We're all headline slap happy with introduction of WLAN switch standard SLAPP: The idea isn't to make fun with acronyms, but rather to find a standard baseline for switch-based access points that will allow switchmakers to focus their efforts on centralized support and turn APs into commodity items. Almost all industries eventually migrate into this modality, but problems in getting agreement among highly competitive vendors on CAPWAP (Control and Provisioning of Wireless Access Points) and LWAPP (Lightweight Access Point Protocol) led to SLAPP: Secure Light Access Point Protocol.
Trapeze and Aruba apparently put their engineers together on the problem and produced a standard they took to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to replace an expiring LWAPP proposal.
In SLAPP, the only issues addressed are getting an AP provisioned and into switch mode. Trapeze and Aruba both announced proposals in recent weeks around this issue: Aruba went the open-source route, releasing a bootloader for Atheros reference designs that use a Motorola PowerPC; Trapeze is working with partners to incorporate their bootloader into commodity hardware. Fundamentally, both approaches are similar.
The actual operation of the switched APs would still be proprietary, but at least a commodity device to boot from any compatible image under SLAPP.