It’s been a busy few weeks here at Devicescape and we haven’t had the chance to write until now.  On October 20th we announced our own hotspot network called, simply, the Easy WiFi Network. We launched a brand new web portal at easywifi.com to eventually replace my.devicescape.com and released a new version of the iPhone OS app via Apple’s App Store.  This week we followed up with upgraded apps for Nokia devices via Ovi, and a brand new platform - Android - on the Android Marketplace.  And, we produced new versions of the PC app for Windows 7 and a new version of the Mac app for Snow Leopard.  Whew!

This new version is a HUGE change for Devicescape.  For the last two years we’ve built a loyal following of users who use Easy WiFi to connect to their hotspot accounts.  We now support over 1200 different hotspot providers, ranging from commercial providers like AT&T to university campuses (go AirBears!)  Right now we’re managing around 400,000 connections per day with our little utility.  Pretty cool.  But, of course, we’re always thinking of ways to improve our products, so we decided to take it to the next level by going beyond connecting to helping people find WiFi and give them a hotspot network to connect to!

The Easy WiFi Network is the culmination of this planning.  On easywifi.com you can see a map of our network (the pins in blue are locations you can access)  and you can search around to see the coverage.  The downloadable apps do the same thing while you’re mobile, plus they will connect you automatically (semi-automatically on iPhone) when you’re in range of one of the Easy WiFi Network locations.  And if you have an additional hotspot provider, their locations will show up on the map and you will be connected automatically there too.

We’ve really turned Easy WiFi on its head.  Before, it was only useful if you had a hotspot provider.  Now, we give users free access to a large hotspot network, and if you have an additional provider we extend your coverage.  It’s completely personalized, just the way WiFi should be.

We’ll be blogging a lot more about the  Network now that we have some time to regroup.  It’s going to get very large: right now it’s at 160,000 locations worldwide and growing fast.  Read more about it at easywifi.com.

Devicescape is currently hiring for two new positions.  The first is a manager of mobile products engineering.  This is a key position which owns our client apps, so you need to meld great leadership with a passion for consumer centric mobile products.   A track record which shows you’re way better than any of us will be expected!  You’ll have a small but very talented team to help and a strong partnership with our server people.

The second position is for a build and test engineer, to help ensure our products work well and can be produced efficiently.  You’ll need a good grasp of technology, but also a strong sense for how users perceive usability issues with products.

More information on these can be found on our careers page.  Come make Devicescape and Easy Wi-Fi better!

In my post a few weeks back I announced that we intended to begin charging for our Nokia S60 application.  On further reflection we’ve decided to revisit this decision and instead make all of our consumer clients free.  Part of this decision was based on our challenge with iPhone OS 3.0, documented by John in the posts below, and leading us to make Easy Wi-Fi free in Apple’s AppStore.  I also have to admit that Ovi seems like a much less effective vehicle for paid application distribution than we hoped, so the benefits of frictionless (ie free) distribution outweighed any consumer revenues.

So, effective immediately, all our apps on the various platforms are free of charge, with the notable exception of those distributed via Nokia Download which will still get the $4.99 “try-before-you-buy” version.

Thanks for all your support in the past and we hope you continue to enjoy using Easy Wi-Fi.

Those of you who are Nokia phone users will likely notice a new version of Easy Wi-Fi making its way out to you.   There’s already a new version - 3.0.70 - available on the Devicescape download page, and we’d expect that the Nokia Download! folder will get updated pretty soon.

The biggest change for this new release is that it heralds that start of us charging new users for the Nokia application.  Windows, Mac, and Nokia webtablet versions remain free, for now, but the S60 will move to a paid model to match the Apple iPhone and iPod applications available at the Apple App Store.  We’ve set pricing at $4.99, which is on the low side for Symbian applications but seems to be a reasonable balance.

Nokia Download! has no e-commerce capability, so purchases take place via Devicescape’s website using Google Checkout.  As Nokia introduces their Ovi Store, we’ll migrate to use that too.

To be clear, it’s only new users who will have to pay.  The download is actually a 7-day, fully functional trial for them and needs to be purchased  to continue operation.  If you’re an existing Easy Wi-Fi user you’ll be able to enter your account information to immediately “unlock” the trial at no cost.   3.x versions at the very least will be free of charge (we haven’t decided about future upgrades).

