Capstone
Kiss My Shiny, Metal Ass
Premium
join:2001-08-12
Springfield, OH
 ·RoadRunner Cable
| Acceptable use?
If the owner advertises it as a free internet hotspot, then my purchase of a cup of coffee is payment enough. However, I don't have the time or patience to sit there for "hours". I use the internet at my local coffee shop just long enough to check mail and headlines, then I'm off.
But there's leeches everywhere and if they don't know when to leave, then it's the business owner's right to tell them to do so. If I owned a shop and it was busy, I'd certainly tell the surfer that's been there for 3 hours on 1 cup of coffee to shove off so that others could use the seating. If it wasn't busy though, I'd rather have that person sitting there than have the shop sit empty.
--
OK, but I don't want anyone thinking we're robosexuals. |
|
rachelsfx
join:2004-09-27
Pensacola, FL
| Coffee Shops with Wi-Fi
McDonalds? What person chomps down a Big Mac and surfs the web?
Gyms - Yes, they do. What can you possibly need Wi-Fi in a Gym for? Finger exercises?
Starbucks - At $6 for a cup of Joe that Juan Valdez didn't pick, I have to pay for Wi-Fi too?
Of course, the White House doesn't have Wi-Fi mainly 'cause Bush doesn't get it. His secretary even programs his iPod. |
|
calvoiper
join:2003-03-31
Belvedere Tiburon, CA | Uhhh, did you read a different article than I did?
calvoiper
--
VoIP--the death knell of remaining voice monopolies! |
|
whoamIoramI
join:2004-05-17
Jersey City, NJ | Also, if you live in place like NYC and have a starbucks below you, you have free internet. My friend that graduated recently never paid a dime for internet access this way.
Do i agree with what he did? nope. Stealing is stealing |
|
froggy58
join:2002-05-07
Cape Canaveral, FL
| reply to rachelsfx
"McDonalds? What person chomps down a Big Mac and surfs the web?"
When I was in the USAF (late 80's) I was on a team of folks that went to the "Dew Line" with Winnipeg being our 2 day layover until our northbound connecting charter.
We went to a McDonalds and after we had our lunch actually (ate it), no others in the place except staff & us, the manager came up and said you're done, please leave. This was probably one of the best behaved team of folks I've seen, yet if we we not eating we were to be gone. I asked why, he said we were taking up seats...
I just finished my burger when they told us.
K |
|
Majestik
World Traveler
Premium
join:2001-05-11
Tulsa, OK
clubs:  
| reply to Capstone
Re: Acceptable use?
When I go to the neighborhood bookstore/cafe or the pizza place I could be there up to 4 hours when the weather is bad. Sometimes I am reading a few chapters of the book I just purchased,surfing the net(free), or talking with friends.
They know my favorite hot mixes and to bring another when give a signal or say "keep'em coming.
Never gave it a thought. Sometimes they even give me a hot drink "on the house".
I guess if you are neat,clean,pleasant,a frequent visitor and like a bottomless cup there is no problem.
I've been seeing more wifi enabled PDAs,UMPCs,and web phones than notebooks lately.
--
The adventure continues.......2006- Switzerland,Oahu,Macau,Hong Kong,Rome,Switzerland(now)......... |
|
Unregistered User
@69.244.x.x
| reply to froggy58
Re: Coffee Shops with Wi-Fi
I remember a similar incident from when I was a little kid, about 8 or 9. My family and I went to New Orleans, and I wanted an ice cream cone. So, we went into an ice cream parlor to get one, whereupon the manager told my parents, brother, and sister-in-law that if they didn't buy something, they'd have to wait outside until I finished. Needless to say, we all walked out, and several other people who overheard the conversation did the same. I don't think the place was there when we visited again the next year.
It's one thing to ask people politely to make room for other patrons when the place is busy, but it's quite another to be a jerk. The jerks probably think they're helping business by moving people along and freeing up space, but they're really hurting business because word gets around.
As for the subject at hand, I don't think it'd be unreasonable for a coffee shop to offer a limited amount of access per purchase. 30 minutes for a cup of coffee would be a fair deal. Just have an access code that expires and disconnects the user 30 minutes after the purchase. |
|
donaldk
Premium
join:2000-10-19
Thunder Bay, ON
| reply to Capstone
Re: Acceptable use?
roflmao... we (three Canadian navy MCDV warships), were docked at the USCG ISC Boston jetty last week. I know a bunch of people with laptops and all they had to do was walk out the front gate straight and they had wifi signal from those coffee shops, heck I got no less than 14 wifi points on the back of the ship standing on the sweepdeck but my pda's TX is weak so it could not connect. Of course those with crackberry's (blackberry's) had the cell network for their use...lucky.
