"That's right, we blog!" (with thanks to RP and GW)

News and information for free public access Wi-Fi location owners and users

We call a hotspot that offers free Wi-Fi internet access a Wi-Fi-FreeSpot.

Click here for the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory.

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Want to learn how to build a FreeSpot? Go to WiFiFreenet.

 

New FreeSpots

Irvine and Manhattan Beach, California have new FreeSpots and so do Andover and Somerville, Massachusetts, St. Louis, Missouri and New Orleans, Louisiana

posted by Jim at 4:28 PM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

The City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin is providing free Wi-Fi in the downtown area, and there is a new listing for Waikiki, Hawaii and several free locations have been added in Lithuania.

posted by Jim at 6:13 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

A big "Thanks!" to all the people who have been sending me new locations to add. Today I added two new locations in the Houston, Texas area and one in Huntsville, Alabama.

posted by Jim at 12:53 PM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

There's a new downtown Hot Zone covering 42 blocks (completed by the end of the month) being built in St. Louis, Missouri and MetroCloud has added 4 new locations in Boise, Idaho.

posted by Jim at 1:06 PM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

You'll find free Wi-Fi in new locations in Brisbane, California, Gainesville, Florida and lots of CC's Coffee Houses in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Slidell, Lafayette and Metairie, Louisiana.

posted by Jim at 1:18 PM

 

Advertising support for Free Wi-Fi

Some location owners who offer free access may wish to underwrite the costs of supplying the service by displaying advertising on a "welcome" screen that their customers must pass through before being able to surf the web or check e-mail. I've been searching high and low for an inexpensive, easy to install/use product that would do this and I recently came across DNS Redirector. There are other products available but I felt they were either too expensive or too technical for the average FreeSpot location owner. DNS Redirector's new v. 2.0 not only will facilitate the creation of a "welcome" screen but also can block pornography and file sharing program use. Take a look at DNS Redirector.

posted by Jim at 5:46 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

Look for new FreeSpots in Huntsville,Alabama, Memphis, Tennessee ,San Diego, California, and 5 Apple Core Hotels in New York City, New York.

posted by Jim at 5:34 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

New locations in Alhambra and Carmel Valley Village California and Taos, New Mexico.

posted by Jim at 7:38 AM

 

Who uses Wi-Fi?

A few stories/research out lately about hotspot usage levels being low. Because of the attention being focused solely on hotspots and their pay for access model, I'm sure the statistics bear out the headlines. But, it doesn't take into account all the people who are using the locations found in The FreeSpot Directory and other free access locations. In general, not many statistics are available for usage levels at these locations (Schlotzsky's Delis being the major exception and they say usage levels are very satisfactory). It was interesting to read the commentary from Glenn Fleischman of Wi-Fi Networking News and Mike Masnick of techdirt wireless and their statements that their own usage while traveling and near home is primarily at free access locations.

posted by Jim at 12:17 PM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

New spots can be found in Portland, Oregon, San Francisco, California and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

posted by Jim at 12:06 PM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

New FreeSpots can be found in Atlanta, Georgia, Chandler, Arizona, New York, New York, Chicago, Illinois, Oakland, California and England's Brighton Beach.

posted by Jim at 6:18 AM

 

Urban Hotzone

Members of Boston's newburyopen.net provide free internet access on Newbury Street, Boston's "Rodeo Drive". They have prepared an informative document for other businesses wanting to learn how to do the same thing.

"NewburyOpen.net is the first Free WiFi Urban Hotzone. We've developed the Urban Hotzone model to demonstrate how corporate sponsorship and community involvement can come together to implement and fund a set of free WiFi hotspots.

We think that we have a business model for sustainable free wireless that can be duplicated all over the world. Give us your email and then you'll download our 176K PDF with our step-by-step guide for creating your own Hotzone, which includes our opinion of why free WiFi has a place in the future of the Internet and our analysis of the benefits of free WiFi for the participants of the hotzone."

The document is available at - http://www.newburyopen.net/hotzone/

posted by Jim at 10:40 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

New FreeSpots in Boulder and Superior, Colorado - Birmingham, Alabama - Vancouver, Washington - Porto Alegre, Brazil - and a "wireless cloud" is available in downtown Coral Gables, Florida

posted by Jim at 5:39 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

New FreeSpots in Overland Park and Merriam, Kansas and Oakland, Mountain View and Alameda, California and Salt Lake City, Utah.

posted by Jim at 5:21 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

New FreeSpots in Billerica, Massachusetts, Montevallo, Alabama, Rancho Cucamonga, California, Reston, Virginia and several Bear Rock Cafe locations in North Carolina.

posted by Jim at 5:24 AM

 

More FreeSpot Directory Additions

New spots in Charlotte, North Carolina, Vancouver, Washington, Memphis, Tennessee, Alexandria, Virginia and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

posted by Jim at 4:49 AM

 

FreeSpot Directory Additions

You'll find new additions on the California, New York, Florida, Kansas and Europe(Switzerland) pages.

posted by Jim at 6:05 AM