We just released a brand new product called Serengeti for iPhones and iPod touches.  Shockingly, Apple moved it through the approval process in just a few days, catching us quite by surprise!  We’re pleased about the app because we think it’s a neat workaround to the “Black Hole” problem that John mentioned a couple of posts back.  But, more significantly, it represents a new capability for us:

Easy Wi-Fi for Application Developers!

Serengeti is the first application that’s Easy Wi-Fi enabled. It embeds a small Easy Wi-Fi library which is used to ensure you have a network connection and log you into your Wi-Fi provider if it’s necessary.  Serengeti does this to streamline your web surfing, but it’s easy to think about the applicability of this approach for many other iPhone apps that benefit from Wi-Fi.

Integration of the library is very easy.  The binary itself is small and simple to use.  Each user of an enabled application needs to have an Easy Wi-Fi online account so there is an initial process to link the application to the users account.  That can be done by showing a simple form for signup/signin or - more likely - by throwing the user to our signup/signin web forms directly from the device.  Pretty simple.

At this point in time we plan to approve any app developers who are interested on a case by case basis, before rolling this out more broadly.  Licensing is free.  If you’re interested, please get in touch with us at dsbizdev@devicescape.com.

With a lot of (much appreciated) help from our enthusiastic user base, Devicescape’s network list is growing every day. New networks from around the world are being added all the time; everything from campus networks to small coffee shops; independent hotspot network operators to aggregators.

Most of the time we can get these networks added and working quickly once the required information is sent to us, but every once in a while we come across a network that is either harder to get working, or very rarely impossible. When we contact the operators of a network like that for help we get mixed responses. Some are incredibly receptive and get it straight away, others less so, sometimes with good reasons (which we’ll get into later). So, I wanted to write up something that explains the value of Devicescape to a smaller network operator, and also lets you know how you can get your network added to our list and working easily.

If you’re a network operator, whether you understand the advantage of Devicescape or not, this post is especially for you!

Why Be Part Of Devicescape’s Network?

Increasingly, people are getting online with devices other than their laptops. When they’re picking up coffee in the morning, or hanging out in a bar or restaurant after work they may not want to get their laptop out, assuming they even have it with them (who takes a laptop to a bar?). Their smart phone or iPod touch is right there in their pocket or bag, but getting it connected to the internet is another matter.

The web portal is OK on a laptop, but try it on a handset and it is much more frustrating. Enter Easy Wi-Fi - a one tap solution to getting connected for networks we know about. Your customers can get online and enjoy the Wi-Fi service your providing painlessly, and that means they’ll come back again (especially those iPod touch users who need Wi-Fi to get online).

What About My Venue Information Page?

We hear you, and we’re working on something that we think will resolve this. If you’re a network operator (free or otherwise) who has concerns about smart clients bypassing their information landing page, please get in touch so we can discuss your requirements in this area.

How Much Does It Cost?

Nothing. Nada. Nil. Being added to Devicescape’s network list is free. All it takes is a little time to send us the information we need, and to test it once we’ve set you up.

How Can You Get Your Network Added?

Submitting the information about your network through our web form (account needed) is one way. But if you have a lot of locations, or support inbound and/or outbound roaming, get in touch directly.

The basic information we need is the SSID (or SSIDs if you have more than one), a list of locations and how to log in on your network. The how to log in can be one of two things:

1. If your network supports the WISPr protocol, then all we need to know is the suffix and/or prefix information for each of the credential types your network accepts;
2. If your network uses only web form log in pages, then send us the HTML from each of the pages that the user sees, and tell us the path they follow through them (i.e. what links or buttons they need to click on).

It’s that simple.

Oh, if your credentials roam onto other networks too, then let us know that list and we make sure we add those as well so your users can get online anywhere their account lets them.

What Should I Avoid When Setting Up a Network?
We can handle most things these days, but there are a few things that will make it impossible for Devicescape to support your new network:

• Having more than a user name and password to be entered;
• Having a captcha string that needs to be entered when the user logs in (and, yes, we have seen a network do this - as if getting connected wasn’t hard enough already);
• Using JavaScript in the pages to either add elements to the form, or to modify the user’s input somehow;

In general, if you can support WISPr (and most of the commonly used hotspot access points and controllers out there can do this), then do so. It makes it much faster to add support, much faster for your users to log in and also makes it easier to join an aggregator network, like Boingo or iPass, in the future if you want to.

