Public Wi-Fi at TV

[SantaClaus]

I'm wondering how widely available wifi is in the Villages, particularly the squares but also restaurants. Seems it'd be nice cruise down to the Square with your ipad and hit TOTV or catch up on e-mail. Guess I'm just wondering if my next ipad needs to have a data plan.

[slipcovers]

Starbucks and Pannera do.

[Bizdoc]

Both Perkins locations and all McDonald's.

[logdog]

Regional Rec Centers, Barnes & Noble and many of the chain eateries have public wifi within the building. I've been asking for municipal wifi in the annual surveys. Muni wifi is becoming more and more available as a city wide service in some areas. Right now, if you want to check email or TOTV on the Square, get a data plan.

[JerryP]

Remember, don't Assume a Wi-Fi Hotspot is Secure.

[mherzberg]

South of 466a I've noticed that Brighthouse has free hotspots (if you're a Brighthouse customer) at most pools and Rec centers.

[jblum315]

Weston's BBQ in wildwood says it has Wifi but when I asked for the password they wouldn't or couldn't give it to me

[SantaClaus]

Thanks for the info, guys. I just realized that by time we get to move down wifi will be as modern as 2400 baud modem is today!

[perrjojo]

Remember, don't Assume a Wi-Fi Hotspot is Secure.
I agree..just get a data plan or wait til you get home.

[zcaveman]

I'm wondering how widely available wifi is in the Villages, particularly the squares but also restaurants. Seems it'd be nice cruise down to the Square with your ipad and hit TOTV or catch up on e-mail. Guess I'm just wondering if my next ipad needs to have a data plan.

Do you really need to be connected to everything when you are out enjoying yourself? Turn off and tune out and enjoy the squares.

Z

[SantaClaus]

Well, that's the beauty of an ipad, you don't have to be tied to your desk. I'd much rather be chillin' on the square than cloistered in my den.

[coolkayaker1]

Do you really need to be connected to everything when you are out enjoying yourself? Turn off and tune out and enjoy the squares.

Z
Sad that someone always has to post a reply adding unsolicited advice about something the original poster didn't even ask.

[SantaClaus]

Thanks for having my back, but I have to admit, I see kids out at the park on a beautiful day, hanging out with friends, and they are all glued to their phones, and I shake my head in dismay. But you know, a few years ago, they'd be huddled around the TV playing Nintendo, or IMing on AOL.

[coolkayaker1]

True observations, Santa Claus. Something tells me that you have your pulse on what kids want these days. Fewer requests for wiffle ball bats, I'd guess.

Thanks for asking a great original question on this thread: I, too, wondered about wi-fi at TV.

[zcaveman]

Sad that someone always has to post a reply adding unsolicited advice about something the original poster didn't even ask.

Sad that we have to be connected to these devices all of the time.

Z

[Big O]

Sad that someone always has to post a reply adding unsolicited advice about something the original poster didn't even ask.

If everyone did not add unsolicited advice there would be very little on TOTV.

[Skip]

I'm wondering how widely available wifi is in the Villages, particularly the squares but also restaurants. Seems it'd be nice cruise down to the Square with your ipad and hit TOTV or catch up on e-mail. Guess I'm just wondering if my next ipad needs to have a data plan.

You can find all the restaurants in the surrounding area that offer Free WiFi on the Gourmet Club's Search page. I just went there and found 19 restaurants with 10 miles of here with connectivity. Neat!

(There's also national directories on the net, but they are not reliable and miss a large percentage of locations.)

Skip

[Waverunner]

Dunkin Donuts has free Wi-Fi.

[UpNorth]

Actually, there is "free" Wi-Fi in many areas of TV. The houses are so close together that chances are pretty good that one of the houses near you has an unsecured Wi-Fi antenna running. I've noticed this in several rentals I've used in the past. In fact, the owner of one of the rentals I've been in had me use a Wi-Fi signal that wasn't his (even though he had one, and didn't realize he was using a neighbors). Now I'm sure many of you will criticize this as not being morally "right", so let me go on record as saying that I'm only providing this as "information", and not as endorsed behavior!

