Free Wi-Fi News

Still Growing

2011-10-25T18:06:00.000-07:00

Almost a year since the last post. Sorry about that. There's also a backlog of new location submissiona that I have to get to also. Sorry about that too. If you've sent in a new location with the Add a Site Form, please be patient, I'm slowly getting caught up.

Amazingly, the traffic to the WiFiFreeSpot Directory web site has been pretty consistent over the last eight years. With the introduction and take-up of a variety of new devices that can utilize WiFi, the audience of people looking for free WiFi locations continues to grow around the World. Large corporations with multiple locations continue to switch to the Free WiFi model. Bravo to them! There aren't many hospitality chains that don't offer free WiFi to their guests in big city and rural locations. Local libraries in the USA continue to add Free WiFi services, not just for local patrons with library cards, but they welcome the general public as well. But, the backbone of the growth still comes from small independent business owners in cafes, etc. in just about every country in the World that offers valuable services like Free WiFi to their eating, drinking or service using customers.

Well done to all of you. I'm sure the many users of the WiFiFreeSpot Directory web site would join me in offering a very big THANK YOU!

Firesheep

2010-10-30T08:18:00.000-07:00

Read this BoingBoing article by Glenn Fleishman about how to protect yourself from Firesheep users who can grab your login info from sites like Facebook, etc. that don't encrypt the network traffic. In essence, when you're using an unsecured Free Wi-Fi connection set up your own security.

This blog has moved

2010-04-28T16:25:00.001-07:00

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Good days for Free Wi-Fi

2010-02-02T10:15:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi locations are getting more use than ever and more and more locations are popping up.

Barnes & Noble, Borders Books and McDonald's have recently added thousands of new locations by switching from paid to free Wi-Fi.

Over the Holiday's Google supported Free Wi-Fi at a number of airports, some of which have decided to continue the Free Wi-Fi on their own, most notably Boston and San Francisco.

The use of Wi-Fi-FreeSpots has grown due in large part to the proliferation of "smartphones". No longer is it just for laptop use. And the upcoming release of the iPad should increase usage as well.

All in all, good days for Free Wi-Fi.

As usual, many thanks to the users of the wififreespot.com web site who continue to send in new locations for addition to the site.

Never far from Free Wi-Fi in the USA

2009-08-09T17:07:00.000-07:00

Barnes and Noble recently announced that their 700 locations now have Free Wi-Fi.

Panera Bread has over 1100 locations with Free Wi-Fi.

Many Hotel chains that total thousands of locations offer free Wi-Fi.

Hundreds of big city and small town libraries have Free Wi-Fi.

Fast food chains like Krystal and others have hundreds of Free Wi-Fi locations.

Add in all the independent coffee shops, cafes, restaurants and more listed in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory and a Free Wi-Fi location is pretty darn close no matter where you are in the USA, whether you're in your own neighborhood or just passing through someone else's.

More Free Wi-Fi

2009-06-13T05:02:00.000-07:00

Since the first of the year the weekly average of new location additions is about 200. That means there are 5,000 more Free Wi-Fi locations listed in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory than just six months ago. Many thanks go out to the people who take the time to let me know of new locations they've found.

Most of the additions continue to be in the USA, but I'm sure access is growing in other parts of the world as well.

If you're traveling this Summer ( for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere ) you should find some kind of Free Wi-Fi access where you're going, even in some remote areas ( the local library might just have it ). Whenever you are connected, use the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory to look for locations in advance of your arrival in your next destination.

Happy Wi-Fi Holidays

2008-12-25T08:17:00.000-08:00

The year 2008 saw a continuing expansion of Free Wi-Fi locations in the USA and around the World. Throughout the year about 100 new locations were added to the Wi-Fi -FreeSpot Directory every week.

Although the general category of "cafes" still leads the count, public libraries saw a huge increase in the number of towns/cities offering free access.

One of the more interesting categories that has grown is hospitals. Many hospitals are starting to offer free access to patients and visitors.

I'd like to thank all the people who have visited the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory web site and especially those that have passed on information about new locations they've found in their travels or around the corner.

All the best,

James Sullivan

A busy Free WiFi Summer

2008-09-09T05:16:00.000-07:00

The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory web site always gets more traffic in the Summer and this Summer, thanks to some mentions in the press, lots of new, first time visitors found the site as well.

The Summer has been very busy with new location additions to the Directory as well. A conservative guess would be 1500 new locations of all types have been added, just since the middle of June. I know I'm probably biased but I think the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has the largest listing of Free Wi-Fi locations on the Internet, and for this I'd like to offer a grateful "Thank You!" to all the people who have taken the time to send in new locations, as well as those others who send in removal updates for locations that have unfortunately gone out of business.

From small town Libraries to the ever expanding number of Panera Bread locations it seems that in the USA one is never too far from a Free Wi-Fi connection. Pretty cool.

Debunking Online Free Wi-Fi Directory Criticisms

2008-07-27T11:07:00.000-07:00

A common criticism I read about online Free Wi-Fi Directories is that they are not current and not comprehensive. I guess these writers just don't know how hard it is to be current and comprehensive so I'd like to use my own experiences with the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory to shed a little light on the matter.

Plainly and simply, it is impossible to be completely current and comprehensive on any selected day.

It's a pretty big world out there in case they haven't noticed and the number of Free Wi-Fi locations changes on a daily basis. Somewhere, there are new businesses that open all the time, existing businesses decide to add Free Wi-Fi all the time and existing businesses go out of business all the time. It is an impossible task for anyone to keep an accurate track of it all.

I am extremely lucky that users of the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory take it upon themselves to alert me via e-mail about new locations and locations that no longer offer Free Wi-Fi or have gone out of business. Over the years, and still to this day, I get an average of over 100 e-mails a week with updates. Based on this input, and my own search for new locations, I update the site several times a week.

So, instead of criticism I'd like to see the writers give some credit to the Directories for the fact that they actually are able to provide lists of an amazing number of Free Wi-Fi locations in a wide range of locations around the world.

I'm sure the people looking for Free W-Fi locations appreciate whatever info is available.

The Free Wi-Fi Life

2008-05-29T08:47:00.000-07:00

The spread of Wi-Fi access is an amazing story. I think the spread of Free Wi-Fi access is even more amazing.

Internet access has become an integral part of a lot of people's lives. E-Mail, social networking, checking news and sports headlines, uploading and downloading photos, music and videos, playing online games, business communications, etc. - all activities that a lot of people from all generations and walks of life take part in daily.

It's not enough though to connect from work or home. People want to stay connected while they travel, while they have a cup of coffee, while they eat lunch, while they wait to get the car repaired, while they do laundry, while they just go about their daily routines - i.e. all the time.

What has been amazing is the willingness of business owners, libraries, and many other locations to help these people stay connected, and offer it for Free!

It's hard to come up with any other example of a "life enabling" resource that has had as great an impact on people's lives as Free Wi-Fi has had.

When we hit the road for business travel or for recreational pursuits or if we just walk down the street in our hometown it's likely that there will be a Free Wi-Fi signal available nearby if we want or need to use it.

I continue to add new Free Wi-Fi locations to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory on a regular basis, so I'd like to thank all those location owners or operators for making Free Wi-Fi available and also thank the folks who tell me where they've found a new location for me to add.

Have a great Free Wi-Fi Summer!

2008-02-21T10:41:00.000-08:00

Starbucks Free Wi-Fi, - not really

Attention! - Another "clarification" - the latest being that it is two "continuous" hours, not two hours total per day, so if you sign off after 15 minutes, that's it, unless you have multiple accounts and go to different locations.

Starbucks has received tons of Free publicity over their "Free Wi-Fi" announcement. Too bad it's not as simple as it sounds. You have to "pay" a nominal amount for "limited" "Free" access, but of course if that's too frustrating, you can always choose to "pay" more for "unlimited" access.

Why didn't they just go all the way - Free Wi-Fi, For Everyone, All the Time. I think that's what their managers wanted all along.

A lot has been said about Starbucks getting more customer friendly and on the surface it sounds like they want Wi-Fi users to think they are, but in reality I don't think that's the case.

2008-02-12T17:20:00.000-08:00

Further update on Starbucks Free Wi-Fi

Again, from Glenn Fleishman at Wi-Fi Networking News

"Once you have the card, free Wi-Fi service is activated by a single purchase of any amount on the card each month."

2008-02-11T16:40:00.000-08:00

Starbucks Free Wi-Fi update.

From Glenn Fleishman of Wi-Fi Networking News

"No purchase is needed: you just need an active card, I confirmed with the company. Walk in, buy a $5 value card, activate it, and you’re on for two hours a day from then forward."

It's about time

2008-02-11T10:29:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi at Starbucks - sort of - but definitely better than what it was.

Starbucks announced it is ending it's association with T-mobile and going with AT&T. The biggest change - Starbucks said Monday it will give customers that use its Starbucks purchase card two hours of free wireless access per day. After that, it's $3.99 for two hour increments. There are $19.99 monthly plans available too and those plans include access to AT&T's 70,000 hotspot network.

Sounds like you have to make a purchase using the card to get the Free Wi-Fi.

Stories I read were unclear about access for Starbucks customers who don't use a purchase card.

Rollout starts this Spring in the 7000 company owned stores and should be completed by year's end.

AT&T also is giving Starbucks' more than 100,000 U.S. employees free wireless accounts.

Is it really Free Wi-Fi?

2007-12-03T05:33:00.000-08:00

Recently I added the JD Wetherspoon pubs across the UK as locations for Free Wi-Fi to the Wi-Fi-Freespot Directory. They have over 600 locations that offer 30 minutes of "Free" access with a drink or food order. When you order ask for a voucher and you'll get the access code. Subsequent 30 minute blocks of free access can be had with more drink or food orders.

