debcook

2008-08-23 22:39:03

Today I needed a few items from my local Home Depot. I was surprised to see a sign on the door announcing that they offered free WiFi. After returning home I did a Google search and sure enough Home Depot stores across the country offer free WiFi.

You need to check with the Home Depot in your area - or in an area you to plan to travel to for instructions on how to connect. TIP: If the store is closed you should be able to park nearby and type in odwifi as the network name and it might get you connected.

Finding hotspots in you area or as before in an area you plan traveling to a few options are available. Some are free others are not. This is a short list of options but you should be able to find all the information needed. Always call ahead to verify information.

• Jwire.com - gives multiple search features including location, WiFi providers for each location, addresses and maps. (I tried to find hotspots on jwire.com from my iPhone and was not successful. I could type in the city and zip code but the space for country and state were grayed out. The “go” button did not take me anywhere.)
• FlyingJ.com - These are truck stops across the country offering WiFi. From the home page click on the “Communication Services” button.
• Hotel Chatter.com - This site gives reviews and information about hotels that offer WiFi. Interesting TIP: Often the less expensive hotels/motels have free WiFi and most expensive hotels/motels include a charge for WiFi. Always ask if the WiFi is free - if it is not ask for the charge to be complimentary and often your request will be honored.
• Restaurants - McDonald’s and Panera Bread comes to mind first but remember that Jwire.com will include others in their searches.

Security is always an issue when connecting to Hot Spots especially free ones. Typing in password and credit card numbers is scary at best. I own a password vault (this is a future post) for this reason. All of the information is typed in at home and the software is already on my laptop. When I log onto a site the password vault recognizes it and logs me on.

I admit that I am surprised at some Hot Spot locations but I think that it is really cool that they are there. Most cell phones, PDAs and laptops include WiFi so accessing the Internet should not be a problem while traveling.