Cover Story

The silver lining (with related video)

By Donny Jackson (donald.jackson@penton.com)

The battle over LightSquared's proposed wholesale network offering is as critical as it is contentious. Increased competition in the commercial wireless sector and the ability of GPS devices to function properly hang in the balance — as do the billions of dollars that have been invested in LightSquared thus far. But it also could be the lynchpin that forces a thorough and long-overdue examination of the federal government's approach to spectrum policy....

Features

Reach out and touch someone (with related video)

By Merrill Douglas

Merchants of all sorts are using near-field communications to get patrons to buy more stuff — lots and lots of stuff — by tapping their smartphones....

Prescription for radio system health (with related video)

By Todd Mechler

When thinking about tower maintenance, be sure to think holistically — which means paying attention to the entire site....

School's back in session

By Ira Wiesenfeld, P.E., and Robert C. Shapiro, P.E.

Last year we shared the basics of effective LMR system design and engineering. Now, in another multipart series, we apply a real-world perspective....

Listen up

By Jay M. Jacobsmeyer, P.E.

Here's a primer on the decibel, which makes the work of every radio engineer and technician far easier....

First Word

A very urgent communication (with related video)

By Glenn Bischoff (glenn.bischoff@penton.com)

It would be one thing to wander aimlessly in search of a restaurant should the navigation application on my smartphone fail, and quite another if I were to develop Alzheimer’s and my alert/locator device fail because the GPS wasn’t working. ...

View from the Top

Don't believe everything you hear

By John Powell

Mark Twain's response to the widely circulated news reports of his death in May 1897 — "Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated" — serves as a great lead-in to one of the most troubling public-safety communications rumors of our time. Unfortunately, as ads for my favorite imported ultimate driving machine point out, "Perception is Reality."...

Final Word

Eyes on the road

By Alan Tilles

The land-mobile-radio industry will need to help non-FCC agencies clearly understand the difference between LMR devices and mobile telephones....

Dispatches

FCC ruling aids trunked system operators

By Glenn Bischoff (glenn.bischoff@penton.com)

The FCC’s recent decision to permit the use of two 6.25 kHz channels utilizing the NXDN 4 kHz emission mask within a single 12.5 kHz channel not only offers greater spectrum efficiency to licensees operating trunked systems in the UHF band (from 450 MHz to 470 MHz), it also greatly simplifies the narrowbanding process, according to Ralph Haller, chairman of the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council....

Motorola gets approval for San Francisco-area LTE network

By Donny Jackson

Regional authority approved a 10-year deal for the company to build and operate the broadband wireless system funded primarily with a federal stimulus grant....

Verizon, In Motion extend networks to vehicles over 4G LTE (with related video)

By James Careless

In Motion Technology’s onBoard Mobile Networking System – which allows public-safety agencies to securely extend their networks into cars and trucks – now is being supported on Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network....

Firecom, Simulation Technology partner on wireless headsets on the training ground

By Mary Rose Roberts (maryrose.roberts@penton.com)

Incorporating wireless headsets into driving simulators ensures firefighters use the same technology in a training environment as they do en route to the fireground, said Reed Stager....

Oklahoma seeks 700 MHz waiver to pursue LTE plans

By Donny Jackson (donald.jackson@penton.com)

Oklahoma has been waiting more than a year for the FCC to act on its 700 MHz waiver request to use broadband spectrum licensed to the PSST. Last week, one senator and five House representatives sent a letter to the FCC requesting “swift action” on the waiver request....

Gear

Motorola introduces secure broadband-voice solution (with related video)

By Donny Jackson (donald.jackson@penton.com)

Motorola Solutions is leveraging the techniques used to provide end-to-end encryption in a P25 environment in the AME 1000 solution, which includes a Motorola ES400 enterprise smartphone, a CRYPTR micro encryption module, Apriva Voice software and a Apriva gateway infrastructure. ...