Shan-man
¿sɐɯʇsıɹɥɔ lıʇ, sʎɐp ʎuɐɯ ʍoH
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2008
Oh, not annoying at all... that's the kinds of conversations I started this thread to have. For internet in more and more campgrounds these days you already have all that you need, as many are providing wi-fi, and often for free. Your wi-fi "n" card can take advantage of all the popular flavors of wi-fi: "b" the first broadly adopted standard, "g" a superset of "b" with more throughput, and the new "n" which is a superset of "g" with more range and throughput. So you are set, so long as you are sure your destination has wi-fi and that you will be camping in an area of the campground with good reception. Some truck stops and even some state rest areas are adding wi-fi. So it could be that you'll be able to connect every time you stop, especially with a little planning.
The catch? All too often I find that these access spots charge for the service, and while it is usually pretty reasonable, each requires some amount or registration and a credit card number. I just don't like plugging my information and credit card number into "Joe's Travel Stop WiFi" registration page for a 15 minute web session. And then having to do it again at Barnes and Noble that afternoon, and again at the campground. If there were a single clearinghouse, like Paypal for wifi, where I'd only have to register once and thereafter just authorize payments, it might be different.
So the inconvenience, and uncertainty of coverage, are two factors that lead me to get and aircard. That, and the fact that my wife is a telecommuter and needs to be assured of an internet connection when we travel. The aircard uses cellular phone systems and can connect to the internet pretty much anywhere a cell phone will work. In modern cell coverage areas it works quite fast, 6-15x as fast as dialup. In older cell coverage areas it will still connect, but it insufferably slow (maybe comparable to an old 14.4k modem); but is still useful to check e-mail. I have only once or twice run into a pocket of this old service, and have had the high speed service even in areas where there was not enough signal for me to make a cell call (like along the Blueridge Pkwy, which is pretty remote).
As for costs, I am probably not the best one to ask. My wife gets our equipment and service from her employer (one of the providers for aircard service) at a considerable discount. Normally I believe the cards run about $100 (I recommend a USB-connecting card) and service can be about $60 per month, I think. So, it isn't cheap. For us, it was cheaper than cable or DSL so we dropped the wired internet service altogether and now use aircard exclusively (at home and in traveling). If you use it for work, see if your employer will pay for it, or at least take an unreimbursed work expense write-off on your taxes.
)
But that would be cool if we had it set up so those who wish to make a fool of themselves on camera could huh? 
