[wplug] Wi-Fi Mapping in the Press

Drew from Zhrodague drew at zhrodague.net
Mon Feb 21 12:19:25 EST 2005


> free Internet access). Plus, early last year, the ice cream store owner
> had the option of the local ISP giving him FREE broadband for two
> months, free support and free installation etc. so the ISP could test
> run the free wifi option. They just wanted to see if it would bring in
> more customers to HIS business. He didn't want to do it. Talk about
> bassackwards thinking.

    Agreed. These are NIMBYs, "Not In My Back Yard". They don't seem to care
whether what you're proposing is good, bad, free, popular, evil, unrelated,
etc -- they DO NOT WANT IT.


> On the other hand...how many of us go into a business just to use the
> restroom or cool off in the heat of the day or even use an entrance to
> duck out of the rain. I see very little difference.

    It's generally accepted that restrooms (and Wi-Fi) are limited to paying
customers, right? This has always been my understanding. I always buy a
short pot of coffee when I go to the Beehive to use their net. Of course,
after drinking that by myself, I'm ready to fly away on my own!


> It's funny to hear someone in a Linux group say that FREE anything is a
> bad idea.
> Maybe it's the people that steal the bandwidth that are the problem, not
> that free bandwidth is available. IMO

    Go figure. I suggest that wireless environments be setup with "less
interesting" equipment, will make would-be bad-guys less interested in
screwing with things. Also, when a user needs to pay a billing system for
access, there's quite a bit there to interest bad-guys to poke at it, in
terms of credit card numbers, personal info, etc.

    http://www.thinkcomputer.com/corporate/news/southstation.pdf



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