Some might argue that this is not true Free Wi-Fi. The actual access time is Free but you have to pay to get it. In most locations, other than Libraries, a purchase might be made voluntarily, either because you were intending to make a purchase anyway or that you felt it would be nice to make a purchase as a means of saying thank you for the Free Wi-Fi.

Requiring a purchase before being granted access is another kettle of fish, as they say. The Wetherspoon pubs are not the only locations doing things this way, but luckily they are in the minority. I guess it is a way to pay for the amenity of Free Wi-Fi but I question whether it is the best way. Granted, the pubs are in business to sell drinks and food and I guess they feel they are either using Free Wi-Fi as a lure for more business or as a reward for purchases, but there are other ways to pay for infrastructure costs. Jiwire and others offer ad supported platforms that should be considered for those looking to pay for their network expenditures, rather than requiring a direct payment from customers.

Anyway, I'll keep the Wetherspoon listing in the Directory. It may end up being the only Free Wi-Fi available in some areas, and that's better than none.

Panera Bread - limited access

2007-11-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

I recently received an e-mail alerting me to a clarification in Panera Bread's "unlimited" access. It seems that some Free Wi-Fi single users in some locations have tied up a table for four for long periods of time. Hence, Panera Bread has decided to limit access to 30 minutes at the "peak" times around 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. I'm not sure if this an across the board corporate policy or if it is left up to the discretion of individual franchise owners.

Mac or PC, Paid or Free Wi-Fi?

2007-07-17T14:33:00.000-07:00

Mac or PC, Paid or Free Wi-Fi?

There's a post on tuaw.com that asks "Do more Mac users hang out at coffee houses?". The poster says it's about 50/50 where he hangs out. Most of the comments say it's even higher where they hang out. Interestingly though, about 90% of them seem to hang out at Free Wi-Fi locations.

Read the post here.

The Summer of Free Wi-Fi

2007-05-23T15:38:00.000-07:00

The Summer of Free Wi-Fi

Probably not as culturally significant as 1967's Summer of Love, but if you're headed to San Francisco this Summer, or just about any place in the USA for that matter, you're sure to find lots of locations with Free Wi-Fi along the way.

In the last year over 4000 new locations have been added to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory at http://www.wififreespot.com and new addition requests continue to come in daily.

So, it's not too big a stretch to say that Free Wi-Fi is just about everywhere in the USA these days. Big cities, small towns and places in between, cafes, coffee shops, libraries, RV Parks and campgrounds, highway rest areas, town squares, city parks, hotels and motels, laundromats, car repair centers, fast food and other restaurants, ice cream parlors and many more.

If you're headed to Europe or other parts of the World this Summer you'll find more Free Wi-Fi locations as well, especially in the big cities.

What are you waiting for? Pack up the laptop and hit the road.

NY State Thruway Travel Plazas have Free Wi-Fi

2007-03-01T14:43:00.000-08:00

All 27 Travel Plazas now have Free Wi-Fi.

You'll find a link to the location list on the New York page in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory.

http://www.wififreespot.com

Free Wi-Fi at Airports - Check the connection!

2007-01-21T07:11:00.000-08:00

A recent article in Computerworld highlights a problem with connecting to ad-hoc networks calling themselves Free Wi-Fi, particularly at Airports. These ad-hoc connections are actually connecting to a nearby computer, rather than an access point's infrastructure network of any "official" Free Wi-Fi provider in the airport.

Connecting via another computer could allow that computer to access your files and do other nefarious activities unless you have the proper security settings activated on your Windows XP or Vista computer.

Read the article here.

Free Wi-Fi Park and Surf Zones

2007-01-01T10:57:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi Park and Surf Zones

Happy New Year.

As a follow-up to the previous post about Park and Surf Zones where road warriors can connect from their cars, a recent submission to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory is perfect. In Fairfax, Iowa you can connect to Free Wi-Fi from your car at the Fairfax State Savings Bank ATM Kiosk on Highway 151. There are lots of banks with stand-alone ATMs in the parking lots of malls and other places accessible to cars. Imagine if they offered the service of Free Wi-Fi in addition to the standard banking services.

I'm also noticing that more Burger King and Wendy's locations are offering Free Wi-Fi that I imagine is accessible from the parking lot. McDonald's still offers fee based access in most locations but some individual franchise owners do offer Free Wi-Fi. A restaurant management company in CT recently submitted their 4 McDonald's locations with Free Wi-Fi.

2006-12-29T07:06:00.000-08:00

Park and Surf Free Wi-Fi?

Techdirt Wireless led me to a story about Wi-Fi "leeches" ( not a very flattering word ). It seems that some proprietors of businesses that offer Free Wi-Fi don't like it when people stay outside and connect from cars without making a purchase. It's usually travelling business people making a quick check of e-mail. The article suggests that some locations, especially motels, should welcome the chance to use Free Wi-Fi access as a way to encourage brand loyalty. The article ends with an interesting idea:
"Proprietors can choose to become frustrated chasing road weary traveling Wi-Fi leeches from their properties or view it as a marketing opportunity. Best Western does not appear to have advertised or publicized their widespread convenient and free Internet access. This gives a market savvy competitor a chance to capture some publicity if one of these chains was to create a branded drive-in Wi-Fi zone catered to these new aged road warriors. Install it in part of the existing parking lot, perhaps marking and marketing this special space. Welcome users who may become interested in spending a night there. Turn the leeching relationship into a symbiotic one."

Park and Surf Zones sounds good to me.

Read the full article.

2006-12-16T17:22:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi grows and grows

First, my apologies for the lack of posts, no excuses.

My observations, my readings and the number of new Free Wi-Fi locations I add every week point to the continued growth of Free Wi-Fi in 2006. I have thousands of listings in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory and have been consistently adding 50-100 new locations every week, thanks to the e-mails I get from Free Wi-Fi users around the World.

I've been traveling quite a bit this year and every motel/hotel choice I made was based on the availability of Free Wi-Fi. Luckily, there were usually many to choose from on the road from California to Maine and Massachusetts to Louisiana. Just about all of the national chains of motels offer free Wi-Fi but many of the independently owned ones do too. So, not only can you look for the best price for a night's sleep you can probably get Free Wi-Fi too.

When price became the determining factor and there was no Free Wi-Fi available, coffeeshops and libraries (thank you Maine libraries) were where I found Free Wi-Fi. There were very few travel days without a Free Wi-Fi connection.

Not only do I want to say thanks to all the e-mailers for telling me about new locations they've found but I want to give the biggest thanks to all the coffeeshop/cafe/restaurant and other small business owners who give their regular customers and us walk-ins Free Wi-Fi. It might be "good business" but it's also just a nice thing to do. And also a thank you to Librarians and their Library boards/committees for supporting their communities with Free Wi-Fi.

Predictions for Free Wi-Fi in 2007?

More locations and happy users.

2006-04-25T08:48:00.000-07:00

Motel Wi-Fi for travelers

On a recent drive from CA to New Orleans on I-10 I saw many billboards advertising Free High Speed Internet at motels/inns/suites. Free Wi-Fi seems to have become an important amenity to promote to travelers. Once you pull off the highway you'll also find that many older, independently owned motels also offer Free Wi-Fi, not just the national chains. Perfect for the "budget" traveler - a bed, a shower and Free Wi-Fi.

2006-03-24T16:11:00.000-08:00

$250 fine for accessing open network

Techdirt Wireless had a story today about someone in Illinois being fined for accessing the open network of a non-profit agency from his car.

".....the first person in Winnebago County to be charged with remotely accessing another computer system without the owner’s approval. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to the charge and was fined $250 and sentenced to one year of court supervision."

Read the full story
http://rrstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060323/NEWS0107/103230036/1011

Read the original post at Techdirt Wireless
http://news.techdirt.com/news/wireless/article/6557

2006-03-24T10:09:00.000-08:00

Wal-Mart and Free Wi-Fi

Wal-Mart just opened a new Supercenter in Plano, Texas and it has Wi-Fi in the Coffee Shop.

Here's more info - www.walmartfacts.com/newsdesk/article.aspx?id=1749

The story doesn't say it's Free but I did get an e-mail from a customer in Plano saying it is Free. He said the store also has a public-access Windows system for those without their own laptops.

2006-03-05T11:01:00.000-08:00

More Free Wi-Fi locations

As more and more people hear about the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory I get more e-mails from people telling me about new locations to add at http://www.wififreespot.com

Since early January I've added around 500 new locations.

California continues to be the State with the most listings but that's not surprising, it's a big State. Delaware and Rhode Island have the fewest but that's because they're the smallest States.

There's no way to know of every location that offers Free Wi-Fi but thanks to the many e-mails I get I update the site daily with new locations.

I continue to hear about USA locations primarily but I've recently added locations in Canada, Sri Lanka, Australia, Vietnam, and Puerto Rico. Outside of the usual categories of coffee shops and cafes, libraries continue to be the fastest growing segment. In addition, more RV Parks are adding Free Wi-Fi to their list of amenities and many vacation rental condo and home owners are now offering Free Wi-Fi to renters. In addition to the general State and Country pages, the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has specialty pages that list RV Parks, Vacation Rental Properties, Hotels and Airports with Free Wi-Fi. Whether you're looking for Free Wi-Fi around the corner or across the World be sure to check out http://www.wififreespot.com

2006-01-13T12:09:00.000-08:00

Running a business from a Free Wi-Fi location

Here's a great story about Delicious Monster software using a Zoka Coffee location in Seattle as their office.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/255532_macdelicious13.html

2006-01-09T14:42:00.000-08:00

2005 Free Wi-Fi Review

The number of individual Free W-Fi locations added to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory grew at a steady pace that averaged about 300 per month in 2005. From small rural libraries to large county library systems, from local restaurants and cafes to national chain/franchised restaurants and cafes, from small hotels, motels and B&Bs to large national and international hospitality chains, from regional airports to some of the largest and busiest airports in the World, from rural and metropolitan USA to Estonia, France, Argentina, Australia and beyond the growth of Free Wi-Fi availability in 2005 was quite pervasive and indications for 2006 look just as positive.

