought for the day: As I sit here in this bus, for some reason, I remember reading about someone who got a steady WiFi signal on a high-speed train in some low-density area of the country. Thinking about it, I'm not sure how that's possible with regular transmitters--with a garden-variety access point having a range of less than 300 feet, they would be out of it in seconds. And I've never heard of enough transmitters/repeaters strung together to make handoff continuous. (Could someone on the train have been retransmitting an Internet connection they made through other means?) If Amtrak really wanted to do that, and I'm finally getting to the thought I mentioned, could they set up Pringles-can transmitters pointed down the track? They're very directional and have a great range (in Aspen's network, apparently miles). It may be easier than somehow getting internet access into the train through the overhead electrical system or satellite and having Amtrak retransmit it to everyone inside, since I can't imagine the overhead electrical system is great for data. (Then again, if the electrical system does have a constant enough connection to modulate data on top of it, they should do so right away.) I'm sure there are many people who have throught through this more than I just did, but having standard WiFi Internet access on trains would be a great marketing advantage, considering airlines' eagerness to adopt it but the significant expense, technical difficulties, and slow rollout it is currently entailing.

Amtrak would have to put a long fiber line along their right-of-way (which telecom companies have largely already put there, judging by the all those orange "Warning: Fiber!" tubes stuck in the ground along the routes) so they would need to tap it every so often with some network equipment. Maybe that equipment would be cheaper than satellite or a long-range WLAN protocol. Or maybe not, and I'm blowing smoke. Or maybe they already have WiFi, and I'm still blowing smoke. Oh well. I never claimed otherwise. End of today's thought.