How can a group of volunteers build at least the tech for a replacement for the internet?

I was hoping that each individual user could run and maintain a piece of the infrastructure in a decentralized grassroots way.

How can users build a community owned and maintained replacement for the internet?

I hope that we can have our own servers and mesh/line/tower infrastructure and like wikipedia/internet-archive type organization and user donations based funding.

How could this be realized?

Can this be done with a custom made router that has a stronger wifi that can mesh with other’s of it’s kind? like a city wide mesh? or what are ways to do this?

Edit: this is not meant as a second dark web but more like geocities or the old internet with usermade websites

  • qyron@sopuli.xyz
    0·
    2 months ago

    Every single time I stumble upon topics like this i can only remember: ZeroNet

    You hosted your own piece of the internet on your machine.

    If the target is to just bypass the regular ISPs, that is an entirely different task. The closest I could think about would be creating wide LAN networks, capable of interconnecting with each other, in parallel.

    But I risk you’d quickly step on some communications regulation. Laying out cables requires permits. Wireless signals occupy signal bands.

    • Lemminary@lemmy.world
      1·
      2 months ago

      The closest I could think about would be creating wide LAN networks, capable of interconnecting with each other, in parallel.

      Something like this was being pushed around in Wisconsin a decade ago but I forget what it was called. I only remember this guy talking about a little router-like device and said he had installed several all over the city for an alternative to the mainstream internet. But take this with a grain of salt as I don’t remember details.