[Villageshooter]

you will find where the younger villagers live the brighthouse hot spots are great. mosst the area where comcast is. there are no hotspots. most of these areas are older homes and the demand is not there. i have found you can set on the patio at codys and jump onthe wifi at barnes and noble. at LSL if you set near the hot dog stand you hop on Paneras hot spot. it wuld be gret if the morris family wuld provide it at the squares. the uneducated non tech person has no grasp of all the benefits of being connected. most think it is texting or looking for porn, although there is nothing wrong with either of these activities, i use my ipad to monitor traffic signal control systems all over the US. however to be honest i have seen some naked pictures. my employer provides an unlimited data plan. i do enjoy going to the square while my sweety line dances i watch a ballgame We luv or date nites!

[SantaClaus]

I just wanted to respond a bit more to the earlier criticism about wanting to use an ipad at the squares, or pool, or restaurants. Would the same critique be raised of someone reading a newspaper or a paperback in these places? My ipad IS my newspaper, and my books, and a whole lot more. It is very rarely used to watch cat videos. But even if it was, why does anyone feel the need to judge how I entertain myself in my free time? Rant over...

[njbchbum]

I just wanted to respond a bit more to the earlier criticism about wanting to use an ipad at the squares, or pool, or restaurants. Would the same critique be raised of someone reading a newspaper or a paperback in these places? My ipad IS my newspaper, and my books, and a whole lot more. It is very rarely used to watch cat videos. But even if it was, why does anyone feel the need to judge how I entertain myself in my free time? Rant over...

Santa - I don't know if it is so much the "need" or if it is because of the sense of entitlement to judge that motivates some.

[justjim]

I just wanted to respond a bit more to the earlier criticism about wanting to use an ipad at the squares, or pool, or restaurants. Would the same critique be raised of someone reading a newspaper or a paperback in these places? My ipad IS my newspaper, and my books, and a whole lot more. It is very rarely used to watch cat videos. But even if it was, why does anyone feel the need to judge how I entertain myself in my free time? Rant over...

:clap2: Great post. As you can see posters are pretty quick with their thoughts and opinions. Reasonable people disagree sometimes......its best not to take their opinions or comments personally.

I like to quote Lincoln as some know: "In my position it is somewhat important that I should not say any foolish things.....It very often happens that the only way to help it is to say nothing at all". Abraham Lincoln

[CFrance]

I agree..just get a data plan or wait til you get home.

That's a pretty cavalier response. A data plan runs $30/month. That's on top of your home internet service. TV needs to bring itself electronically into the 21st century and establish hot spots around town. Maybe they're waiting for someone like Brighthouse to offer it free in the public places north of 466A.

[CFrance]

Actually, there is "free" Wi-Fi in many areas of TV. The houses are so close together that chances are pretty good that one of the houses near you has an unsecured Wi-Fi antenna running. I've noticed this in several rentals I've used in the past. In fact, the owner of one of the rentals I've been in had me use a Wi-Fi signal that wasn't his (even though he had one, and didn't realize he was using a neighbors). Now I'm sure many of you will criticize this as not being morally "right", so let me go on record as saying that I'm only providing this as "information", and not as endorsed behavior!
Hope you didn't check your bank or pay any bills or buy anything with a credit card on it!

[LittleLatinaWife]

Actually, there is "free" Wi-Fi in many areas of TV. The houses are so close together that chances are pretty good that one of the houses near you has an unsecured Wi-Fi antenna running. I've noticed this in several rentals I've used in the past. In fact, the owner of one of the rentals I've been in had me use a Wi-Fi signal that wasn't his (even though he had one, and didn't realize he was using a neighbors). Now I'm sure many of you will criticize this as not being morally "right", so let me go on record as saying that I'm only providing this as "information", and not as endorsed behavior!


I often wonder why close neighbors dont share internet and/or tv. Maybe it happens more often than people know. :)

[CFrance]

I often wonder why close neighbors dont share internet and/or tv. Maybe it happens more often than people know. :)
It's a security issue. Would you want your neighbors (or if not them, their visitors) to be able to hack into your online bank account, for instance?

[ilovetv]

Sad that we have to be connected to these devices all of the time.

Z

Many people are outdoors in all parts of TV, reading BOOKS on their iPad or Kindle, and are not connected to internet nor anybody else while doing so.

Reading is a favorite vacation and town square activity!

