Wi-Fi Planet runs down transit-based Internet access around the world: There's a lot to choose to write about these days, as Internet access using Wi-Fi for end users and cellular data networks for backhaul abound. The article notes that commuter vehicle Wi-Fi can serve three purposes: access for passengers, intra-vehicle communication among systems, and remote surveillance in case of emergencies or security issues. The King County Metro System (called Metro by those of us here in King County) has Wi-Fi on a variety of buses, and seems to be gradually expanding service.
Microsoft expands its commuter bus system: The Wi-Fi equipped buses will grow to handle 4,600 riders a day from the current 1,800. A good friend will now have a 5-block walk from his Seattle home instead of a sort of impossible bus commute or a tedious daily drive. Microsoft was late to the game of offering free bus service to its employees, and thus their expansion must indicate that the increase in productivity and other goals are being met. The company told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that 2,500 of the 4,300 employees who have so far used the system for a total of 130,000 rides were single-occupant car drivers.
Nikon's new Coolpix S52c pairs 9 megapixel images, Flickr, Wi-Fi: The $300 camera, shipping in a few weeks, has a 9 MP sensor, 3x optical zoom, and vibration reduction and stabilization. The camera's internal Wi-Fi works with a local network, where it transfers photos to a computer, which then can upload them to their own online service, Picturetown, or it can "email" photos (sending low-resolution images that the companies tend to forgot to give you the specs on how low resolution) at hotspots. The camera comes with six months of T-Mobile service. Pictures can be transferred to Flickr and social-networking sites via a feature at Picturetown.