Whether it was a library that offered free Wi-Fi as a service to their community, or a coffee shop that offered free Wi-Fi as a perk for their existing customers or a way to draw in new customers and sell more coffee, or a Hotel that offered Free Wi-Fi as an amenity to help fill more rooms there were a variety of reasons for why library trustees, business owners and corporate marketing execs thought it made sense to offer Free Wi-Fi.

In 2005 a lot of press regarding Free Wi-Fi access was focused on municipalities like Philadelphia and San Francisco that asked for bids from private companies to install and provide city wide Free access (when the smoke clears the eventual coverage will probably not be strictly 802.11 Wi-Fi based as more frequency spectrum specifications are approved and hardware released).

One interesting delevelopment regarding the term Wi-Fi in 2005 was the agreement that the term really doesn't mean anything, much less "short for wireless fidelity" as a lot of us have been saying.

In summation, 2005 was a great year for the widespread availability of Free Wi-Fi for local residents and travelers alike. In 2006 I expect the growth to continue and especially in the USA very few people will be far away from a Free Wi-Fi location of some type. In the rest of the World growth will also continue but it will still take awhile for free access to be available outside the major metropolitan areas.

Once again I'd like to thank all the people who took the time to send in e-mails with new locations to be added to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory. Keep them coming.

2005-12-12T11:38:00.000-08:00

USA Today article on Free Wi-Fi

Last week's Fri-Sun edition of USA Today had an article about Free Wi-Fi. The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory was prominently mentioned as a source to find Free Wi-Fi locations. As a result, I've just finished adding about 200 new locations to the Directory thanks to people who took the time to e-mail in new locations. Library systems continue to be a big part of the growth of Free Wi-Fi availability but the new additions include cafes, laundramats, hotels, inns and B&Bs, restaurants, coffee shops, bars, truck stops, convenience stores, visitor centers, and other locations open to the public.

Although there are other web sites that list Free Wi-Fi locations the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has been around the longest and I'm pretty sure it's got the largest number of Free Wi-Fi locations - well over 10,000.

Thank you USA Today, e-mailers and Directory users.

Happy Holidays.

2005-11-29T10:48:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi in New Orleans

New Orleans has started the nation's first free wireless Internet network owned and run by a major city by providing free Wi-Fi in the central Business District and in the French Quarter. More areas will be added over the next year.

2005-11-28T13:19:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi at Orlando International Airport

Just in time for the Winter influx of snowbirds and visitors to the Magic Kingdom and other vacation spots in the area the Orlando Airport announced that Free Wi-Fi is now available in the whole airport.

2005-11-21T11:56:00.000-08:00

Thanks for Free Wi-Fi

Thanksgiving is this week in the USA and all the Holiday travelers will be giving thanks for the ever expanding availability of Free Wi-Fi. OK, Free Wi-Fi is probably not the first thing that comes to people's minds when thinking about things to be thankful for but it might make the Top 10 for some people.

Traffic on the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory web site always increases before a Holiday. Lots of folks need to find a place to get online when they're visiting friends and family.

I know I'm thankful for all the folks who send me e-mails telling me about new locations to add to the Directory. I consistently add at least 50 new locations every week.

Here in the USA, library systems, both big and small, continue to add Free Wi-Fi to the list of valuable services they provide to their communities and visitors. Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, Montgomery County, Maryland and the Sno-Isle Community Libraries of Island and Snohomish Counties, Washington are recent additions.

I've just heard that many Staples stores in Illinois are offering Free Wi-Fi on a test basis. Check out the Illinois page for locations.

If you're planning a Winter vacation check out the Vacation Rentals with Free Wi-Fi page. Just like Hotels and Motels are adding Free Wi-Fi as an amenity many condo and home owners are offering it too.

2005-10-18T19:01:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in the USA

The City of San Francisco has received a lot of attention recently for it's plans to provide city wide Wi-Fi coverage. Their RFP gathered 26 proposals and Google's proposal for free Wi-Fi has been the lead story in many publications.

Whether or not they are the chosen entity the attention their proposal has focused on location specific advertising is the real story. Imagine sitting in a coffee shop and seeing an ad for a sale on CDs or shoes or a 20% off coupon at a restaurant nearby, with directions to get there. You wouldn't even need to be in a coffee shop, you could be at home or work.

Not only could this work in San Francisco, it could work anywhere. Granted, having Google be the provider makes it a lot easier but any tech/marketing savvy entrepreneur could figure out how to make it work for them. The difference being that any location in San Francisco will be supporting Google and offsetting their costs whereas any independent location elsewhere would reap the benefit themselves.

Anything that supports the spread of and existence of Free Wi-Fi is good in my mind.

The Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory continues to add 50-75 new locations every week. Most of these additions are in the USA while Europe has had a slower growth. I recently heard from someone in South Africa who is hoping to implement advertising supported Free Wi-Fi there. There are very few Free Wi-Fi locations anywhere on the African continent right now, hopefully that will change.

2005-09-12T13:24:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi in Europe

Radisson SAS Hotels just announced that most of their locations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa now have Free Wi-Fi for guests. See http://www.freebroadband.radissonsas.com/ for more info.

Bagels and Beans locations in The Netherlands will have Free Wi-Fi by October 1. See http://www.bagelsbeans.nl/winkels.shtml for locations.

For five, 3-4 star hotels in Prague with Free Wi-Fi see http://www.charming-prague-hotels.com

2005-08-23T08:01:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in Europe

On my recent European trip I found that Free Wi-Fi is not yet widely available, even in the big cities.

If you're planning a trip to Europe for business or pleasure and you carry a laptop while you travel and you're counting on finding Free Wi-Fi to keep in touch with friends and relatives while you travel check out the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory before you go and make a note of the locations where you plan to travel.

If you can't find Free Wi-Fi most major European cities have many Internet access/call centers where you may be able to use your laptop with an ethernet cable wired connection at a reasonable cost.

If you're traveling in Sweden check out Scandic Hotels - they all have Free Wi-Fi.

If your travel plans include Estonia you'll find lots of Free Wi-Fi locations.

Some general travel tips.

Air fares on inter-Europe routes are very inexpensive - check out Aer Lingus, Easy Jet, Ryanair and Sterling.

If you plan to travel by train get a seat reservation, it's worth the small fee.

I had great luck finding Hotels with the help of the Tourist Offices that are near most train stations.

Most long distance buses/coaches in Europe are not rest room equipped.

Unless you're carrying a backpack always use luggage that has wheels, it's so much easier to get around with.

Most public toilets/WCs charge a small fee to use them.

More people speak English these days, but don't count on it. Bring a phrase book.

If you're going to Prague check out http://www.magicpraha.cz - Lida can help you with accomodations, tours, etc.

Take a boat tour in the Stockholm Archipelago - Fabulous!

2005-08-09T05:27:00.000-07:00

Stockholm Sweden Free Wi-Fi Wrap Up

Just before I left Stockholm I found a small cafe/coffee shop with Free Wi-Fi for customers. It's called Cafe 2Lika. Check out the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory web site for the address.

Any Stockholm based or visiting Boston sports team fans should look across the street from Cafe 2Lika and you'll see O'leary's Sports Bar. The place is filled with Red Sox, Celtics, Patriots and Bruins memorabilia. There's one in Helsingborg too, a ferry ride from Copenhagen.

2005-08-06T07:23:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi in Sweden

Scandic Hotels in Sweden offer free Wi-Fi to their guests. Some locations have it throughout the Hotel while others have it in limited areas. It's best to check with each location you are interested in to find out about access at that location.

Also, the Adlon Hotel, just across from the Central Station in Stockholm has free Wi-Fi for guests.

And, The Cloud is available in 49 of Sweden's largest train stations. Ask and see if they'll give you a two hour Free card.

2005-08-04T00:58:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in Stockholm Sweden

I didn't have any listings for Free Wi-Fi before I got here and since I've arrived it had been hard to even find a location where I can pay to use my laptop. Sidewalk Express has a lot of locations set up in a variety of businesses. You purchae a ticket from a machine to use one of their stations - about 2 Euros per hour.

The Hotel I'm staying at offers 24 hours of access via Telia Homerun at about $17.

But, just today I stoppoed in the Central Train Station and found that you can go to the Information counter and get a card that is good for two hours of Free Wi-Fi from The Cloud - www.thecloud.net

I can use the two hours anywhere in Sweden that offers the The Cloud. I'm not sure if this is a limited promotional offer or not.

But, now I can say - Yes, there is Free Wi-Fi in Sweden.

2005-07-30T06:02:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in the USA

Peter Cochrane has a great story about finding and using Free Wi-Fi on a recent Summer trip in Colorado and California. It's everywhere you want to be! ( OK, I think that's a Visa Card slogan but it fits here too. )

The best part of the story is pulling into a town late at night without an advance reservation and finding all the hotels with Free Wi-Fi all filled up. On a hunch he checked a hotel not offering Free Wi-Fi and sure enough they had vacancies.

