Abstract: A method for collecting communication system information from a communication system including a controller and one or more communication devices operating therein includes transmitting a request to the one or more communication devices requesting information regarding a quality of signal(s) received at the one or more communication devices along with geographical location information from the one or more communication devices, and transmitting automatically from the one or more communication devices the signal quality information along with the geographical location information to the controller. A communication device which can automatically provide signal quality and location information is also described, as well as a communication system that can collect signal quality and geographical location information from one or more communication devices operating within the communication system.

Abstract: A multipurpose media access device, which includes a communication interface operable to control transfer of data between said multipurpose user device and at least one communication network, a data storage module operable to store user data and a unique user identifier, a program storage module having at least one executable program stored therein, wherein said program contains instructions to use said unique user identifier to enable a predetermined set of operational features for said multipurpose media access device to enable a limited set of data transfer capabilities on said communication network in accordance with a user profile associated with said unique user identifier, a processor operable to execute said executable program stored in said program storage module to process data stored in said data storage module to generate a set of user data, and a display for displaying said processed user data.