Attendees of COFES were given a Windows-based iPaq palm-size computer by HP. Because I prefer the PalmOS-based Sony Clie, I've been using the iPaq strictly for wireless Internet access. (Connecting the iPac through installing ActiveSync on my computer also requires Outlook be installed, but Outlook is banned from all our computers.)
Having wireless Internet built-in (a.k.a WiFi or WLAN) makes the iPaq a great tool for seeking "hotspots," those areas where a WLAN router is broadcasting its signal, typically in a 50- to 100-foot radius.
At our office, the iPaq recognized the WLAN (wireless local area network),but would not connect. After puzzling over it for a day, I realized the problem was speed. We have a high-speed wireless network, which was set to operate only in g-mode (highspeed); the iPaq uses the older and slower b-mode. After changing the WLAN router to handle both speeds, the iPac now connects after a short delay.
Going for a 20-minute walk around our residential neighbourhood, the iPaq detected 11 wireless networks operating out of people's homes. Most used the WLAN router's default name (a.k.a. SSID), such as linksys, 101, and USR8054. Others had customized the name, such as PandasPride and Blitzz.
(To view the names, do the following steps on the iPaq:
1. Click the wireless icon, and then select Settings.
2. Select the Advanced tab, and then click Network Card.
The 'Configure Wireless Networks' page lists the names of found WLANs.)
At Vancouver International Airport, I discovered a half-dozen wireless networks, from commercial providers, an airline, and the hotel; I could detect them, but not access the networks. In Vancouver, the bright yellow Childrens Market at the entrance to Granville Island has free wireless Internet access. I checked email as my kids explored the stores.
With the wireless iPaq, you not only see nearby wireless networks, but can also access files from computers connected to the network, if sharing is turned on. Standing outside your house, someone could copy/erase files and plant viruses on your computers. The exercise of walking around my neighbournood drove home to me the importance of turning the WLAN router's security (which is turned off, by default). That prevents unauthorized wireless devices from accessing computers on our network.
Update
John Dvoark's article The Looming Legal Threat to Wi-Fi describes the legalities of wireless routers broadcasting their signals to passers-by, and of wireless enabled portable computers picking up those signals.
"Here's what I propose: Once a wireless signal leaves private property, it becomes public domain. If the person transmitting the signal wants it protected, then encryption is up to him or her," writes Mr Dvorak, a proposal I can agree with.
Here are some online directories of "hot spots," locations that provide WLAN either free or for a fee:
www.wi-fihotspotlist.com
www.wififreespot.com
www.hotspot-locations.com
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