"Building Wireless Community Networks" is about getting people online using wireless network technology. The 802.11b standard (also known as WiFi) makes it possible to network towns, schools, neighborhoods, small business, and almost any kind of organization. All that's required is a willingness to cooperate and share resources.

The first edition of this book helped thousands of people engage in community networking activities. At the time, it was impossible to predict how quickly and thoroughly WiFi would penetrate the marketplace. Today, with WiFi-enabled computers almost as common as Ethernet, it makes even more sense to take the next step and network your community using nothing but freely available radio spectrum.

This book has showed many people how to make their network available, even from the park bench, how to extend high-speed Internet access into the many areas not served by DSL and cable providers, and how to build working communities and a shared though intangible network. All that's required to create an access point for high-speed Internet connection is a gateway or base station. Once that is set up, any computer with a wireless card can log onto the network and share its resources.

Rob Flickenger built such a network in northern California, and continues to participate in network-building efforts. His nuts-and-bolts guide covers:

Selecting the appropriate equipment

Finding antenna sites, and building and installing antennas

Protecting your network from inappropriate access

New network monitoring tools and techniques (new)

Regulations affecting wireless deployment (new)

IP network administration, including DNS and IP Tunneling (new)

Hisexpertise, as well as his sense of humor and enthusiasm for the topic, makes "Building Wireless Community Networks" a very useful and readable book for anyone interested in wireless connectivity.

Linux Server Hacks is a collection of 100 industrial-strength hacks, providing tips and tools that solve practical problems for Linux system administrators. Every hack can be read in just a few minutes but will save hours of searching for the right answer. Some of the hacks are subtle, many of them are non-obvious, and all of them demonstrate the power and flexibility of a Linux system. You'll find hacks devoted to tuning the Linux kernel to make your system run more efficiently, as well as using CVS or RCS to track the revision to system files. You'll learn alternative ways to do backups, how to use system monitoring tools to track system performance and a variety of secure networking solutions. Linux Server Hacks also helps you manage large-scale Web installations running Apache, MySQL, and other open source tools that are typically part of a Linux system.

The popularity of wireless networking has grown exponentially over the past few years, despite a general downward trend in the telecommunications industry. More and more computers and users worldwide communicate via radio waves every day, cutting the tethers of the cabled network both at home and at work. Wireless technology changes not only the way we talk to our devices, but also what we ask them to do. With greater flexibility, broader range, and increased mobility, wireless networks let us live, work, and think differently. Wireless networks also open up a vast range of tasty new hack possibilities, from fine-tuning network frequencies to hot-rodding handhelds. The second edition of "Wireless Hacks", co-authored by Rob Flickenger and Roger Weeks, brings readers more of the practical tips and tricks that made the first edition a runaway hit, selling nearly 30,000 copies. Completely revised and updated, this version includes over thirty brand-new hacks, major overhauls of over thirty more, and timely adjustments and touch-ups to dozens of other hacks introduced in the first edition. From passive network scanning to aligning long-distance antennas, beefing up wireless network security, and beyond, "Wireless Hacks" answers real-life networking needs with direct solutions. Flickenger and Weeks both have extensive experience in systems and network administration, and share a passion for making wireless more broadly available. The authors include detailed coverage in "Wireless Hacks" for important new changes in specifications, hardware and software, and delve deep into cellular and Bluetooth technologies. Whether you need your wireless network to extend to the edge of your desk, fit into your backpack, or cross county lines, the proven techniques in "Wireless Hacks" will show you how to get the coverage and functionality you're looking for.