I'm afraid that's right.

It's not always right, though; the good news is that increasingly, hotspot operators are getting together. So my favourite hotspot operator - Broadreach - runs ReadyToSurf and that's available through Virgin and BT Openworld - and others. But also, some other big hotspot operators will let you log on if you have a subscription to their networks, at ReadyToSurf.

If you have a ReadyToSurf account, you can actually get billed for your online time through your broadband supplier, per minute, and you can log on through a great many hotspot locations. As time goes by, I expect you'll have a lot of trouble knowing, for sure, which operator actually owns the hotspot you're at. The hotspot may recognise you from a "cookie" on your PC...


ReadyToSurf is a good place to look!

But quite a lot of hotspots are actually free. So it's worth exploring...

Cheers,

Guy

Edited by author 01-28-2005 01:42 PM
> name: mark mason
> subject: message:
I have just got a laptop with WiFi, I thought you had to register with a particular ISP to log in at any hotspot.

However I have been trying to find possible suppliers and reading this site it appears that at each hot spot you are going to have to register with that supplier and pay fees at the point of use and not have an account.

Can you tell me if I am correct?

In previous years, I've dealt with reader questions simply by answering emails. It's dawned on me that this is daft.

Heck, I probably get the answers wrong, half the time, and nobody is there to say "Erm, Guy..." and help the person asking. And when I get it right, there's probably another ten people with the same problem, who would be glad to learn how to tackle it.

So here you are: ask your question here and we'll share the load!

You don't have to log in to use this, by the way. Anonymous postings are just fine.

On the other hand, if you do create a name and password, then any new items will be mailed to you as they are posted. To do that, click the "subscribe" button above and you'll get new messages.