Where to get on line (without a computer)?
 

I am in the MSP Worldclub and am delighted to find that I can get on line (free) on their computer. I know a computer shop on 5th Avenue in Manhattan that will let me check my e-mail (I don't tell them I HAVE to check Webflyer as well).

Where else are there public places where can you get on line without dragging along your own laptop?

Actually I am thinking of getting a palm top for this purpose. Anybody have any experience?



[This message has been edited by Punki (edited 05-02-99).]

The company I work for has internet access via an 800 number, and that is quite handy. I can get online from my laptop in the tranquility of my hotel room. Only downside is when you are in a hotel which charges for 800 calls.

Two other alternatives for internet access on the road are (1) Internet Cafes. They usually charge $5 to $10 for an hour of internet access. Yes, it is expensive, however you'll also enjoy much faster connections (usually). Sometimes the coffee is good too.

(2) Larger Public Library. I've never done this myself, but know of others who have. Usually you're looking at a 28.8/33.6 connection here, but sometimes you'll find a 56K. Fees range from free to $5 from what I've heard. I imagine that it could vary considerably, especially if you are not already a member of that library.

[This message has been edited by Jon Toner (edited 04-28-99).]

I don't know how widespread the stores are nationwide, but at least here on the left coast Kinkos always has internet access available. Prices aren't low, but the equipment is top quality and they seem to be always open.

I even used Kinkos for internet access in Sydney, Australia recently.

Be very careful about palmtops for Internet access! Their microscopic displays are not well suited for browsing, although they usually can handle email reasonably well.

I'm back home in Seattle now. Thanks for the ideas.

Does anyone know if they have internet cafes in Europe?? Or airline club internet (without your own computer) access in London? How about internet access through hotels?

I gave up travelling with my Mac-Powerbook about 18 months ago. The notes and informations I need travelling are now stored in my PALM III - but I don't use that for internet-connections.

To check emails "en-route" I have often the following choices:
* business-centers at hotels I stay (but they are sometimes quite costly, so I limit my time there for 15' sessions): in the last 12 months I remember having used them: Oriental Bangkok, Marriott Riverside Bangkok, Sheraton&Towers Manhattan, Sheraton Melbourne, O'Hare Hilton (Matt showed me since then a better place in the UA terminal), The Ritz HongKong, Sheraton&Towers Rio de Janeiro.
* airport lounges (free at AC Maple Leafe lounges: I used YVR), not free in some international UA Red Carpet Clubs (Frankfurt), not free in Lufthansa Business Lounge (Bremen, Munich)
* in airports: O'Hare (UA-terminal), San Francisco (UA, Quick.... kiosk)
* in companies I am doing business with (Beck's Bremen, wine-producers in Napa Valley, Baccardi Puerto Rico)
* in Internet Cafes: near the Moscone Center in San Francisco, Connaught-Place New Delhi (the dirtiest keyboard I have ever seen), Stockholm, Zurich.

http://www.config.com/cdrom/cafe/cafelink.htm

http://www.road-kill-cafe.com/vircafe.html

Punki:
We have internet cafes in the UK, but they come and go rapidly. Yesterday I stopped at a Service Station on the M3 (the first one after passing the M25 leaving London) and they have set up a cafe there with about 15 terminals and charge £9.00 per hour.
There were several in central London a few months back (sorry I can't give directions etc., I did'nt take that much notice).

There's a large internet cafe in Brusseles opposite side of the street as the Hilton, rates were reasonable..

Also, the Crowne Plaza in Bonn, and another small place I stayed at in Luxembourg had one terminal set up, I can't recall the name of the system, but this particular type seems to be popping up, bad thing is you can't use telnet from it, only web access...

At the BA Club lounge in Terminal 1 at Heathrow they have free PC's with Internet Access.

It saves me from having to power up my PC and dial out to somewhere.

In Paris Sephora, which is a huge perfume store on the Champs-Elysees, has half a dozen of terminals you can use absolutely free.

Bradley International Airport (Hartford, Connecticut) has internet kiosks/terminals by some of the gates.

If you answer about 5 profile marketing questions, it will give you FREE acess to the internet.

CVG also has pay as you surf internet access
in the concourses-relatively new development this year.

Also, there is free Internet access in (some) Admirals Club. You can't always get a machine, and of course, you have to have access to the Club.

Try www.netcafes.com for a global list of net cafes (as you might expect from the name).

[This message has been edited by billm (edited 04-30-99).]