I got a chance to try out my HomePlug networking around the neighborhood. The next-door neighbor’s house picked up the signal just fine. No such luck few doors down at the house of my fellow computer geek, however. We’ll have to network the old-fashioned way with WiFi.
I haven’t tried any other homes, though, so there’s still lots of potential. There are twelve or thirteen (!) identified access points within a stone’s throw of my home, which makes it ripe for a community network. It should be a fun little project.