Sometimes you just have to get out of the house or out of the office. And some of those times, you have to use the internet as well.
I’ve collected a (short) list of places around town that have Wi-Fi. I usually use the Wi-Fi at a small local coffee shop. They are open longer hours than the public library and they don’t glare at you for your beverage. For the times when the coffee shop is not open, like late evening, I’ve been going to McDonalds.
Unfortunately, I went to McDonalds this evening and they seem to have gone pay for their WiFi. They want $2.95 for a two hour block. Now, I actually wouldn’t mind paying that. I had my credit card out. But I’d just shelled out $5 something for greasy meal that I really didn’t want but that I only bought so I could sit there and use the WiFi. I don’t think I’ve gone to McD of my own volition for years, not at least after 10:00 am when they stop serving breakfast burritos. That is until I found out they had WiFi.
After I thought about it, I put my credit card away. I took my $2.95 and headed over to a local bar/pizza place that has WiFi. I invested in a beer that I don’t really want so that I can use their WiFi. Well, now that I have it, its really not so bad.
Actually, I’ve done a couple php|arch columns from here before. And that’s what I have to do tonight, finish up a Test Pattern column and do some work on my 3 php|tek talks. When I’m done I’ll leave an extra $3 in the tip.
That’s where I get my Wi-Fi. Where do you get yours?
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We have this great resource over here which allows you to search for Wi-Fi hotspots in the country. It not only differentiates between free and commercial services but also helps discover new places which you never heard before. I guess there must be a similar service in the US, probably based on Google Maps.
Over in the UK we get free ‘broadband minutes’ with our phone/internet package, which basically means we have so many free minutes of Wi-Fi access across the country, from pubs to McDs. Not that I use it much.
Norbert, I’ve checked a few WiFi finding sites for my town. Some have no listings at all. Most only have the McDonalds or the Library. I’ve submitted the coffee shop to all the ones I’ve checked. None have the pizza place. There are no others that I know about.
Luke, is that part of the law or just a private service?
I’ve read at this site that Sprint and Verizon provide EV-DO service across the US. I have no idea about the costs but it might be a more flexible alternative to local Wi-Fi hotspots. I run across some EV-DO info for the Mac, too.
it 2010 now so there is no problem in getting wifi, you can even get it online shopping