Read the full story at

http://networks.silicon.com/mobile/0,39024665,39150826,00.htm

2005-07-26T04:52:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi in Prague

When I checked my e-mail yesterday there was a submission of a Free Wi-Fi Spot in Prague. Well, I just happen to be in Prague.

There's Free Wi-Fi, and free wired access, at Modra Lavicka, a Czech/Thai restaurant at the corner of Opletalova and Ruzova, across from the park in front of the main train station and just a short walk from Wenceslas Square. I just had a delicious lunch and made this post from there.

Next week it's off to Sweden and Estonia in search of more Free Wi-Fi.

2005-07-26T04:39:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi in Prague

I checked my e-mail yesterday and there was a submission for a Free Wi-Fi location in Prague. Well, I just happen to be in Prague.

Free Wi-Fi, and wired access, is available at Modra Lavicka, a Czech/Thai restaurant at the corner Opletalova and Ružová, across from the park in front of the main train station and not far from Wenceslas Square. I'm having lunch there right now and using the Free Wi-Fi to make this post.

Next week I'm off to Sweden and Estonia to check out Free Wi-Fi availability there.

2005-07-13T09:37:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in Prague Update

In a previous post I mentioned a spot that said that it would offer 15 free minutes with a purchase. Here's the real story. Upstairs at Kava Kava Kava Coffee is the Cafe. Downstairs is an Internet room where you use their computers. Turns out if you make a purchase upstairs you get 15 minutes free downstairs, BUT, if you stay upstairs with your lapttop and make a purchase they'll give you the password for FREE WI-FI!!!and all you want.

They're located at Narodni 37, inside the courtyard, across from Tesco.

2005-07-11T02:56:00.000-07:00

Open Networks

By now you must have read one of the many stories about the guy who got arrested in Florida for using an open wireless network.

It involved a person sitting outside someone's house using a laptop computer to access the network that the home owner had left open, unknowingly I guess. I wonder why the owner just didn't close the network before calling the police? Probably had no idea it was an option.

A wide range of views are being expressed on several web sites as well. Theft seems to be the center of the discussion. Some of the analogies being made to prove a point are quite incredulous.

Almost every listing I have in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory is an Open Network ( some do require getting access info from a staff person, with or without a purchase ). The difference - they are all non-residential locations that are open to the public and the owners/network administrators are willingly leaving the network open. Their listing in the Directory is their invitation to use the network.

On http://www.nodedb.com there are many open network listings, many of which are residential, where the owner willingly leaves the network open and via the listing invites people to use the network.

If a cafe's open network is also being used by people living in nearby apartments do they care? If someone pulls up outside in an RV and quickly checks e-mail do they care?

Most people with open networks would have no idea if anyone was using it. The Florida guy just happened to be parked outside the owner's house, could be seen using a laptop and got caught.

I have used open networks whose owner was unknown to me. My computer saw the network and asked if I wanted to connect. It didn't warn me of possible "theft of service" consequences. I know I'm not alone.

2005-07-11T02:50:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in Prague

I read an ad in the local English language Prague Post that mentioned free Wi-Fi. Ah ha, at last I said. When I went there it said that in return for a purchase of a little more than the equivalent of $2 you would get 15 minutes free. Not a very good deal. Paying for access in an Internet Cafe costs anywhere from $1-4 per hour.

It seems that most places I've gone so far in Europe, paying for access in an Internet Cafe is not a bad deal. Free Wi-Fi would be better but availability is limited. I wouldn't mind making a purchase in a location to get Free access but 15 minutes is not enough.

2005-07-06T08:21:00.000-07:00

DAMN SPAM

The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has been growing consistently thanks to the e-mails I get from many people telling me about new locations, and telling me about the ones that should be removed. I publish an e-mail address on the web site so people can easily contact me with this info. Thank you to all who have e-mailed me.

Recently I changed that address because I was getting tons of SPAM e-mail that originated from a Russian ISP. My Junk filter would catch most of it but it was just plain annoying. Wouldn't you know it, it only took about two days for that address to start getting new SPAM. They're quick. It's not the Russians this time but they'll probably catch on soon enough.

2005-07-06T07:15:00.000-07:00

Travel update for Free Wi-Fi in Europe

Since my last post I have been to Amsterdam, Hamburg and am now in Prague.

Amsterdam Free Wi-Fi

I have a few places listed in my Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory and I tracked down a couple.

The American Book Center does have Free Wi-Fi on the top floor of the bookstore. They have one small round table for standing at and a small sofa as the only places where it would be convenient to pull out the laptop and connect. The Flying Pig Hostel requires an entry card to enter. I imagine you have to be a registered guest to get one so I can't report anything about the Free Wi-Fi there. The NEMO Science Center has Free Wi-Fi but I didn't get a chance to get there. The most convenient thing for me was to use paid access - 3 Euros per hour - about $3.60.

It is interesting that there is currently a discussion about using unprotected open networks going on at Wi-Fi Networking News. In a previous post I admitted to using an open network I found - or rather my computer found - at a B&B in Dublin. I'll admit to also using one I found in my Amsterdam Hotel. No nefarious activities on my part. I do find the arguments interesting.

Hamburg Free Wi-Fi

I chose to visit Hamburg because Hamburg was one of the first European cities I listed in the Directory when I first started. It seems that some Free Wi-Fi does exist but the web site is only in German, hence not traveler friendly. I did visit a Hotel near mine that was listed and inquired about access at the desk. I was told it was only available in the lobby and for guests only and it was in fact not working right then. I was only there two days and could have perhaps tracked down a few more but I chose to pay for access at 2 Euros per hour in a Coffeeshop not far from the train station.I did notice a phone booth that said it was a Spektrum Hotspot.

Prague Free Wi-Fi

Again, a site with listings but only in Czech. Because I plan to be here for three weeks I did e-mail them about access but haven't had a reply. I'm currently paying .40 Krowns per minute for access - about $1 per hour. It is a tram ride from the center, where most access costs 1.8 K per minute.

In all three cities there are plenty of Internet cafes to use that are reasonably priced, hence, at the current time I don't sense any great demand for Free Wi-Fi. The typical vacation traveler just wants to check and send e-mail and isn't likely to be carrying a laptop to do that. Myself, I'm working as I travel and do have my laptop and use available fee based ethernet cable connections.

A couple of travel asides.

How many of you USA residents remember when the stores were closed on Sundays? Well, they are in Hamburg.

Traveling by train across Germany I was amazed to see the number of wind turbines scattered throughout the countryside.

If you're traveling by train in Europe ALWAYS reserve a seat!

2005-06-30T00:15:00.000-07:00

Open Networks and Free Wi-Fi

Lots of posts today. Getting caught up.

I'm in Amsterdam now and will be checking out the Free Wi-Fi scene here but I wanted to talk a bit about Open Networks.

At a B&B in St. Andrews, Scotland and in Dublin and at the Hotel here in Amsterdam I have fired up the laptop and Jiwire's SpotLock has found open networks somewhere nearby. They have a variety of names but nothing that would identify the source of the open network. Either a local business or an individual that has knowingly or even perhaps unknowingly left the network open. Perhaps they don't mind if anyone logs on or perhaps they do, hard to tell.

I have logged on and used them. I have read various discussions about whether or not this is proper and I guess I've decided I'm OK with it and I hope the owners of the networks I've used are too. Let this post be my Thank You to the network owners for allowing me to keep up with e-mail and adding new Free Wi-Fi locations to my Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory web site.

2005-06-30T00:02:00.000-07:00

Is Free Wi-Fi really free?

Dana Blankenhorn made a post on his Corante blog about Free Wi-Fi not being free when you feel obliged to make a purchase when using it.

Let me comment on that.

Most people probably don't feel "obliged" to make a purchase. They do it willingly, either because they'd be there even if there was no Free Wi-Fi or they were hungry and/or thirsty anyway. Great way to satisfy the desire for sustenance and Free Wi-Fi.

If the location puts out a vibe that you should buy or leave, just leave, there are other Free Wi-Fi locations with better vibes.

Yes, yes, we all know there are support costs to offering free or fee based Wi-Fi but that's a given that location owners have decided is worth the cost and not something that has a huge financial impact.

If someone wants truly free Wi-Fi head to the local Library.

2005-06-29T23:51:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi in Ireland news

Most places that offer Free Wi-Fi in Dublin are part of the BitBuzz network. Most require a purchase to get a voucher good for 30 minutes of Free time.

I met with Nancy Gohring, the European correspondent for Wi-Fi Networking News. We talked about the rareness of free Wi-Fi in Ireland and our consensus was that the limiting factors are lack of broadband access and lack of awareness of the general public about Wi-Fi. Dublin has probably a hundred Internet shops where people can get online for less than 2 Euros per hour and they are all heavily used, especially by travellers and non-Irish residents of Dublin. We both felt that the bigger companies will not push for expanding Free Wi-Fi, it will have to come from a grassroots effort similar to those in Austin, Texas and Estonia.

The most pleasant surprise of my Ireland visit was finding free Wi-Fi in Morgan's Bar at the Forster Court Hotel in Galway.

The most impressive part of my Ireland visit was a tour round The Ring of Kerry. Spectacular scenery.

2005-06-23T09:05:00.000-07:00

Edinburgh and Free Wi-Fi

On the way from St. Andrews to Dublin I stopped in Edinburgh for one night. All Good is a sandwich and coffee shop on Morrison Street, across from the Edinburgh International Conference Center. I spoke with Kevin, the owner, about Free Wi-Fi in Edinburgh. Although there are not very many locations he doesn't understand why there are not more. As a new business, he feels offering Free Wi-Fi has helped to bring customers into the shop. Just as some cities in the US are adding Wi-Fi zones as a way to attract more business and become known as a technology friendly city he thinks Edinburgh should do the same thing.

