or

Download the app for Wi-Fi Finder for iPhone and iPod touch

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for Search for 305,357 free and pay Wi-Fi locations in 144 countries

So what’s a curious guy to do? To the Internet! Which is exactly what I did. Responses starting pouring in. Including one from a pal at the State Department, who echoed my basic goal: “To use video chat to tuck my kids into bed isn’t a crime. Or at least, shouldn’t be. ” ( via  gizmodo.com) by Adam Frucci

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of United Airlines Claims In-Flight Videochat to Be Illegal

Unsecured connections make it possible for anyone armed with a packet sniffer to intercept email or track your surfing…

If you want to use Google Mail in a public WiFi, put your mind at ease with this handy tip…

If you go to the default google mail page – http://gmail.google.com you will be redirected to a secure site to log in, but will then be redirected to an unencrypted site for emailing. This makes you a potential risk for anyone who might be eavesdropping on the network.” (via friedbeef.com)

Pointswizard.com Spin: The solution? Click here and scroll down to read the rest of How to Access Gmail Securely on a Public WiFi Network

But, Crowne Plaza, Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Fairmont*, Four Seasons, Hilton, Hyatt*, Ian Schrager, Intercontinental, Lowes, Marriott, Rennaisance, Ritz-Carleton, Shereton, Sofitel, St. Regis, W Hotels, Westin and Wyndham* all charge around $10 or more per day for access. (* free service for members of their frequent stayer programs)

Conrad by Hilton and Kimpton were the only two upscale hotel brands to offer free high-speed Internet to guests at all of their locations and without restrictions. At the other end of the spectrum, Red Roof Inn, inexplicably, has a deal with T-Mobile that adds $10 a day for web connections unless clients have their own T-Mobile account. ” (via consumertraveler.com ) by CHARLIE LEOCHA

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of How long will hotels keep charging for Internet connections?

click here for our post from Dec. 2008 on this topic

Expires Aug. 23, 2009

Thanks to reader Jill W. for the info.

Fees provided are daily rates as advertised on the airport or provider websites

- save money by purchasing a monthly subscription with the provider servicing the airports you frequent the most. ” (via businesstravel.about.com ) by Greig Waddell

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for Find out about Available Wi-Fi at the Busiest U.S. Airports

The short answer, some technology security experts say, is yes. But they add that the use of Wi-Fi at these spots is no riskier than at a coffee shop.
“It’s a shared medium, and if you can connect to it, someone else can connect to it and monitor your traffic,” said Marty Linder, a senior member of the technical staff at the Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute CERT/Coordination Center. “That has nothing to do with the security of the network. It’s just the nature of the beast.”

For Fran Hanna, the convenience isn’t worth the risk. The sales representative from Chapin, South Carolina, would frequently bring her computer on business trips and access Wi-Fi through her hotels. Hackers tapped into her computer, resulting in inappropriate material being sent through her account.
She had to get her computer restored twice, which cost her $900. And while she still isn’t sure where she was when she picked up the malware, she said the only wireless device she will bring with her as she travels is a cell phone for voice calls.

On the other hand, picking up public wireless isn’t a major concern to Brian Fitzpatrick, the CTO of a technology firm in Alpharetta, Georgia, and a frequent business traveler.
He generally avoids transmitting sensitive personal or company data using these hotspots. But as he sees it, having his information stolen “is more likely to happen in some face-to-face transaction than it is even online.”

In addition to open networks, experts say the physical loss of devices poses a threat for business travelers.
The combination of replacement cost, detection, forensics, data breach, lost intellectual property costs, lost productivity, and legal, consulting and regulatory expenses sets a company back an average of $49,246 per lost laptop, according to a study released in April by the Ponemon Institute and sponsored by the Intel Corporation.

However, lost laptops with encryption saved companies nearly $20,000, compared with those that did not have encryption, according to the Ponemon study. Encrypted disks safeguard data by scrambling information on them. They unlock that information only when the user enters the proper passcode.” (via cnn.com ) by Debra Alban

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to get the Tips to safeguard your data as you travel

The one fact I’ve found more often then not is that the lower and mid priced hotels don’t charge for Wi-Fi but the expensive ones do.

Isn’t that the opposite of the way it should be?

Yes some of the expensive hotels will let you choose that as a perk, or give up other perks to choose Wi-Fi.

Yet the lower and mid price hotels seem to give it away for free as if it’s candy. We also should remember that it’s free at thousands of coffee shops, libraries, sandwich shops etc.

Pointswizard.com Spin: Isn’t about time one hotel chain had the guts to change things?

Click below for four web sites that list locations for free Wi-Fi

#1, #2, #3, #4

			Complimentary Wi-Fi for Starbucks customers When you register your Starbucks Card and use it at least once a month, you’ll receive two consecutive hours a day of complimentary Wi-Fi, courtesy of AT&T.
			Complimentary Wi-Fi for AT&T DSL customers AT&Ts more than 12 million DSL customers already qualify for free Wi-Fi at their neighborhood Starbucks.
			Competitive pricing for paid Wi-Fi All other customers can receive two consecutive hours of Wi-Fi access for $3.99.

Pointswizard.com Spin: read more

The Pointswizard.com Spin: click blue line above for the info