Free Internet--Dublin City Network

[DHNA]

Free access to the Dublin City wireless network is available around the downtown area and in the Southside neighborhood. If you have a wireless device on your computer, search for DTFreeWiFi. Several members of the Dublin Historic Neighborhood Association have connected to the network around Stubbs Park, Calhoun and Highland.

The Dublin Courier DTFreeWiFi article is located at http://gta.georgia.gov/vgn/images/porta ... etwork.pdf

DHNA
dhna11@gmail.com

[RevOxley501]

do you know if this may be available as far out as the VA??

thanks for the info

[DHNA]

I do not know if it is available around the VA. If you have a computer with wireless capability, turn on the wifi, and let it search for a connection.

DHNA

[Winnpooh]

They have put in city wifi for the Dublin Mall. My husband works there. Nice place to shop and hang out.

[bryce]

I wonder if it's accessible in the library downtown? That would be great!

Sorry, the following rant is a bit off-topic, but I've got to say something about this...

Occasionally (usually on the weekends) I need to get out of the house and go elsewhere to do homework, research, or whatever else. I've got a laptop, all I need is wifi to make it happen.

There are a few places around Dublin that offer public wifi. I can go to Blackbird Coffee or Micheal's Deli - and I do, they're great people and they both have a nice vibe - but sometimes I need to be in a different environment to really get some work done. There's Kroger...but c'mon. How much are you going to get done at Kroger? The Dublin Center is great, too, but their hours usually don't jive with mine.

What I need is a place that's quiet, has an environment not unlike a school or an office, a place where I can concentrate and get things done. What I need is a public library. Hey! We've got one of those!

Not so fast.

It absolutely blows my mind that the library, the crown jewel of the Oconee regional library system - mind you, *does not* have public wifi access. I truly need to understand why this is. In fact I can't think of any place that has a better reason to have public wireless internet access than a library - especially a nice one like ours. Don't people go to a library to do research? Is not the Internet the primary means of doing research these days?

From time to time I'll ask the person at the desk why this is so. No one seems to know. After years of me asking the question, still no answer. It's been suggested to me several times to try picking up the signal from the Page House across the street but I find that to be a little on the unethical side.

How much is a wireless router? $30? 100? Can the library not afford this? Can they not set it up? Why is our library not providing this basic service? I need to understand.

What's more, if you should come in with your own laptop you still have to sign in at the computer desk saying you've read and agree to the computer usage policy (don't know why, I can't use the library's network resources). Then you are asked to sit at one particular table where all of the "laptop people" sit. Segregated from the rest of society - like lepers, but without the open sores and lingering smell of death.

I guess the alternative would be to use one of those filthy, slow, virus-infested public computers but there is *no way* that I would use one of those computers to log into any of my accounts online. That's usually not an option anyway since they're all taken by kids playing online games and looking at MySpace pages. Besides, my computer is already set up with my bookmarks, files, and programs that I need to use to get my work done. The public computers are not.

Hey, Oconee Regional Library administrators... get public wifi already. Like it or not, books don't get as much play as they used to. If you want to keep your patrons and attract new ones it seems to me that you would jump at a chance to keep abreast of current technology - well, 1990's technology - to stay relevant rather than being content as a mediocre learning resource and a tax-subsidized kid-drop off.

[bryce]

Just read this article by DHNA, which says that the library appears to have the means to buy a simple wireless router.

Please join me in raising awareness to the library administration on this matter. Let them know that public wifi is a great investment (low cost, high ROI).

[autodidactical]

With all due respect Bryce,

Have you spoken to someone in charge at the library about the wireless issue? If you take the time to sit down and discuss your concerns with a department head or the director in a civil way, I bet you'll have a better chance of "raising awareness to the library administration."

I do not work for the library here in Dublin, but I have worked in libraries before and am an enthusiastic user of our local library. The issue of internet use within the library is not as simple as it may seem. And it is not an issue of just affording the technology, it's much more complicated than that. This is something that has been discussed in the library literature very thoroughly and as a technology professional and library user you may find it useful to read up on it at a little. Not sure where to look? Well, I'm sure a librarian would be happy to help you find the information!

It's nice to see that people care so much in this community about library issues. Just another bragging point for Dublin!

[DHNA]

The Dublin City Free Wireless (DTFreeWIFI) is accessible around the public library.

Harold Cline
DHNA

[bryce]

Hi autodidactical,

I appreciate you post. Oconee Regional Library is a great library - I know I had a great time when I was a volunteer helper in the audio book section when I was younger. Now that I'm older I appreciate having a place to go when I need to study or find a good book.

Wireless Internet access in a nice public library is not an unreasonable expectation and I don't think I've been less than civil with anyone regarding this issue, especially the (very helpful) library staff that I have spoken with. I know several of them personally and I appreciate all of them immensely. It is a fact that the lack of wifi in the library has irked many for quite some time and issue has been sufficiently raised with the library administration.

Implementing wireless may not be as simple as buying a wireless router and plugging it into the network, granted, but I think you'll agree that it's not difficult or expensive either. Having set up moderately complicated networks before, I know what is involved. And any time people try to implement some new service there's going to be issues; funding, planning, time constraints, staffing, etc. Every project has issues that need to be overcome in order to achieve success. The thing is that we're not talking about a major project, like say building a parking lot, we're talking about setting up wireless inside the library! I think that the point I was trying to make, and that others seem to agree with, is that this is a basic service that should have been done a while ago and it would have been nice to see some results by now.

However, this may all be moot since DHNA's post above may indicate an alternative solution. It would be great if the Downtown WiFi were accessible from within the library.

If so, problem solved.

I'll check it out this weekend an post my results.

Best regards

[autodidactical]

Hey y'all,

I'm in the library and WIRELESS IS WORKING! I was automatically connected to "DTFreeWiFi" as soon as I opened the computer. Also, they seemed to have moved some tables so they are next to power outlets. I think it can be said now that the Oconee Regional Library is laptop friendly.

“Progress, of the best kind, is comparatively slow. Great results cannot be achieved at once; and we must be satisfied to advance in life as we walk, step by step.” -Samuel Smiles

-autodidactical-