Internet startups Radiuz and ShareMyWiFi are attempting to build wide-area WiFi networks by using the “roaming” model. Operating on the principle that no WiFi access point is an island, Radiuz aims to set up a collaborative community of WiFi users who can gain access to other users’ Access Points if and only if they themselves share their own connections. Meanwhile, ShareMyWiFi is built on the Google Maps API, which lets Internet users search open access points by location.

Radiuz requires prospective users to sign up for a new account, and then define his access point/s as part of the Radiuz network. Once the access points have been enrolled, these would now be accessible to other Radiuz members. Security is ensured, with Wireless Protected Access (WPA) enabled across all hotspots.

Radiuz espouses a give-and-take relationship, in that you can only get to roam on other members’ hotspots if you share your access point yourself. Also, the fact that the network only supports WPA (and not the older WEP encryption) may be a limiting factor, especially for those with older equipment.

ShareMyWiFi, on the other hand, simply intends to be a directory of open WiFi access points plotted across a usable map. These hotspots may be free and open for anyone’s use, or set up for rent by the owner. The intent is to advertise to as many people that you have a wireless connection that you’d like to share in some way.

Technology, after all, is rooted in society, society’s uses and needs. I consider the two above-mentioned startups as Social WiFi, in that they both encourage people cooperate and collaborate for the common good.