Are you ready for "Wi-Fi Direct certified"?

Ya better be, because it's here. What IS it? Have a look:

Wi-Fi Direct: What You Need To Know

[...] Wi-Fi Direct is an emerging technology meant to meet the growing demand for easy, portable wireless network connectivity. It's peer-to-peer wireless networking, which means that devices such as notebooks, tablets, cameras, and printers can "find" one another and establish wireless connectivity without need of the presence of a wireless router, an access point, or a hotspot.

How is it used? Imagine synching your mobile device or laptop to a printer, digital photo frame, or TV without connecting to a Wi-Fi network. No worry about SSIDs or passwords to access them.

There are a few key features to know about Wi-Fi Direct: [...]

Read the rest for a more detailed explanation of what it is... and isn't. For instance, Wi-Fi Direct is not the same as ad-hoc networking, and it explains why.

All this stuff changes so quickly. No sooner do I get my head wrapped around a concept, when it then changes. Though on the plus side, I will say that, overall, wireless networking is getting better, and becoming easier for the average non-geek user to deal with.


Also see:

Wikipedia: Wi-Fi Direct
     

"TV White Space" next step in WiFi Revolution

"WiFi on steroids" gets final rules, drops spectrum sensing

At its monthly meeting today, all five FCC Commissioners set disagreements (mostly) aside and unanimously supported the final rules that will open empty TV channels to unlicensed broadband use. If all goes according to plan, these "TV white spaces" will be the raw material that unleashes another WiFi revolution—but this time with longer range, better building penetration, and even more speed.

White space devices will still need to query a special geolocation database before transmitting, in order to avoid broadcasting over existing TV channels and wireless mic users, but the FCC has ditched the expensive "spectrum sensing" tech it initially required back in 2008. On a conference call yesterday, reps from Google, Dell, and Public Knowledge worried that a requirement to include both the database check and spectrum-sensing hardware would make the new white space devices too costly and too difficult to build, while broadcasters and microphone users have long argued both techniques are necessary to avoid any interference.

In addition, the agency decided to handle the contentious issues of wireless microphones (most of which won't be recorded in the database) by setting aside two empty channels in every market for exclusive microphone use. Each channel should accommodate 12-16 wireless mics, but large productions (think NFL games or Broadway shows) can petition the FCC for more spectrum in advance; if approved, these productions would be temporarily added to the geolocation database.

The FCC meeting featured the "first appearance of an iPad" in the Commission's meeting room, as Chairman Genachowski noted, but it also featured a show of unity that has been hard to come by during more contentious proceedings, like the one about net neutrality. Every Commissioner loves the idea of white space devices, and each talked up the potential benefits of white space devices in no uncertain terms.
[...]

Another step towards wireless everywhere.