Cablevision Online Wi Fi May 17, 2006, 09:33:55 am Yahoo Message Number: 66822Cheyenne will commence my extended RVing. Hopefully, this will lead to fulltiming. I retired in January. I just bought my first laptop for the travels. At this point, I'm not getting satellite internet. Cablevision has just come out with online Wi Fi for its customers. It's $17.95 a month. "Optimum Online Wi-Fi offers unlimited nationwide Wi-Fi and dial-up Internet access." I have never used any Wi-Fi. I plan to boondock a lot. I'm wondering if this plan is something I should get. Will there be enough hot spots? Is there enough free Wi- Fi elsewhere, or would it make sense to purchase Wi-Fi cards? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.Monica NE 10
Re: Cablevision Online Wi Fi Reply #1 – May 17, 2006, 10:11:45 am Yahoo Message Number: 66824QuoteI have never used any Wi-Fi. I plan to boondock a lot. Monica, if you plan on boondocking a lot, WiFi is not going to work for you...you have to be within a certain range of a hot spot for WiFi to work (100 to 300 yards???). By the same token, cell phones or air cards will also not work for Internet access when you're boondocking (rarely, at least...I guess it depends on how far out in the "boonies" you really are). Also, you'll only be able to use the Optimum WiFi at places that also have Optimum. That doesn't mean you won't be able to use other WiFi providers as you travel, but why pay a monthly fee for something you may or may not be able to use? You might want to do some research and find out how many RV parks use Optimum as their WiFi provider. I'll bet not many...I imagine that, for the most part, it's limited to metropolitan areas. Check into exactly where Optimum provides their WiFi service before shelling out any money.Linda Hylton2004 Red 23.5' TK http://map.datastormusers.com/user1.cfm?user=1167 http://earl-linda.blogspot.com/
Re: Cablevision Online Wi Fi Reply #2 – May 17, 2006, 10:52:11 am Yahoo Message Number: 66825"rvhiker22" wrote:Cablevision has just come out with online Wi Fi for its customers. It's $17.95 a month. "Optimum Online Wi-Fi offers unlimited nationwide Wi-Fi and dial-up Internet access." I have never used any Wi-Fi. I plan to boondock a lot. I'm wondering if this plan is something I should get. Will there be enough hot spots? Is there enough free Wi- Fi elsewhere, or would it make sense to purchase Wi-Fi cards? ---- You might want to wait and not limit yourself to one provider or commit to *any* contract, with Cablevision or a wifi ISP or another, until you've done additional research on connection options and have been on the road for a little bit and have seen and experienced what's out there in terms of free wifi. One good source of wifi "freespot" listings is: http://www.wififreespot.com/Another (there are several of these "lists" on the web; lots of overlap) is a listing of "campgrounds", i.e., RV parks, with wifi: http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/14514727.cfmSince you plan on boondocking a lot, the first website will probably be more useful; there are hotspots in all kinds of places, with more becoming available all the time. There are additional websites with listings if you google, "wifi free spots" or "hotspots".If your laptop doesn't have integrated wifi, you'll need a PC card (with 802.11b and 802.11g connections capabilities); there are many brands of these, e.g., Netgear, Linksys, D-link, and several more.Obviously, the best "always on" internet connection mode is satellite, but, for various reasons, this isn't an option for many people. You might also check into group "Internet by cellphone" for more information on this connection possibility.Joan
Re: Cablevision Online Wi Fi Reply #3 – May 17, 2006, 06:52:04 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66841"I have never used any Wi-Fi. I plan to boondock a lot. I'm wondering if this plan is something I should get. Will there be enough hot spots?"? In a word, no. WiFi has a roughly 150-foot (not yard!) range, unless you get into exotic antennas and amplifiers. And you will seldon if ever find it in scenic boondocking spots...unless you consider an Apple store or a Panera bakery scenic! ;-) As Linda said, if you don't want a Dustyfoot-type satellite system, your best bet is a cell phone setup.Andy Baird Tijeras, NM
Cablevision Online Wi Fi Reply #4 – May 17, 2006, 12:36:57 pm Yahoo Message Number: 66831You might check the Yahoo Group Internet by cell phone http://groups.yahoo.com/group/InternetByCellPhone/ There are some really smart cookies in that group, and like other Yahoo groups, they love to help.Allen--I am using the free version of SPAMfighter for private users. It has removed 1146 spam emails to date. Paying users do not have this message in their emails. Try www. SPAMfighter.com/pro for free now!