Wednesday, January 27, 2010

This Wireless Computing Thing...

...is all new to me. Sure, at home we have a router (I think that is what it is called) and three computers in the house get the Internet over that. The main PC in the living room is hardwired. The thing is though that the other 3 computers are never used by me. One is an old desktop in my son's room, the other is a laptop shared by him and my wife that my daughter gave to them, the third is a newer laptop that my daughter bought. The PC I am on right now is the laptop that my wife gave me for Christmas. (Wow a 5 computer home all of a sudden, when not too long ago I think we had 2 and that seemed extravagant to me.) Well anyway, I don't ever use one of the ones set up for wireless but this evening is different.

I just got to my apartment in Phoenix after a long day of work. I decided that since it was pretty nice outside, at least fairly warm and I am guessing it to be around 65, I would sit at poolside and do something on the laptop. Then I remembered it was not hardwired outside and that the apartments do not have Wi-fi or anything like it. Well I clicked on an icon for wireless access and several wireless available connections showed up. As I thought, they almost all required a password because these were network or wireless connections that people were using and had paid for and into which they did not want freeloaders trespassing. As it turns out, one was not password protected, it is called Lynksys (which I believe is a wireless provider). So I logged on and here I am posting to my blog. I am just amazed at how someone can do this.

I imagine this is legal since the access was available over the air and did not require a password. I imagine that maybe this is the free wireless Internet access from a cafe about a block away. Does it travel that far, I guess it must because I cannot imagine anyone not password protecting their own wireless Internet access! If it does not travel that far, I wonder from where it would be coming to be available to me? Is some shifty character leaving his or her wireless account unprotected by a password so others can sign on using it and then the steal info off of my PC. I hope not but my PC is in protected mode right now regarding the Internet connection. Or is a Wireless Internet Provider being nice and putting it out in the area. I doubt that because while I do believe in fairies, I do not believe in the Internet Fairy? I suppose I am just receiving the benefit of the corner cafe's free wireless Internet or that of someone who has not password protected their access. Oh well - if I am doing something wrong, someone please let me know ASAP. Otherwise I intend to use this as often as it is nice enough to sit outside at poolside to blog.

You see, the setting out here is sort of like it was in the 1954 Hitchcock classic 'Rear Window' starring Jimmy Stewart, Grace Kelly as the good guys and with Raymond Burr (of Perry Mason and Ironside fame) as the bad guy. Although not a courtyard anywhere nearly as complicated as the one in the movie set, this one is pretty neat even if only rectangular with a pool in the middle. The numerous balconies opening out onto it provide an aura of intrigue that makes one wonder what is going on behind those rear windows. Luckily for me, my room does not face the pool area so I won't be tempted to go looking. Still though, there is an intriguing atmosphere here and being able to blog while in the middle of it is simply marvelous.

I suppose the names of some of the wireless connections also add to the intrigue. For example one has to wonder who are the folks and what are the stories of the people who gave their wireless Internet links names like: HolyCute, Tatardini, TheAttic, lordsquishy, sandbags, H.A.L. and ILOVECOCK (I swear that is one of them but I could never have imagined anyone being so brazen as to use something like that for their network name until now). Oh well, hopefully I may meet some of them and get to know them and also hopefully I will never find out about some of them like that last one. As it is though, night is coming on, what with it being an overcast evening and it is getting almost to dark to see the keyboard. The atmosphere is indeed intriguing and has me almost expecting to see Jimmy Stewart looking out of one of the windows at me, or maybe Bogart coming out of a doorway as in 'In A Lonely Place'.

All the best,
Glenn B