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Devin and I were discussing some CWNE-related topics the other day and he suggested I post this information for all CWNE candidates to consider.

In large manufacturing facilities, aviation hangars, and even the National Air and Space Museum in DC, it's possible you'll find large, buzzing lamps providing lighting. Sometimes these lighting systems use sulfur that is turned into plasma by a microwave transmitter. This acts as if you've got 10s to potentially 100s of little microwave ovens in constant operation (no intermittent use here), emitting broadband RF interference across the 2.4GHz spectrum. It creates a very high noise floor and will cause problems with Wi-Fi devices or non-Wi-Fi 2.4GHz phones.



There's a good reference to sulfur lighting systems here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur_lamp

So, if you're having issues deploying Wi-Fi in a large facility, look and listen first. If you hear buzzing coming from very bright lamps, it's possible that you've got a problem that isn't going to go away.

Joel[img][/img]