April Fool's canceled due to lack of interest this year: I didn't find Google's potty humor very funny.

Ricochet signs deal with Denver to add Wi-Fi, WiMax: Ricochet is currently owned by Terabeam, which also owns Proxim. The Denver deal allows Ricochet to use its current rights of way for its 20th-century service (state of the art back in its day) to expand into the 21st. The first segment will be 2.5 sq mi in downtown. While Ricochet shut down most of its service, it's been running a network in Denver since 2002, possibly to preserve these rights-of-way agreements.

USB over 802.11g: Icron releases WiRanger, which uses 802.11g to carry USB 2.0. That flavor of USB has a raw data rate of 480 Mbps; G, 54 Mbps. It's a bit of a mismatch, but the combination of range and cost could make up for it--if it weren't for the price: $400 for the four-port hub and matching dongle for the host. Ultrawideband, just about to hit the market any day now, c'mon fellers, will likely cost $250 for a similar hub/dongle set, and can carry USB 2.0's highest rates, but over a much shorter distances--perhaps a few meters compared to 802.11g's rated 30 m range. (Icron has a whole USB ecosystem that lets them push USB over large-scale networks of which this Wi-Fi setup is just one element.)

France keeps 5 GHz devices at bay: Early adoption of new radar-avoidance rules for 5 GHz wireless devices in France make all current generation equipment unsuitable. Complaints have been filed.