2005-06-22T07:19:00.000-07:00

Dublin Ireland and Free Wi-Fi

Dublin has many Internet Access/Call Shops that offer Wi-Fi for 1-2 Euros per hour.

I've found a cafeteria named Cafe Kylemore on O'Connell Street that has BitBuzz service. The cashier said a purchase is required. The Harbor Master Bar & Restaurant on Customs House Dock gives 30 minutes of free BitBuzz access with a voucher card. I list other locations in the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory but I haven't tracked them down. The above are with walking distance of the City Centre and Busaras bus station and many B&Bs on Gardiner Street.

2005-06-16T02:29:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi and The Home of Golf

St. Andrews Scotland is the Home of Golf but not the Home of Free Wi-Fi. I'm actually using paid access to get some work done.

On the trip over I found some free access in Terminal E at Logan Airport in Boston. The loganwifi network is fee based but I picked up a network called FSS2 that was open.

Landed in Dublin on Tuesday. The Irish Airports used to have free access but no more. There was paid access near the McDonald's in the Food Court area via eircom.

I'll be back in Dublin in a few days and hoping to find some free Wi-Fi to use and report on.

2005-06-07T15:35:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in Northampton, MA

I've been spending a few days in Northampton, Massachusetts and have used the Free Wi-Fi at The Woodstar Cafe and the Haymarket Cafe, and yes, I made a purchase each time.

There were a few "zombies" around, including myself I guess, as I didn't talk with anyone while I was online with my laptop keeping up with new additions to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory. There were a few coffee drinkers who weren't talking either, but most do.

I also used the Free Wi-Fi at the Forbes Library.

2005-06-01T13:32:00.000-07:00

On the Road with Free Wi-Fi

I'll be doing some traveling over the next few months and I'll be reporting on where I find Free Wi-Fi.

Today I'm at McCarran Airport in Las Vegas. Previously I had heard that access was not available in the Gate areas but I'm sitting at Gate C5 waiting for a Southwest flight and the signal is fine. There is a re-direct to an Authentication page but all that's required is an e-mail address to gain access.

There are a few plugs available in the corridors but not many in the Gate areas.

Skype calls worked great and receiving and sending e-mail works fine too.

2005-05-28T14:30:00.000-07:00

The Coffeeshop Culture and Free Wi-Fi

WOW! I can't believe the amount of coverage the blogosphere and some web sites are giving to the Victrola Coffee and Art cafe in Seattle's decision to turn off the Free Wi-Fi on weekends. They said it wasn't really because of the lack of purchase support they got from some of the Free Wi-Fi using customers, rather it was the change in the "atmosphere" that they noticed when the place was filled with laptop toters. They decided they preferred it when customers were there to drink, eat and socialize. It seems there wasn't a happy medium mix of Wi-Fi and non Wi-Fi customers so they had to take steps to get it back to where they wanted it. Hooray for them!

(Lets not go overboard and lump all laptop toting Free Wi-Fi users in with those that happen to congregate at Victrola. A survey I did on wififreespot.com said that close to 90% of Free Wi-Fi using respondents made a purchase at least sometimes and most do so always.)

You'd think that with all the coverage though that this business decision that was made by the business owners, just as their offering Free Wi-Fi to begin was, is the end of life as we know it. They're not shutting it down completely, just on the weekends.

I'm sure there are a lot of other business owners who have been reviewing the impact of Free Wi-Fi on their business, from the bottom line perspective as well as any other perspective relevant to their particular business.

Unfortunately there will always be a number of Free Wi-Fi users who camp out for long periods of time and don't buy anything, but most coffeshop owners will also admit that where there is no Free Wi-Fi there are always a few customers who hang around nursing one cup of coffee for an extended period while they chat with their pals and soak up the "atmosphere".

There will always be some "churn" as business owners decide if offering Free Wi-Fi has turned out to be right for their business. For some it won't be and they'll shut it off completely or selectively. Others will look for ways to control access time periods or tie access more closely to a purchase. Free Wi-Fi users not willing to accept these conditions (a small minority) will just have to pack up the laptop and move on. Luckily, Free Wi-Fi is very widespread these days and for most it won't be hard to find another FreeSpot more to their liking, especially in Seattle.

As Tom Waits says - " The large print giveth and the small print taketh away" - FREE WI-FI, except on the weekends.

2005-05-21T09:42:00.000-07:00

Summer Travel and Free Wi-Fi

If you'll be travelling in the USA this Summer chances are you won't be far from a location that offers Free Wi-Fi, even in rural areas. Use the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory to plan ahead and look for locations along the way. The Directory has over 8000 listings of Free Wi-Fi locations.

If you can't find any cafes or other business locations try the local Library. Many Libraries are using grant money to add Wi-Fi to their services. Some may require a library card but most won't. Even the ones that require a card may offer a temporary card.

Whether you'll be camping, RVing, staying in Hotels or Motels or renting a vacation home or condo chances are you'll find Free Wi-Fi as one of the amenities offered. Most access is reserved for guests but signals do carry. If you can pick up a free signal while parked near a location that offers Free Wi-Fi and you aren't a guest be courteous and keep your use to a minimum.

Likewise, if you're parked outside a cafe and won't be making a purchase keep your connection time brief.

If you need to do any online banking or other activities that transmit sensitive information remember that Free location networks are insecure. Be sure that you are connecting to a secure web site or web based e-mail page via SSL, look for the little lock icon, usually in the lower right hand corner of your browser. You should also consider using a VPN - Virtual Private Network - to encrypt your connection. Jiwire.com has a new service called SpotLock and there are other VPN services available for very reasonable fees.

Happy Trails!

2005-04-07T12:12:00.000-07:00

Vacation Rentals with Free Wi-Fi

Looking for a vacation condo or home rental that includes free Wi-Fi?

Check out this new page - http://www.wififreespot.com/vacrent.html

2005-04-04T08:10:00.000-07:00

Fed-Ex Kinko's Free Day Pass

They don't have Free Wi-Fi all the time but in a pinch if you need free Wi-Fi access find a FedEx/Kinko's and use their Free Day Pass.

2005-03-21T16:58:00.000-08:00

Over 5000 Free Wi-Fi locations listed

The flow of e-mails submitting new Free Wi-Fi locations has continued at a steady pace. I just noticed I haven't posted anything since The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory hit 4600 locations at the end of January. That's 400 more in less than 2 months.

I guess we have Bill and Melinda Gates to thank for some of it. Many libraries have used grant monies from their Foundation to install free Wi-Fi. This must be great for residents of small rural communities without widespread access to broadband internet access.

Although the mainstream press still comes up with stories about nefarious criminal activities taking place on free open networks I'm sure their are many Free Wi-Fi users who think it's criminal to charge for Wi-Fi.

2005-01-31T12:07:00.000-08:00

4600 Free Wi-Fi location listings

There's been a steady growth in the number of location listings in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory over the last few months. Over 500 added since mid-November '04. Big States, small States, US locations, European, South American and Asian locations, big city locations, small town locations, cafes and coffee shops, restaurants and pubs, airports, RV Parks, Public Libraries, Resorts, Hotels, Motels and B&Bs, computer stores, car dealers and service centers, and malls. Business owners continue to see the benefit to offering Free Wi-Fi to their customers.

Our recent survey found that 66% of the respondents said they always make a purchase when using Free Wi-Fi and another 30% make a purchase sometimes. 63% said they have never paid to use Wi-Fi. 82% said the availability of Free Wi-Fi affects their choice of a Hotel when traveling. 51% said they use Wi-Fi every day.

The total number of fee based locations still exceeds the number of Free Wi-Fi locations but I suspect that usage levels in the Free locations is higher and I'll bet that purchase levels are higher too.

2005-01-10T15:02:00.000-08:00

Zodiac and Wi-Fi

The Zodiac multimedia handheld has Wi-Fi capabilities.

http://www.tapwave.com/wifi/

2004-12-30T11:13:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi at Las Vegas' McCarran Airport

McCarran Airport is the first of the "big" (they are one of the 15 busiest airports in the World ) airports to offer free access. 90% of the airport will have coverage starting Jan. 4.

"This is a little bit uncharacteristic for us, providing something for free," said Randall Walker, director of aviation for Nevada's Clark County. "Maybe someday when the market matures and becomes more the business model for cell phones, we might start [charging a fee for Wi-Fi.] But right now, we're offering it for free because we didn't like the business models that were available."
(source - eweek.com)

Makes sense to me.

2004-12-29T10:55:00.000-08:00

Baymont Inns & Suites with Free Wireless Internet access

Select Baymont Inns & Suites now have Free Wi-Fi. The list can be found at

http://www.baymontinns.com/baymont-mk/highspeedin.jsp

2004-12-22T16:12:00.000-08:00

EZ Lube Free Wi-Fi

EZ Lube Service Centers in Cailifornia will offer free Wi-Fi to their customers while they wait for their cars to be serviced.

Locations can be found at - http://www.ezlube.com/near.php

2004-12-21T08:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays

It's been a great year for Free Wi-Fi and the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory. There are over 4300 locations listed and when you add in the links to the Hotel chains with many locations the total is over 7000.

Many thanks to all the e-mailers who submitted new locations.

Enjoy.

2004-12-02T12:43:00.000-08:00

Wi-Fi Planet - San Jose

Free Wi-Fi location owners and location owners thinking about offering Free Wi-Fi will find the following products and services of interest found during a visit to the Exhibit Hall at the Wi-Fi Planet Conference in San Jose.

