Increased use of laptop computers in business and for the mobile traveler have propelled the demand for wireless networks. With the Internet being an important part of so many people's lives, new technologies are emerging that make broadband Internet access possible from places we've never imagined. WiFi networks are popping up all over the country!
Hotspots are appearing everywhere from truck stops to RV parks and laundromats to malls and town squares. Wi-Fi hotspots are areas where people can access the Internet at high speeds by connecting to a Wi-Fi local area network with their notebook PCs and PDAs. Now, it’s coming straight to your city, your airport, your campus and even your home!
The 2004 Most Unwired survey ranked U.S. cities, colleges and airports for Wi-Fi accessibility:
Most Unwired Broadband Cities
- San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA
- Orange County, CA
- Washington, D.C.
- Austin, TX
- Portland, OR
- Seattle, WA
- Bergen-Passaic, NJ
- Middlesex, NJ
- San Diego, CA
- Denver, CO
Most Unwired Airports
- Dallas-Fort Worth International
- LaGuardia International
- Atlanta Hartsfield International
- O'Hare International
- Baltimore/Washington International
- Minneapolis/St. Paul International
- Seattle-Tacoma International
- San Francisco International
- Los Angeles International
- Denver International
Most Unwired Colleges
- Indiana University
- Purdue University
- University of Texas
- Case Western University
- Dartmouth College
- Carnegie Mellon University
- University of Akron
- Western Michigan University
- American University
- St. John's University
A Few Notable WiFi Communities
Local businesses, cafes and public parks aren't the only places unwiring. The survey also examines Wi-Fi accessibility on college campuses. Even though it’s not yet rated number one, Dartmouth College, a 200-year-old Ivy League university in Hanover, N.H., has become the poster child for Wi-Fi on campus. In 2001, Dartmouth became one of the first colleges to implement a campus-wide 802.11b network. That network gave students, faculty and staff high-speed Internet access everywhere on the mile-square campus, inside its 150 buildings and outside. It even accommodated voice over Wi-Fi.
Finally, wish you had a digital home of the future, complete with wireless networking and home controls? At Playa Vista, outside of Los Angeles, each of the roughly 13,000 residents on move-in day will find a top-of-the-line wired backbone, which allows for voice, data, broadband Internet and digital cable in every outlet in every room. In addition to the networking capabilities in each home, plans are being made to create hotspots in more than 20 parks and other public spaces in that community. To help residents adapt to their new high-tech environments, every resident has a technology helper/consultant at their beckoned call.
But don’t get your hopes up for moving into Playa Vista to take advantage of the pre-installed digital, wireless delights. Currently, more than 36,000 people are on the waiting list for the next round of homes.
