Yes, IrDA *can* be made to work over longer distances. In fact, several of the Ir network links that have been hacked together are using IrDA. The protocol has a fair amount of overhead that really detracts from the raw speed. Well..*someone* is going to complain if you hook up a 2MW laser:) Bother of these things are probably more difficult then building a decent yagi antenna. I also suspect that the PowerBook's weren't communicating at 4mbps either. I also suspect that that's be harder then you think. The trick is to get it fast. The commercial products don't use powerful lasers, they use damn good optics and signal processing. --Justin