Hurricane-ravaged New Orleans will deploy the nation's first municipally owned wireless Internet system that will be free for all users, part of an effort to jump-start recovery by making living and doing business in the city as attractive as possible. Via [chicagotribune.com]

Insatiable demand for wireless networking technology from both consumers and business has helped push up annual unit sales of Wi-Fi equipment to more than 100m chipsets in six years, according to newly published data. Via [vnunet.com]

Nokia has added the Nokia 9300i to its line of smart phones aimed at enterprise business users. The phone supports Wi-Fi, features a full keyboard and has 80MB of memory. Via [pcworld.com]

The City of Akron is planning to build a 62-square-mile wireless network that will anticipate future technology advancements. The city is starting with a Wi-Fi rollout and will have the capability of adding WiMAX and additional advancements in the future. Via [commsdesign.com]

The Balkan country of Macedonia is planning a wireless mesh network that will cover 1,000 square miles so that the country's more than 2 million residents can get online. Via [informationweek.com]

Netgear has agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit that accused the company of inflating the data speeds of its Wi-Fi networking devices in advertising materials. Via [pcworld.com]

The Nokia 770 is not a cell phone, nor a shrunken laptop. Instead, this nifty little handheld tablet computer is designed to do one thing well: Access the Web, anywhere. Via [msnbc.msn.com]

The first step in preventing wireless intrusion is identifying the intrusion point. Because WLANs are fixed to a specific WLAN channel during operation, they cannot simultaneously detect intrusion points on other WLAN channels. Via [toptechnews.com]

After installing a wireless LAN, you might find that it doesn't support applications as expected. Users may complain of erratic connections and slow performance, which hampers the use and benefits of applications. When this happens, you'll need to do some troubleshooting. Start by finding the root cause of the problems. Via [wi-fiplanet.com]

Darren Smith has waited a long time for Nintendo to go online. He's spent years at the company tinkering with online features, only to see Nintendo sit out the first round of Internet-based gaming while Microsoft and Sony moved ahead. Nintendo, whose North American arm is based in Redmond, refused to jump in until the...

A pioneering public sector wireless network is being extended, and should eventually bring Wi-Fi to local residents. Via [news.zdnet.co.uk]

With the growing importance of RFID, Wi-Fi companies, which specialize in location awareness of wireless devices don't want to miss the bus. Confident that the Wi-Fi based active RFID solutions are the way to go, Cisco has announced that it is investing in AeroScout Inc., a specialist in the field of Wi-Fi based Active RFID...

UK-based Pipex is "encouraged" by trials of its WiMAX wireless broadband service and is pressing ahead with further tests, it revealed today. Via [theregister.co.uk]

Well I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving day! I didn't eat too much, but there was a lot of good food! Via [business.mainetoday.com]

VIA Rail Canada has made Wi-Fi official. After over a year of trials, the railway said last week that it has a five-year contract in place to put wireless in reach of not only passengers, but for business as well - imagine wireless entertainment services and ticketing in the future. Via [wi-fiplanet.com]