Square Unveils Free Internet

Seniors are about to lose their Harvard Internet access, but thanks to a new wireless network, those staying in the Square won’t be left stranded.

The Harvard Square Business Association activated a wireless network yesterday afternoon that provides free Internet to anyone in the Square area, temporarily christened “Hogwarts Square” in honor of J. K. Rowling, the University’s Commencement speaker.

The network has been in the works for months but had been stalled due to the complexity of creating the set-up, said Denise A. Jillson, executive director of the Square Business Association, who added that the process sped up significantly once an outside company, Anaptyx, LLC, was brought in to help with installation.

Even though Harvard won’t be providing the Internet, Jillson said the University is helping out by installing hardware on three of its buildings, including Holyoke Center.

The configuration uses small plug-in units deployed primarily in Square establishments, like Eastern Mountain Sports and Grafton Street, to amplify the signal from central units.

The signal in the “mesh” network jumps from node to node, but the signal weakens as it travels further from the central sources, according to Mary P. Hart, the chief of the Cambridge Information Technology Department.

Hart said the Square network could serve as a model for other community organizations seeking to blanket their neighborhood with wireless Internet, but she said that the sheer number of units required with current technology would stymie a city-wide effort.

“We couldn’t manage the amount of indoor units that would have to be sold and supported,” Hart said. “There’s too many of them. You’d have to have thousands.”

Cambridge announced in 2006 that it would pursue free wireless Internet access, but the city has since shelved such plans because, Hart said, “There is no business model now that is sustainable with the technology.”

Cambridge is not alone. After an initial rush to implement access, municipalities across the country have seen their plans flounder under the cost and complexity of such networks.

The same “mesh” technology powering the Square network is also being used in San Francisco, a city that experienced similar delays after announcing its intention to deploy wireless.

But for those who fear the free access will soon vanish from Cambridge, like Rowling, Jillson has some comforting words.

“Hogwarts Square is only temporary, but WiFi is here to stay,” she said.

—Staff writer Clifford M. Marks can be reached at cmarks@fas.harvard.edu.