Brittany+WiFi

POST #1: Sunday, February 21, 2010
I went to Starbucks this past Wednesday, February 17 hoping to get some online reading done in front of a fire with the company of a vanilla rooibos tea latte... and I thought to myself, "What a great opportunity to work on my CA346 practicum project and use the Starbucks Wi-Fi services!"

Those were my thoughts, verbatim.

Based on past experiences, I knew I would be able to access the Internet via Starbucks/AT&T Wi-Fi (and my attempt to get the Internet was indeed successful). Here's a screenshot of the login page:



Keeping in mind that I could log in and happily spend my night doing my homework, this was really the first time I've done so and thought about issues of accessibility. Before beginning that discussion, I should first note some general "rules" to Starbucks/AT&T Wi-Fi use: The "Wi-Fi Offer Frequently Asked Questions" website answered my burning questions regarding access, found at this website. Here's a screenshot of it:
 * To access their Wi-Fi, you're required to either purchase AT&T services or buy and register a Starbucks Card
 * If you have paid AT&T services, you receive unlimited access to the Internet
 * If you have a registered Starbucks Card, you only receive one two-hour session of access to the Internet.

Basically what this boils down to is if you purchase services or goods from AT&T or Starbucks, they'll give you a little taste of the Web: a typical quid pro quo agreement. I was lucky enough to gain unlimited access thanks to my family's AT&T U-Verse membership (thanks family!), but what about those who aren't as fortunate? If you need to access the Internet more than two hours per day in the city of Madison, what do you do? And do these commercial entities offer access keeping the Internet's social value in mind, or is this **simply a business deal**?

These are some questions I'm hoping to answer throughout the rest of the semester. I look forward to researching and using the Internet via other Wi-Fi services offered throughout Madison!