Connecting without ISP subscription

MartinBerry · 29th December 2008

Hello all, I hope someone can answer this one.

I don't have a landline or cable service at home (reasons of cost) and have always accessed the internet from the library or my parents' house. I have a laptop PC of my own which I use for everything offline & then transfer anything I need net access for via floppy or USB stick to an internet-connected PC when I need to. It would be convenient to use the net when I'm not at the places I mentioned above & a friend has offered me his old wireless adaptor for free, which has a USB connector & installation CD. There's a new cafe just opened a few doors away from my home which advertises free wi-fi access. I was wondering if I installed the wireless adaptor etc I've just mentioned, would I be able to go to that cafe & use their conection? Or would I still have to sign up to an ISP? If the former, presumably I'd just have to click on the IE icon then enter the URL of the sites I wanted to use. If the latter, I'd appreciate any info about any ISPs that would allow me to sign up & access the internet without having my own landline installed or having to buy an internet-enabled cell phone or other gizmo.

Sorry if this is a daft question (you will all, I'm sure, have your own home connections) but any help or pointers would be appreciated. Thank you.

Martin Berry

**wildfire** · 29th December 2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartinBerry

I was wondering if I installed the wireless adaptor etc I've just mentioned, would I be able to go to that cafe & use their conection?

Yes, you'd have web access without an ISP though you may want to sign up with one for email etc (again there are free mail providers around as well).

How reliable or fast your connection would be depends on how good a service that Cafe provides though.

richardmitnick · 29th December 2008

Martin-

You will be fine in the cafe. You can use Yahoo! mail, Google's mail, just to name two.

But, let me ask you one question. Aren't you going to need to buy something, at least coffee or tea or a coke, etc, you know, just to sit there? If so, add up what that costs for a month. Depending on where you live, it may be almost as much as an ISP.

Good luck.

>>RSM

richardmitnick · 29th December 2008

You will be fine at the cafe with email. You can use Yahoo! mail, or Google mail, etc.

But, can you just stay at the cafe without ordering something? Coffee, tea, a coke? Add that up for a month and I bet it will be close to what an ISP will cost. Also, what if you have some inspiration or need Wikipedia or whatever when the cafe is closed, or at 3:00AM. What happens then?

I am constantly doing stuff late at night or at other odd times.

>>RSM

>>RSM

Whoops, sorry, I thought my other response had not been received.

**wildfire** · 29th December 2008

To add to Richard's posts, don't be tempted to use the cafe's or any other neighbourhood wireless connections without permission (for the cafe I'd assume you get that permission when being a customer).

In the UK it's against the Computer Misuse Act 1990 to do so.

Just FYI in case you didn't know.

MartinBerry · 31st December 2008

Thank you both for taking the time & trouble to reply. As my mate has offered me the wireless hardware for free, I'll install it & try it out. As I mentioned in my first post I have been managing using the library (like now) & parents' connections & will continue to do so most of the time. The cafe will be useful occasionally, though, and worth the price of a coffee on those occasions. I'm aware of the law regarding unauthorised use & hadn't intended to break it, but Wildfires'sr reminder was a good idea for other readers of this.

When I can afford it I'll get a conection installed at home. Just as a bit of background info, it's not so much the monthly ISP cost that's stopping me, it's the fact that I owe BT (the UK's phone line provider) quite a lot from a phone bill from a previous address & until I've paid that debt off - which I'm slowly doing - I can't really ask them to install a landline at home!

Thanks again for yur help.
Martin