[Ti] Wireless/National/Email/Internet/Ti/Macbook

[Dennis Fazio]

On May 30, 2006, at 8:50 AM, Raymond J. Mas wrote:

> I have a similar, somewhat related question. Next month our family  
> is going
> to visit Grandma in FL. She has no internet connection (or a  
> computer for
> that matter). What are my options for connecting my PowerBook to the
> internet? Are there any WiFi services available? I don't need a  
> permanent
> connection, as I seldom travel. But I do need to keep in touch with  
> work,
> and I'd like to do it from her house.

If you want to do it from her house, then you will have to use dialup  
unless you can detect a neighbor's open base station. Check with your  
ISP to see what national dialup arrangements they have. It may  
require charges for long distance or 800 service, but often many do  
it for no additional charge.

Dialup works OK for email if you set things up ahead of time. Make  
sure you set to:
1. Don't download attachments automatically
2. Disable filtering temporarily (so you don't copy the messages to  
local mailboxes)

You'll need permission to tie up the phone, but when I'm a guest, I  
usually do things once a day late at night when it doesn't matter.

Outside her house, there are likely several WiFi hotspots available.  
All the coffee places now have them, though Dunn Brothers is the only  
one I know that gives it for free. Any hotel has it, though it is  
likely pricey at $10/day. Often libraries have free WiFi now.

I think there are services with national WiFi networks, but you have  
to subscribe beforehand and I'm not familiar with their terms. A  
Google search should turn some things up.

-- 
Dennis Fazio
dfz at mac.com