Sputnik’s solution consists of two components: embedded software, known as the Sputnik Agent, that runs on wireless access points, and server software, called Sputnik Control Center, that runs in a data center. Together, they bring enterprise-class network management and security features to high-volume access points. - http://www.sputnik.com

Gemtek - the Sputnik AP 220 is a carrier-grade access point based on Gemtek Systems model P-520. The new access point runs Sputnik's award-winning Agent software so that it can be centrally managed over the Internet, out of the box. The Sputnik AP 220 is designed for maximum coverage for large wireless venues such as hotels, multi-tenant dwellings, dormitories, and businesses. - http://www.gemtek-systems.com

Sesame Network’s first solution allows institutions and enterprises to offer secure, traceable temporary Wi-Fi Internet access for visiting employees, customers, suppliers, business partners, consultants, or guests. Sesame is planning to bring additional solutions to market that leverage its Identity Management Process and current guest access product. - http://www.sesamenetworks.com

Netopia supplies all the networking hardware, back-end software, and venue marketing materials you need to start offering Wi-Fi to your customers. - http://www.netopia.com/products/hotspot/learn.html

WiFi Plus offers obstruction penetrating antennas. - http://www.wifi-plus.com

And for those people looking for a Wi-Fi location the Wi-Fi Seeker will help people find Wi-Fi signals before opening their laptop to connect. - http://www.havewifiwilltravel.com

2004-11-19T16:35:00.000-08:00

4100 Free Wi-Fi locations and maybe a big name to come

Thanks to a steady flow of e-mails with new Free Wi-Fi locations to be added, the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has passed the 4100 mark for individual listings in the USA.

Add in the Airports listed on the Airports with Free Wi-Fi page, the growing number of Hotel chains, with many locations, listed on the Hotels with Free Wi-Fi page, the RV Resorts and campgrounds listed on their Free Wi-Fi page, plus Panera Bread and Apple retail stores, etc. with multiple locations, and, oh yeah, Europe and the rest of the World and the full count is probably close to 7500, maybe more.

There's probably a Free Wi-Fi location near you.

A post by Glenn Fleischman in today's Wi-Fi Networking News refernces a Mobile Pipeline story that some shop managers are pressing upper management to make Wi-Fi free at Starbucks. That could be another 5000 or so locations if it becomes their policy, although, getting T-Mobile to go along with it will be tough.

In addition, there are many individuals and community group members who are willingly sharing their home networks with their neighbors and passersby. The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory doesn't list these types of Free Wi-Fi locations but you can find many of them listed at http://www.nodedb.com

Another recent interesting story concerns some Airports that charge for Wi-Fi trying to prohibit any retail type vendor in their airports from offering Free Wi-Fi by saying they have exclusive ownership of the airwave space. Up til now the Airport user has been a captive audience that hasn't had any access to Free Wi-Fi. Maybe that will change.

2004-11-03T19:22:00.000-08:00

Hotel Free Wi-Fi

Hotel Chatter has a list of their Top 5 Hotel Chain recommendations for Free Wi-Fi access. It is based on them providing access in the hotel lobbies and/or the guest rooms. They also mention when free wired access is provided in guest rooms. They also mention responsiveness to signal problems.

Read the article - http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2004/11/2/201522/957/Title/Best_WiFi_Hotels_2004

2004-11-02T08:59:00.000-08:00

Survey says....

You can have a chance to win an Apple AirPort Express by going to wififreespot.com and spending a few minutes on a survey about your use of Wi-Fi.

2004-10-22T12:43:00.000-07:00

Vacation Rental Properties with Free Wi-Fi

I recently read that 50% of people on vacation bring at least one laptop with them. The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory lists many Hotels, Motels, Inns, Resorts and B&Bs with Free Wi-Fi and now the Directory has a new page that lists vacation rental properties - condos, villas, cottages, homes, etc. - that provide wireless high speed internet access.

Check out http://www.wififreespot.com/vacrent.html

With the addition of this page and other recent new location listings sent in by e-mailers the Directory has passed the 4000 individual listings for the USA mark. When you add in the links to Hotel chain sites and others like Panera Bread, Atlanta Bread, Krystal Restaurants and Apple Retail Stores there are hundreds more. Listings in Europe and other regions of the World add even more.

2004-10-19T08:14:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi from SBC, for awhile.

If you're a SBC DSL customer you can use SBC's FreedomLink Wi-Fi hotspots for free until April 2005. After that it goes to $1.99 a month.

Many UPS Stores are FreedomLink Wi-Fi Hotspots, as well as select Barnes & Noble Bookstores.

Using a UPS Store for Wi-Fi access would not be the first choice for a lot of people (maybe they should start serving coffee) but if SBC adds more FreedomLink locations that are more conveniently located more people will gladly pay the $1.99 a month and SBC will add a lot of new DSL customers.

2004-10-15T10:37:00.000-07:00

New location pages added to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory

Travelers and vacationers looking for Free Wi-Fi high speed wireless internet access in Airports and in vacation rental properties will find these two new pages helpful.

Free Wi-Fi in Airports

Free Wi-Fi included at Vacation Rental Houses, Condos and Cottages, etc.

2004-10-11T11:45:00.000-07:00

Page Redirect Patent

If you haven't heard yet, a company called Acacia Technologies, a company that is in the business of purchasing and enforcing patents, bought a patent from LodgeNet that covers redirects.

You can read all about it at Wi-Fi Networking News - http://wifinetnews.com/archives/004184.html

Hotspot operators who use a redirect to send people to a login,payment or advertising page before allowing general internet activities would seem to be the ones that could be accused of patent infringement.

It has been assumed that their targets for royalty demands would be the larger hotspot network operators like Wayport and T-Mobile, but it appears they are contacting small owner operated hotspots as well, including at least two locations that are listed in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory. It seems that Acacia may be sending out their demands for royalty payments to locations that don't even use redirects. As a matter of fact, I don't really know how they could possibly know whether an owner operated hotspot or freespot is using a redirect unless they visited a location and discovered the use. The above mentioned locations listed in the Wi-Fi- FreeSpot Directory do not use a redirect, yet they received a demand for a royalty payment.

Some people are questioning the validity of the patent and are waiting for legal advice. I would imagine that Wi-Fi Networking News will post follow-ups when something is known. I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, so I can't offer legal advice but I can advise you to follow the story closely. I will post follow-ups here when I see them.

If you receive a material packet from Acacia regarding redirects and you don't use one it is probably best to send a simple reply saying you don't use a redirect and see what their reply is.

2004-09-28T17:44:00.000-07:00

Signals crossed?

An article by Jeff Vance at Wi-Fi Planet brings up an interesting point.

"At Panera, I'm surprised to see that they have abandoned their free paradigm, instead offering T-Mobile service — until I notice that my laptop has actually associated with the Starbucks across the street."

In many neighborhoods there may be many signals flying around. Some protected, some open, some free, some fee based. Most of the time you should be able to figure out the name of the network where you're sitting, but not always. Don't make a mistake and think that where you're sitting is not a free Wi-Fi location if you're picking up a signal from a fee-based hotspot nearby. Chances are you can find the free signal in the list of networks and just pick that one to connect to.

Read Jeff's full article

http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/columns/article.php/3414171

2004-09-28T10:54:00.000-07:00

3600 Free Wi-Fi locations

The Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory has passed 3600 and is headed for 4000 locations. About 50 new locations are added every week so it won't take long. Thanks e-mail location submitters!

California leads the way with about 480 listings.

Panera Bread is now up to 400 locations nationwide.

Check out your State's page in the Directory to see if there are any new locations near you.

2004-09-08T16:15:00.000-07:00

100 more Free Wi-Fi locations

Again, too numerous to list individually but worth checking out your State's page for new additions.

One of the fastest growing types of new Free Wi-Fi locations being added to the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory is public libraries. Not just big city library systems like Austin, TX with 19 branches, but many small town libraries are adding Free Wi-Fi to their public services. Free Wi-Fi in a public library truly is free. Even if a library card might be required to access the network the cards are free.

More Hotel/Motel chains are offering free Wi-Fi in rooms and public areas. Best of all it is some of the lower priced chains that offer free access. Check out the Directory's Hotels page for more info and links to the different chain's web site where you can use their Search function to find locations with Free Wi-Fi. In addition, many properties are listed on the State pages as well.

2004-08-25T13:15:00.000-07:00

Almost 200 more Free Wi-Fi locations

Thanks again to the e-mailers the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory has added almost 200 more free Wi-Fi locations in the past nine days. Once again, that's just too many to list individually here at Free Wi-Fi News so have a look at your State's page and you'll probably find a new location to check out.

Also, the first listings in Israel have been added recently.

Panera Bread keeps adding Free Wi-Fi to their existing locations and including it in all new locations. Their site now says they have 360 locations across the country with Free Wi-Fi. It's hard to keep up with listing each location on their respective State's page so there's a link to Panera Bread's list on the Diectory Home page and at the top of some of the State pages like Missouri, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and other State's with many locations.

Here's the link

Panera Bread

2004-08-16T14:00:00.000-07:00

The Power of the Press and new additions to The Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory

A late July article in PC World magazine on Free Wi-Fi that included a link to the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory, was a Featured Article on the MSN/Hotmail login page last Thursday. In addition to the thousands of new visitors to the Directory web site I also got over 100 e-mails ( Thank you e-mailers ) telling me about new Free Wi-Fi locations. That's just too many to list individually so just assume that there just might be a new location near you to look for on your State's page.

The Directory now has over 3000 individual listings! When you figure in the Hotel chains and the Apple stores, etc. with multiple locations the actual number is much higher. Because of the response to the PC World/MSN press I expect that there are still many more existing Free Wi-Fi locations to be found and added to the Directory and I'm equally as sure that there will be many more new locations to come.

