If all the networks are owned by a small handful of corporations, how can your network be free (as in speech)? If all the networks are surveilled by the government, how can any network by free? Is there any alternative?

This talk will tell you how to build several types of alternative networks with open source tools that can be used temporarily or for the long term, depending on need and context. I'll talk about choices of hardware and network type, how (and whether) to connect it to the wider Internet, and some basic security considerations to help you plan. I'll broadly cover light-based networks, smartphone network hacks, point to point radio networks, and mesh networks you can build with off the shelf (or thrift store) wifi routers. For each network type, I'll give some pros and cons, along with links to more detailed tutorials so you can try them out yourself.