Hehe.. Boston was a nice port visit  . |
|
Greg_Z
Premium
join:2001-08-08
Springfield, IL | reply to froggy58
Re: Coffee Shops with Wi-Fi
Let me guess, the manager was Indian? Canada is becoming a 2nd India. |
|
Dan
Hamilton Tigers?
Premium
join:2002-12-17
Eh? | Way to stereotype. Prick. |
|
Cop
Premium
join:2001-09-05
Auburn, AL
·Charter Pipeline
| reply to Greg_Z
said by Greg_Z  :Let me guess, the manager was Indian? Canada is becoming a 2nd India. lol
--
Testing Gmail Spam Filters - ebaykid@gmail.com |
|
Greg_Z
Premium
join:2001-08-08
Springfield, IL
·Comcast
| reply to Dan
said by Dan :Way to stereotype. Prick. That is not a stereotype post. If you go up to Canada, especially the Toronto area, there are more Indian resident Aliens/Canadian Citizens then there are True Canadians.
--
One man's customer loyalty is another man's misguided arrogance.
Another Tech forum site
Get your own Tekwear |
|
UnrealArcher
join:2005-01-21
Scarborough, ON | The hell you talking about? I live in the city and I hardly see it becoming a second India.
I echo the sentiments above: way to be a stereotypical prick. |
|
milnoc
join:2001-03-05
H2Z | reply to whoamIoramI
Did your friend go stir-crazy from the constant smell of coffee coming from the Starbucks?  |
|
rudnicke
Premium
join:2004-10-23
Rantoul, IL | reply to rachelsfx
And it goes political...  |
|
MikegotOOL
join:2001-01-21
East Setauket, NY
clubs:
| reply to Capstone
Re: Acceptable use?
Well think about this
Step 1 bring laptop into wireless cafe
2 Order cup of coffee 1 min
3 wait for the coffee to be made or whatever 1min
4 pay for it and sit down 30 secs
5 break out your laptop and wait for it to startup 1-2min
6 find a wireless connection 20-30 secs
7 ask for SSID 30 secs
8 login 15 secs
9 surf net for 5min.
10 shut down laptop properly 20 secs
11 leave
It takes an extra 4-5 minutes to just setup your laptop wit the proper SSID....you are not just gonna stay there for 10 seconds, surf the net then leave...unless you walk in holding your laptop on wherever you go. Truth of the matter is you will be in the coffee shop for at least 20 minutes, not 10 or less if you bring a laptop.
--
If they give you ruled paper, write the other way. -Juan Ramon Jimenez Lightpath introduces the Goldenrebever;)(Seti is dead, Project Phoenix is alive now, Big Brother is watching) |
|
mesmerMAN
join:2006-01-18
Miami, FL
| reply to Greg_Z
Re: Coffee Shops with Wi-Fi
ster·e·o·type Audio pronunciation of "stereotype" ( P ) Pronunciation Key (str--tp, stîr-)
n.
1. A conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified conception, opinion, or image.
2. One that is regarded as embodying or conforming to a set image or type.
3. Printing. A metal printing plate cast from a matrix molded from a raised printing surface, such as type |
|
itguy05
join:2005-06-17
Camp Hill, PA
| reply to MikegotOOL
Re: Acceptable use?
quote:
It takes an extra 4-5 minutes to just setup your laptop wit the proper SSID....yo
Must suck to use a Windows laptop then. Here's my scenario with my Powerbook:
1) Open lid of PB, waking it from sleep (1 sec)
2) type in password (2 secs)
3) Click the Airport signal meter in the menubar and pick the right SSID (3 secs)
4) Surf
5) Close Laptop and put in bag - it goes right to sleep (10 secs)
Guess I'm just way too used to this reliability - you Windows users have it hard! |
|
calvoiper
join:2003-03-31
Belvedere Tiburon, CA
| reply to UnrealArcher
Re: Coffee Shops with Wi-Fi
I also echo the sentiments above, but it's also important to note that some immigrant shop owners come from cultures where personal interaction is very different. In some areas, concepts of personal space, rudeness, and acceptable behavior (including both how long to stay and how to ask someone to leave) vary widely from United States norms (to say nothing of variances within the US.)
While we may consider some things quite rude, they may be "normal" in the person's home country. Whether or not to discuss this aspect with the shopkeeper is a personal call.
calvoiper
--
VoIP--the death knell of remaining voice monopolies! |
|
Ahrenl
join:2004-10-26
North Andover, MA | reply to whoamIoramI
That is certainly not stealing. It would be trespassing, if they told him not to use it. If they didn't tell him to stay off their network, and freely broadcast it for others to use, then he did nothing wrong. |
|