2004-08-10T11:35:00.000-07:00

Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory Additions

Check the State pages for new locations in Houston, Addison, Garland, Austin, San Antonio, Irving and Arlington, Texas, Boston, Somerville, Chatham and Pittsfield, Masachusetts, Auburn and Gulf Shores, Alabama, Evansville, Bloomington and Indianapolis, Indiana, Atlanta, Marietta, Decatur and Woodstock, Georgia, Augusta and Blue Hill, Maine, Lake George, New York, Westminster, Maryland, Toronto and Ottawa, Ontario, and St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, Reedsburg and Green Bay, Wisconsin, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Columbus, Boardman and Wadsworth, Ohio, El Monte, Glendale, Cotati, Newport Beach, Stockton, Los Angeles, San Clemente and Los Gatos, California, University Place, Walla Walla, Fife, Spokane, Bellingham, Mount Vernon and Ellensburg, Washington, East Orange, New Jersey, Decatur, Illinois, Richmond, Virginia, Austin, Minnesota, Rapid City and Sturgis, South Dakota, Santa Fe, Roswell and Taos, New Mexico, Las Vegas, Nevada, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Lake Ozark, Missouri, La Pine, Oregon, Durango, Aurora, Lakewood, Boulder and North Glenn, Colorado, Tampa and Brandon, Florida, Rochester, New Hampshire, Franklin, Tennessee, Great Falls, Montana, Danbury, Connecticut, Sao Paolo, Brazil, Maxwell, Nebraska, and Biloxi, Mississippi.

2004-08-03T15:07:00.000-07:00

Wireless Traveler's Kit

Glenn Fleishman's Wi-Fi Networking news ( via a link from Tom's Networking ) links to the SMC Media Center's web site for the details.

"The new Wireless Traveler’s kit brings unparalleled flexibility to road warriors and SOHO users. Packing everything a traveler needs to convert a wired hotel broadband or visiting office connection for wireless connection in a convenient, easy-to-carry case, the new Traveler’s Kit includes a USB cable, a Cat5 Ethernet cable, a power cord and the industry’s first All-in-One networking device that can operate in any of five different modes: Access Point, Ethernet Bridge, Repeater, Point-to-Point Bridge or Point-to-Multipoint Bridge. At an MSRP of just $99.99, the new SMC EZ Connect g Wireless Traveler’s Kit makes wireless networking affordably easy on the road, at home and in the office."

Read more here.

2004-08-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

What does Free Wi-Fi really mean?

As the availability of Free Wi-Fi locations continues to spread I thought it might be good to review what Free might mean in different types of locations. The locations listed in the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory all offer some type of Free Wi-Fi access to the public, but sometimes there may be access requirements/restrictions that are unique to a particular type of location. In order to help people searching for Free Wi-Fi the following information should help to clarify what Free Wi-Fi really means in different locations.

Most of the locations listed will not have any restrictions, but there will be some locations that may restrict access in one of several ways - through a login procedure to users with a registered account - some require you to be a registered guest of their facility - some may require you to be a customer and that implies that you will be making a purchase - and some may require a purchase to gain a password needed to login.

Libraries

Many cities and towns are now offering Free Wi-Fi in their public libraries. A few might require a library card to use the access but in public libraries free really means free for all.

Academic Locations

Many academic institutions that offer Free Wi-Fi on their campuses restrict the access to members of their academic community - students, staff, etc. - and require some kind of login procedure to control access, but, there are some that don't have any restrictions. So, in academic locations, free may not mean free for all.

Hotels, Motels and Resorts

If these locations offer Free Wi-Fi in their guest rooms then it's obvious you'd need to be a registered guest to use the access. If these locations offer Free Wi-Fi in common areas of the location - lobby, pool area, restaurant, bar/lounge, meeting rooms - they may make the access available to non-guests as well. Thus, free may not mean free to all.

RV Parks and Campgrounds

Most locations of this type will require users to be registered guests of the location. Be sure to check whether the Free Wi-Fi access is available only in or near a "clubhouse" type of building or whether the access reaches the RV pads and campsite areas of the property. Again, here, free may not mean free for all.

Cafes, coffee shops, restaurants

Some of these types of locations require a purchase to obtain a password while others have an explicit policy that requires you to be a customer and thus implies that you'll be making a purchase. So, once again, free may not mean free for all.

Most of these types of locations do not require any purchase to access the Free Wi-Fi. But, I'm sure it would certainly be appreciated. Let your conscience be your guide. The access here is free for all but if you choose to make a purchase while you're there I don't think this would mean that free is no longer free.

Miscellaneous

If you're in a doctor's or dentist's office, or in a hospital waiting room you or your insurance company wiil be paying for services rendered to you while you're there. If you're in a car wash or an auto service center you'll be paying for the service you're there to purchase. So, yes, you'll be spending money while using the Free Wi-Fi.

Free Wi-Fi signals carry

The nature of Wi-Fi means that sometimes a Free Wi-Fi signal can be picked up outside the property "boundary" of the provider. It may be more comfortable for you to be sitting on a bench across the street or in your car or RV and have Free Wi-Fi access thanks to a nearby provider you found listed in the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory. If you can figure out a way to say "thanks" that would be nice.

THANKS!

The Wi-Fi Free-Spot Directory would like to say "thanks" to all the location owners listed in the Directory for providing Free Wi-Fi to the public. Very cool.

2004-07-31T10:50:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi locations

The latest additions to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory are in Corvallis and Portland, Oregon, Salt Lake City and Coalville, Utah, Ellsworth and Brunswick, Maine, Portsmouth and Salem, New Hampshire, Indianola, Iowa, Nebraska City, Nebraska, South Bend, Vincennes, Indianapolis and Valparaiso, Indiana, Radford, Virginia, Asheville, Cary, Raleigh, Hendersonville, Apex and Fayetteville, North Carolina, Houston, Cleburne, Atlanta, Queen City, Austin and Dallas, Texas, Redondo Beach, Newport Beach, San Francisco, Bakersfield, Anaheim Hills, La Jolla, Pismo Beach, Irvine, Los Angeles, El Cerrito, Temple City, El Monte and Bishop, California, Mountainside and Millburn, New Jersey, Hudson, Chelmsford, Lowell, Chatham and Greenfield, Massachusetts, Summersville and Weirton, West Virginia, Warner Robins and Woodstock, Georgia, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Seneca and Columbia, South Carolina, Edinburgh, Scotland, Pullman, Seattle, Mill Creek, Union Gap and Hoquiam, Washington, Plymouth, Petoskey, Berrien Springs and Charlotte, Michigan, Sag Harbor and Clifton Park, New York, Hungry Horse, Montana, Destin, Wellington and Panama City Beach, Florida, Branson, Missouri, Honolulu, Hawaii, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Joliet, Wauconda and Normal, Illinois, Boise, Twin Falls and Post Falls, Idaho, Annapolis, Maryland, Montgomery, Alabama, Denver, Westminster, Lakewood, Thornton and Grand Junction, Colorado, London, England, Goodland, Kansas, Butler and Springfield, Pennsylvania, New Orleans, Louisiana, Charlottesville, Virginia, Washington, DC, Norman, Oklahoma, Bancroft, Ontario, Canada, Gamboa, Panama, and Oradell, New Jersey.

2004-07-27T12:03:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi locations - 2700 and counting

Today the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory passed the 2700 location mark. Thanks. Keep the e-mail submissions coming.

2004-07-26T13:34:00.000-07:00

The Jiwire Network

Free Wi-Fi News, The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory, and wififreenet.com have formed an association with The Jiwire Network.

On The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory and wififreenet.com you'll find links to content supplied by The Jiwire Network - product reviews, HowTo Guides and Wi-Fi Industry News (brought to you by Glenn Fleishman's excellentWi-Fi Networking News site) and more.

As we continue to spread the word about Free Wi-Fi we hope you'll find the new content to be educational and interesting.

2004-07-21T09:10:00.000-07:00

Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory Additions

The usual thanks go out to the free Wi-Fi location owners and users who sent in e-mails to tell me about the newest location additions in Savannah, Sylvester, Macon, and Duluth, Georgia, San Antonio, Abilene, Houston and Beaumont, Texas, Parker, Centennial, Glendale, Sheridan, Boulder and Denver, Colorado, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Hoover, Alabama, Long Beach, Sacramento, Fullerton, Encinitas, Monterey, Burlingame, San Mateo, Simi Valley and Los Angeles, California, Yuma and Sedona, Arizona, Sandy, Utah, New Orleans and Lafayette, Louisiana, Grand Forks, North Dakota, Fife and Sequim, Washington, Ellicott City, Maryland, Medford, Oregon, Janesville, Wisconsin, Nashville, Tennessee, New York, New York, Oulu, Finland, Boston, Brighton, Allston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, Hanover and Twin Mountain, New Hampshire, Goldsboro and Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Alexandria, Virginia, Dawson City, Yukon Territories, Canada, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Elko, Nevada, Indianapolis, Indiana, Newport, Kentucky, Honolulu, Hawaii, Edinburgh, Scotland, Elmhurst and Chicago, Illinois, Idaho Falls, Idaho, Brandon, Mississippi, Paris, France, Billings, Montana, Carthage, Missouri, Anchorage, Fairbanks and Healy, Alaska, and Dayton, Ohio.

2004-07-13T09:00:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi in RV Parks and Campgrounds

There are many people who travel seasonally or fulltime and stay in RV Parks and Resorts and Campgrounds. Many have laptop computers and need Internet access to use e-mail to stay in touch with family and friends or make a reservation at another park, as well as to do online banking, etc.

