The rapid proliferation of wireless Internet connection locations around the world is a boon to journalists, who can now easily get online virtually anywhere to file quickly. Here are some sites to help you get connected when you’re on the road.
Online directory
JiWire is the largest and best one I’ve found and claims to have more than 63,500 Wi-Fi Hotspots in 99 countries listed in its directory. The advanced search page lets you search by address, business, location type (such as hotel or airport), service provider and cost.
Mapping hotspots
Yahoo Maps has partnered with JiWire so you can map a location and then find any hotspots nearby. After you’ve plotted a map, click the button next to “Wi-Fi Hotspots” in the right column, under “SmartView.” Any hotspots near the address will be marked with an icon and you can click on the icon for more details.
Finding Hotspots on the go
Since you likely won’t be connected to the Internet when you’re looking for a hotspot, jiwire offers two convenient ways to find hotspots when you’re offline.
There’s a nice downloadable version you can keep on your laptop that will automatically update any time you’re online, so you can search the directory for nearby hotspots on your laptop even when you’re not connected
And if you have a phone with Internet access, Jiwire offers a mobile site that lets you search its directory (http://wap.jiwire.com).
Free Wi-Fi
If you’re on a budget (and if you’re a journalist, you are!), you likely want to do everything possible to find free hotspots before forking over cash. In addition to jiwire, you might also want to check out The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory, which lists Wi-Fi locations that offer free wireless high-speed Internet access around the world, with an emphasis on the U.S. The site includes more free hotspots than jiwire.
Wi-Fi Plans
If you need wireless connections on a regular basis from locations where there aren’t any free ones, you may want to subscribe to a Wi-Fi service. I do — In fact, I’m in a Starbucks using Wi-Fi as I write this, which is what inspired this column!
Some Wi-Fi providers worth considering:
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