[ilovetv]

It's a security issue. Would you want your neighbors (or if not them, their visitors) to be able to hack into your online bank account, for instance?

This is the heart of public wifi. And then the more secure it is, the more expensive it is to operate, and subscription rates to users skyrocket.

[memason]

It's a security issue. Would you want your neighbors (or if not them, their visitors) to be able to hack into your online bank account, for instance?

Maybe it's just me, but I think the security issue is way overblown. I would guess there is less than 1% of the population that is capable of "hacking" into someone's computer, bank account or stealing your passwords. They have to jump through a lot more hoops than just getting on your WiFi network.

That said, no one should be careless. If someone is gonna try to hack into your stuff, it would be on a public WiFi, like Starbucks or Paneras or the like....ie.a target rich locale. If you truly want to be safe on these public networks, you should use a VPN account to encrypt all of your transmissions.

[SantaClaus]

The hackers are much more likely to set up a phony wifi network that looks like a Starbucks or McDonalds but is really their mobile hotspot. They then look for traffic (packet sniffing) that they can easily read, notably web browsing and email. Basically they are looking for low hanging fruit. Any encrypted traffic is going to be far to much trouble to bother with, unless they know you're worth a lot and that you do your banking with SunTrust. Basically, never use e-mail for anything confidential, and be cautious with internet browsing. Using a banking app is far safer than using a banking web page. If you are worth millions you might want to refrain from ever doing finances wirelessly and wait until you are home connected to a wired network. Frankly, hacking the wifi coming from a $2M house strikes me as a more profitable endeavor than posing as a public wifi hoping to get a Paypal password.

[Halibut]

The hospital and probably a lot of doctors and dentists have public wifi in their offices. I guess that's where I mostly take my notebook ... waiting, waiting. :)

Although if someone is using their notebook at the pool for reading, they could probably download the desired content before they left home.

[mulligan]

On the few occasions when I would like to use wifi away from home, my smartphone is a mobile hotspot. Uses some data, but not really that much. I would just avoid major downloads and actions requiring more security until I got home.

[buzzy]

On the few occasions when I would like to use wifi away from home, my smartphone is a mobile hotspot. Uses some data, but not really that much. I would just avoid major downloads and actions requiring more security until I got home.

I've been thinking of doing that on an upcoming RV trip. Which phone and carrier are you using? 3G or 4G LTE? I currently have Verizon on a 3G iPhone 4S, and the download speed to the phone is pathetic. If the phone is the weak link, then I would upgrade to an iPhone 5S.

[mulligan]

That's the same setup I have, and that's why I only use it when absolutely necessary.

[memason]

Verizon LTE speed is a lot faster than 3G speed, therefore, using the iPhone 5 or 5S for a hot spot is much more doable. I honestly don't know if the Verizon JetPack would be any faster.

If you have a friend with LTE, have them let you try their hotspot to determine if that speed is sufficient for your temporary needs.

I just performed a test using my iPhone 5 (LTE) as a hot spot for my MacBook Pro

Download speed was on the MacBook Pro was 18Mb/s... Faster than I thought...

The iPhone 5 speed test recorded 25Mb/s, while not being used as a hot spot.

[buzzy]

Verizon LTE speed is a lot faster than 3G speed, therefore, using the iPhone 5 or 5S for a hot spot is much more doable. I honestly don't know if the Verizon JetPack would be any faster.

If you have a friend with LTE, have them let you try their hotspot to determine if that speed is sufficient for your temporary needs.

I just performed a test using my iPhone 5 (LTE) as a hot spot for my MacBook Pro

Download speed was on the MacBook Pro was 18Mb/s... Faster than I thought...

The iPhone 5 speed test recorded 25Mb/s, while not being used as a hot spot.

Thanks, I appreciate your report. At home I have 10MB DSL, which is acceptable. I test it occasionally, mostly getting 10 but sometimes only 2-4 MB). My 3G iPhone 4S usually gets 0.5-1 MB. If I could get 10-20 using an iPhone 5 hot spot, I would be delighted. It's probably time to upgrade. That would be better than buying and activating a jetpack just for vacations.

I doubt that any of my friends or neighbors would even know what I'm talking about, no less be using their phone as a hot-spot, but I will ask around.