Wi-Fi - (Updates follow below) This is about Internet Wi-Fi wireless hot spots. Many Hams that come to Quartzsite AZ are full-time RVers and some have DirectWay satellite broadband Internet. An open hot spot is easy for them to provide. It is great to be able to do your e-mail from out in the desert. Since our Ham trip to Quartzsite comes up soon, I got a Palm TX PDA with built-in Wi-Fi which will be more convenient than my laptop with its Wi-Fi card. But I needed a place to train myself to use it. I went down to the Capitol Mall on Christmas Day to use the SACTOWN free hotzone that runs continuously from 9th & Capitol to Raley Field in West Sacramento. The RF was weak and there was no Internet after connecting. I assumed that it was shut down over the holiday. A trip to Panera Bread a few days later made everything right! They are a sandwich chain with 732 cafes with free Wi-Fi from California to Virginia. The Sacramento location is in the south end of the former Computer Warehouse building at Howe and Northrop. Everything worked right and I browsed the web, mostly PDA and cell phone versions of popular pages, including my SBC Yahoo e-mail. The sandwiches were very good, although the Wi-Fi instructions don't require you to buy anything. The PDA comes with a free month subscription to T-Mobile Wi-Fi. Pay hot spots are far more common than free ones, and T-Mobile has the biggies, like Starbucks and FedEx/Kinko's. I plan on activating my free month so it includes my trip to and from Quartzsite, but at $29/month, I am not in the least interested in renewing it. Comments and questions are welcome! I will post this on the NHRC Library web page with replies. Les, W6TEE (Jan 1, 2006) ------ Reply to a comment (edited 4/19/06): A list with all kinds of hot spots, mostly pay, is at http://www.wi-fihotspotlist.com/browse/. Free hot spots are listed at www.wififreespot.com. Coffee shops, copy centers, and book stores are close to saturation, but the fastest growth is at airports, hotels, motels, and RV parks. Les, W6TEE (Jan 1, 2006) ------ Brookfields restaurant at Madison and I-80 has free wireless inside the restaurant - trying going by for a snack or meal. Mark, KF6IDO (Jan 2, 2006) ------ I didn't have Brookfield's. Other reported north area free hot spots include Apple Computer at Arden Fair, Java Joint at Arden & Morse, Sacramento Brewing in Town & Country Village, Coffee Break Cafe near Home Depot at Madison and Manzanita, and Players Sports Bar at Sunrise & Fair Oaks. Pay locations far outnumber these. Les, W6TEE (Jan 2, 2006) ------ This is for people with ATT/SBC Internet service, identified locally by pacbell.net, sbcglobal.net, or prodigy addresses, and a lot more nationally. These subscribers can get on ATT/SBC FreedomLink Wi-Fi at a big discount. The discount: DSL subscribers can add Wi-Fi service for $1.99/mo, dialup customers can add it for $9.99/mo. Subscribing: Instant activation is available at http://www.sbc.com/gen/general?pid=5949. Equipment: You need a laptop or PDA with built-in wireless, such as most new laptops, or add a 802-11b or g card. Locations: You have to be at one of these, or others, to use the service: Includes UPS Store (was Mailboxes Etc.), Barnes and Noble, some Raley's and Bel Air, and McDonald's. McDonald's alone is worth it for travel! There are other locations not found in California such as Caribou Coffee. There is a locator available from the initial Wi-Fi menu, or the above URL. Logon procedures: Contact me with questions. AT&T subscribers log on at McDonald's as Roamers (no extra $), then select AT&T WiFi, enter your ID, and select your @pacbell.net, etc. from a pulldown menu. Les, W6TEE (Mar 17, 2006)