Can I Get A Custom Client?

Sure, if you’re interested in getting a custom branded client, or clients, for your network contact us through dsbizdev@devicescape.com.

If you haven’t been swept away by the flash flood of green tech and green groups sprouting up these days, you must be living under a rock. Everywhere I turn, there is a new green company and a new green trend. Just last week at the Connections Digital Living Conference, a company that shared the stage with us was successfully touting it’s eponymous Green Plug technology. That same week I was invited by Premier Power to a party at a green bar, the Temple, where, according to the invite…”Green is Glamorous.”

Is it a bubble? Almost certainly there are bubblicious aspects to what has been happening - lots of money flowing into an unproven and low P/E industry, but greener technology is an essential ingredient in the future of technology if not the future of the entire planet.

I’ve heard some great ideas - and my favorites so far are the ones that are simplest. Easier ways to recycle. Solar powered NOCs. Universal plugs for devices and gadgets that save waste (and the amount of weight I have to pack when I travel). Solar powered device chargers. Solar powered Wi-Fi access points. And just so I don’t focus exclusively on a theme of devices and Wi-Fi here - I must admit to be a fan of the green bar

Here’s a short list of companies and blogs I consider worthy of your consideration:

Green Wi-Fi
Solio
Premier Power
Temple
Vertography
Green Plug

Check these out and let me know your favorites too.

All this week, at the Connections Digital Living conference we’ve heard about how seamless connectivity is de rigeur for making digital living in the home and on the go a reality. Phil McKinney from HP projected that this would be ubiquitous by 2010 - and I suggested that Devicescape had a way to get us there.

The attached connections-digital-living-devicescape presentation, given on stage at the conference yesterday by Simon Wynn, VP Products at Devicescape, goes into more details of our role in making access seamless - and driving value for you.

Devicescape is showcasing our technologies this week at the Connections Digital Living Conference in Santa Clara, CA. This is a great location for us, since nearly ever session, at some point, discusses how essential “seamless connectivity” is to growing the digital living business - and hey - this is what we do.

Yesterday, we announced our essential role in enabling seamless connectivity and how we are constantly advancing our technology to improve ease of use and access for consumers. Access to services on the internet is the driving force behind device uptake - but what is holding growth of this industry back is that access is still too hard.

In the home, people need one touch set up. In the office, secure and fast connections. On the go - access everywhere. In essence, people want magic in the background - everywhere they go for everything they do.

That’s a tall order - but we’re working on it. And with our partners and all the big brains like these with us here at this conference, we’ll be getting there soon.

Are you connected? Do you stay connected to the internet, your work, family and friends via your laptop, mobile phone or iPod touch? Do you watch digital TV? I bet you do – and about 1000 people in Santa Clara today bet you partake of this digital life and will do more of the same in the very near future. In addition, analysts and industry pundits here at the Connections Digital Living Conference predict that you will be joined in your digital life by many, many more people.

While predictions are flying and new technologies being celebrated and bandied about –one thing from day one of this show sticks with me:

Phil McKinney, VP and CTO of the Personal Systems Group at HP predicts that by the year 2010 consumer and business alike will expect and demand seamless access from all their devices. Phil talked for a while about how consumers will demand the “perception” of always-on connectivity.

Imagine if you really could get connected to the internet as easy as dialing your cell phone. Imagine that information and data was able to easily stream back and forth between you and whatever internet site held the key to your desire of the moment – wherever you go. How much more could you do in a day? This could touch every aspect of life: work life, home life and even your leisure.

The Valhalla of always on is definitely not with us yet. There are still islands of Wi-Fi, GSM is still too expensive and getting connected is still to hard – but things are getting better all the time. Here at Devicescape, we’ve long been an advocate of seamless connectivity. Getting connected – especially when you are on the go – is just too damn hard. This holds us back. Not only the business of devices, services and operators – but as consumers. We’ve made some improvements already by bringing our Devicescape Connect solution to you. Now you can get quickly and easily connected at work, home and hotspots worldwide.

But more advances are needed - and more advances are coming…stay tuned and stay connected.