Free Wifi with your bread

Now that I mentionsed Mr. Lion it reminds me of this post I saw last week over at Glenn's.

Lion and I have differed several times in the past on the topic of free Wifi and if it will become the defacto way to get to the internet outside the home.
I think it will, Lion does not.
Read Glenn's post, Pantera bread is coming over to my side.
Also there are several cities thinking about offering free Wifi or have already started to. I think I am on the winnning side in this one.

Update: Glenn also had this post a few days earlier.

WiFi at conventions

Glenn and Jeff both expect Wifi at both political conventions.
I think it would prove interesting but technically a very challenging thing to do.
The average router can handle 256 nodes.
I would expect a convention to have thousands.
Would it be one hotspot or many?
What would be the reception like with so many nodes hitting at the same time as well as the interference from all the other electrical stuff that is going to be flying through the ether.
I suspect security will be a big issue too.
Expect to here a lot about 802.11i.
Have not heard about 802.11i anywhere yet have you? Well I have to maintain my technological edge somehow. Read up on the security spec here and here.

More Free Wifi Hotspots

Glenn spotlights the Knoxville resturant Krystal's which has free Wifi.

Free Wifi to all Houston Libraries

All Harris county public libraries now have free wifi hotspots.
As I said free wifi will one day be everywhere.
Even better they just started to build a new branch pretty close to my house.
Link from : Tony

More Free access

The other day there was an article (sorry I lost the link) where someone claimed that free wifi was not going to make it. I have strongly disagreed with that and still do. New tech is in the pipe that will not only extend the range of Wifi but will also make it cheaper. Even the Elder God of Blogging Glenn uses free wifi hotspots. If it is good enough for him its good enought for me.

Hot Zones

If you recall I have said on more than one occasion that the business model that is being planned for WiFi is doomed to failure.
Now comes this story from Somerville where they want to create a free wifi Hot Zone that will encompass several city blocks and parks.
The article doesn't go into the technology, which I would have liked, but the attitude is that Internet access should be free.
The price of setting up a hot spot is not very much and going lower.
I expect to see kids with laptops camping out on my lawn any day now.

Paris Wifi

I was on Mike Wendland's site and came across this story. Since Wifi has been a continuing theme here I thought I should report it even if it is about the French.
This story on NPR touts the new Wifi system which might be extended throughout Paris's Metro.
A more detailed story however indicates that the frogs might blow it after all.
It seems that during the first three month's only 1,700 people have used the system which was free. In the second stage they are planning to charge about $11 per hour for access.

Mike's Wifi Truth #1:

Eventually free access points will be in enough places that no one will even consider paying for it.

The French are going to spend a lot of money find out truth number one for themselves. It couldn't happen to a nicer people.


Listening To: Trouble in Paradise - Bruce Springsteen

More Wifi It looks like

More Wifi
It looks like the big players, at least some of them, want to give users of other services access to each others hot spots. While Cometa is falling behind on their plans to build 20,000 hot spots. You can read about it here and here.
As I have said before I think that eventually these pay services are going to be overwhelmed by the free hotspots that are popping up all over the place. To facilitate that process I have added a link on the sidebar to the Free hotspot web site.
The interesting thing is that some of the locations where the pay sites would do well are already covered by free hotspots.
Where the pay sites have an advantage is big secluded places like airports.
Current Song: Conquistador - Procol Harum

More Wifi

True Believers say WiFi will endure . Led by Intel no less. Intel recently annoced that it was supporting 802.16 or WiMax which will broadcast the Internet everywhere. Intel is also building wifi into all their new laptop and has come out with a new chip set. This could be a big blow to Cisco which bought Wifi leader Linksys not too long ago.
In building on my post of a few says ago there is a this website WiFifreespot.com which is keeping track of where all the free sites are. There will be more of these in the days to come. Free internet is the future. Among the free spots in Houston are listed Holiday Inns, Best Western's and a Dairy Queen. A Diary Queen?
Current Song: Sing Sing Sing - Benny Goodman

WiFi Warchalking

If you are interested in Wifi hotspots, as I am, check out the Warchalking website. The idea grew out of signs that hobos used to make so that other hobos would know where they could find places to sleep and eat. They started out several years ago with a group of signs showing hotspots but now I think it is evolving into a database and clearing house for free hotspots. I would draw some in front of my house but I am so far from the road that the signal would be very weak. Also I am sure I would have a rep from the homeowners assn. calling on me real soon.
Just looking at what they have so far it is obvious that most metro areas are or will be filled with FREE hotspots. For that reason Mickey D's and any others trying to charge for Internet access are doomed to failure.

Expanding WiFi hotspots

Interesting story here about Mickey D's offering Wifi at some of their resturants. It says that they plan on charging $4.95 for 2 hours but as an intro will offer it free with the purchase of a value meal. I predict they will never make money at $4.95 but if they continue to offer it with the purchase of a value meal, which I think they will find is the only way to do it, it will be fine. I can see popping open my laptop to check email but to spend 2 hours in the golden arches trying to do actual work, no way.