Many RV Parks and Campgrounds are installing Wi-Fi as an amenity, just like Hotels and Motels, and some are offering it for Free. The Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory now has a new page that lists these RV Parks, Resorts and Campgrounds with Free Wi-Fi.

http://www.wififreespot.com/rv.html

2004-07-13T08:24:00.000-07:00

More Hotels with Free Wi-Fi

WestCoast Hotels and their Red Lion locations announced free Wi-Fi with their unique Net4Guests program. The Net4Guests service utilizes the company's GuestAwards® frequent traveler program to provide members instant log on access using their member numbers and passwords. As an additional benefit to GuestAwards members, they can access Net4Guests service any time they are visiting a participating Red Lion or WestCoast property -- whether they are an overnight guest or not. If they happen to be passing by a participating property and need to quickly check e-mail they can stop in and use the free Wi-Fi in the public areas of the location. In addition, for temporary access, Net4Guests is available at no cost to registered hotel guests on a per-stay basis at participating Red Lion and WestCoast Hotels. Just ask a front desk agent at check-in for a One-Time Net4Guests Access Card.

Locations, mostly in the Western USA, can be found at http://www.westcoasthotels.com/WHC/Net4Guests/n4g_par.asp

2004-07-12T10:36:00.000-07:00

Free Wi-Fi with Hamburgers and in Airline Clubs

Recently Krystal Restaurants announced that they have free Wi-Fi in 50 locations in the Southeastern USA and today Continental Airlines announced they have free Wi-Fi in their USA Presidents Clubs (except Chicago) and in their international clubs by the end of the year.

Also, Panera Bread is now up to 270 locations with free Wi-Fi.

2004-07-10T08:43:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi

Thanks to all the e-mailers there have been many recent additions to the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory. During my recent vacation I used the free Wi-Fi provided by the Woodstar Cafe and the Haymarket Cafe in Northampton, Massachusetts to keep up with the submittal e-mails ( although it took me a day or two after my return to California to get completely caught up with posting the additions ). I won't be posting my usual summary of additions by city/town but you will find new locations on the Montana, South Dakota, New Hampshire, Caifornia, Washington, Illinois, Alabama, Hawaii, Nebraska, New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Colorado, Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, and West Virginia State pages as well as in Prince Edward Island, Canada, and London and Amsterdam.

2004-07-01T04:48:00.000-07:00

50 Krystal Restaurants in the Southeast offer Free Wi-Fi

Krystal Restaurants have free Wi-Fi in 50 locations in AL, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, TN and TX.

2004-06-30T07:18:00.000-07:00

Featured Free Wi-Fi location

I thought I'd start a new feature here on Free Wi-Fi News and pick one of the recent additions to the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory as the "Featured Free Wi-Fi Location".

I'm travelling this week and I'm spending a few days in Gloucester, Massachusetts visiting friends. While strolling down Main Street I came across the Lone Gull Coffeehouse and Juice Bar. It's brand new - very cozy - nice furniture - and of course - Free Wi-Fi. They're at 146 Main St., just a block up from the harbor - see them on the web at http://www.lonegull.com

2004-06-30T06:30:00.000-07:00

New Free Wi-Fi locations

Recent additions to the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory can be found in Gloucester, Massachusetts, Seattle, Port Angeles, Silverdale and Spokane, Washington, Pasadena, Torrance, Fullerton, Northridge, North Hollywood, Los Angeles, Watsonville, Brentwood, San Francisco, El Segundo and Santa Cruz, California, Denver, Westminster, Arvada, Lafayette and Estes Park, Colorado, Thomas, West Virginia, Minneapolis, Duluth and St. Paul, Minnesota, Toronto and Newmarket, Ontario, Campbell River, Osoyoos and Hope, British Columbia, Canada, Granger and Noblesville, Indiana, several locations in Denmark, Dickinson, North Dakota, Budapest, Hungary, Decorah, Iowa, St. Marys, Augusta and Savannah, Georgia, Solon, Cuyahoga Falls, Troy and Chagrin Falls, Ohio, Midwest City and Bartlesville, Oklahoma, Durham, Wrightsville Beach, Arden and Cary, North Carolina, Corvallis, Oregon, Carbondale and Wilmette, Illinois, Ketchum and Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, Brandon, Jackson and Flowood, Mississippi, Richmond and Norfolk, Virginia, Santa Fe and Albuquerque, New Mexico, Ahmedabad, India, Phoenix, Flagstaff and Gilbert, Arizona, Williston, Vermont, New York City, New York, Houston, Dallas, Denison and Austin, Texas, Omaha, Nebraska, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo and Battle Creek, Michigan, Miami and St. Augustine, Florida, Kenner and Abbeville, Louisiana, Honolulu, Hawaii, Hong Kong, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

2004-06-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

WirelessTrips.com

Here's how a family is using Wi-Fi for fun and profit.

"Is it possible to live on the road for weeks at a time in an RV when your lives depend on high-speed Internet access? That's the question we intend to answer.

This blog is a chronicle of the adventures of keeping our Internet business and family life running as we travel the country in our RV."

To find out more visit them at http://www.wirelesstrips.com

2004-06-16T18:59:00.000-07:00

More Free Wi-Fi locations in the Wi-Fi FreeSpot Directory

Thanks go out to the location owner and user e-mailers who submitted the following locations

Kingston, West Point, New Hartford and New York, New York, LaCrosse, Appleton, Franklin and Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Laguna Beach, Sacramento, San Mateo, La Cañada Flintridge, San Francisco and San Jose, California, Plymouth, Minnesota, Gig Harbor, Vancouver, Seattle, Bellingham and Orondo, Washington, Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Parma, Lancaster and Medina, Ohio, Henderson, Nevada, Surrey, British Columbia and Winnepeg, Manitoba, Canada, Cardiff, Wales, Irving, Lewisville, Dallas, Austin and Richardson, Texas, Edinburg, Virginia, Opelika and Huntsville, Alabama, Ashland, Kentucky, Huntington, West Virginia, Honolulu, Hawaii, Cabot and Ft. Smith, Arkansas, Jamaica Plain and Attleboro, Massachusetts, Whitefish, Montana, St. Augustine, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Pembroke Pines, Florida, Price, Sandy, Salt Lake City and South Jordan, Utah, Topeka, Kansas, State College and Altoona, Pennsylvania, Princeton, New Jersey, Kowloon, Hong Kong, Kansas City, Missouri, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Portland, Oregon, McCall, Idaho, Seward, Alaska, Denver, Colorado, Bloomington, Springfield, Moline and Chicago, Illinois, Cary, North Carolina, Shenzhen, China, Grand Forks, North Dakota, Yuma and Scottsdale, Arizona, Iowa City, Iowa.

2004-06-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

Hospital Wi-Fi

El Camino Hospital in Mountain View, California is offering free Wi-Fi to patients and visitors in the hospital campus and in two off-site dialysis centers. Visitors may have to pay a nominal fee later this year but patient access will remain free.

It was dialysis patients that made the first requests for Wi-Fi access. They have to spend several hours, two or three times a week getting blood cleansing treatments. Free Wi-Fi access allows them to stay connected for work related tasks or just gives them an alternative to reading or watching TV.

The same goes for patients recovering from surgery or other conditions that may require an extended stay in the hospital.

2004-06-08T11:31:00.000-07:00

Panera Bread Free Wi-Fi

I've just discovered a new page on the Panera Bread web site that lists all free Wi-Fi locations. They're up to 188.

The new page is http://www.panerabread.com/wifi.aspx

2004-06-08T09:36:00.000-07:00

Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory Additions

Many thanks to the e-mailers who recently submitted new Free Wi-Fi locations in

Cape Girardeau, Dexter and Jackson, Missouri, Libertyville, Wheeling and Peoria, Illinois, New York City, New York, Key West, Florida, McCall, Idaho, Pendleton and Eugene, Oregon, Riverside and Dublin, California, Nashville, Tennessee, Union, Florence and Walton, Kentucky, Colorado Springs, Boulder, Denver and Golden, Colorado, Wenatchee, McCleary, Shoreline, Tacoma and Clarkston, Washington, Scottsdale, Arizona, Frederick, Maryland, Murphy and Asheville, North Carolina, Little Meadows and Monroeville, Pennsylvania, Holland, Michigan, various locations in Switzerland, Rimini, Italy, Namur, Belgium, Norwalk, Madison and Hartford, Connecticut, Santa Fe, Albuquerqee and Las Vegas, New Mexico, Janesville, Merrill and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Austin, Texas, Kearney, Nebraska, Blackfalds, Alberta, and Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Columbia, South Carolina, Savannah, Georgia

2004-06-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

Krystal Restaurants will have free Wi-Fi

Krystal Restaurants will offer free Wi-Fi in 50 of their Southeastern US locations by June 30.

Here's a list of locations.

2004-06-01T09:13:00.000-07:00

Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory Additions

Vevey, Switzerland, Gibraltar, Georgetown and Lexington, Kentucky, Singer, Wisconsin, Arlington, Houston, Carrollton, Mission and Austin, Texas, Jacksonville and Collinsville, Illinois, Roanoke, Virginia, North Canton and Mentor, Ohio, Wayne and Boonton, New Jersey, West Dover, Vermont, Honolulu, Hawaii, Beaufort, North Carolina, Arvada and Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Sorrento, Italy, Owosso, Michigan, Anacortes, Washington, Flagstaff, Arizona, Lincoln, Nebraska, Atlanta and Douglasville, Georgia, Columbia, South Carolina, Nashville, Tennessee, Sanford and Lake Wales, Florida, Henderson, Nevada, Walker, Minnesota, Drums, Pennsylvania, Modesto and El Cerrito, California, Westminster, Maryland