Wireless Internet access has revolutionized the way people
compute. Just a few years ago, most laptops were tethered to an
ethernet cable. Now, it’s easy to be mobile and stay
connected.
For example, I am writing this column from my apartment’s
patio. There’s a cute blue bird right over there. And over
there I see some pretty daffodils.
When technology sets us free (like that bird, which is now
eating the daffodils), it’s a remarkable thing. But when that
technology is free, it’s a whole different, complicated
story.
On a national scale, the issue of free wireless Internet access
has been given quite a bit of attention. The mayor of Philadelphia
recently proclaimed that he would like the city blanketed with free
wireless Internet access (wireless Internet, for all you Luddites,
is often called wi-fi). Free wireless throughout that city’s
historic district is already in place, and eventually the entire
city ““ 135 square miles ““ may have mostly free wi-fi
access.
Unfortunately, Los Angeles is nowhere near the Internet utopia
that Philadelphia may soon be. The egalitarian aims of the Internet
can truly be put to use with free wireless Internet access.
Despite Los Angeles’ failings on this front, Westwood
““ as any progressive university town should ““ is making
strides to become more wireless-friendly. I think that it would be
prudent for Westwood, as a locality, to offer free wi-fi access in
the spirit of the truly communal Internet and the college town that
Westwood could be.
For cities like Philadelphia, there are potential consequences
of giving away wi-fi access ““ just think about all those
$30-per-month broadband accounts Verizon would lose if Los Angeles
blanketed its territory with free wi-fi. Now you begin to see why
there could be roadblocks to widespread free wi-fi.
Some phone and cable companies have tried to block city
governments from setting up networks, but Philadelphia has not met
this resistance.
While Los Angeles has a ways to go before it catches up to
forward-thinking cities like Philadelphia, progress has been made
in some local areas. Free wireless access is offered in
downtown’s Pershing Square, among other scattered public
parks and cultural centers. On a slightly larger scale, free wi-fi
access is available throughout downtown Culver City (approximately
one square mile).
“Los Angeles is woefully and pitifully behind in
this,” UCLA history Professor David Sabean said.
“Perhaps an autonomous Westwood Village could proclaim a
nuclear-free zone and free wireless ““ its own nuclear
solution. What could be better for citizenship and an opening up of
the public sphere?
“In any event, it is not too late to vote for a mayor who
will promise wireless access to all the citizens as a simple move
toward democracy, equality and common decency,” he said.
Mayoral plugs aside, Westwood Village is taking baby steps
toward the future, though the charge is being led by businesses,
not the city government. There are quite a few wi-fi hot spots
around Westwood, though some are pay only. While some businesses
offer free wireless, some students are taking advantage of their
neighbors’ wireless services. Perhaps they are confusing the
words “theft” and “free,” or maybe they are
relying on the generosity of their neighbors, who could be true
visionaries in the quest to make Los Angeles a wi-fi city.
The density of apartment housing in Westwood means there are
often several wireless Internet routers in each building, beaming
open Internet access throughout the tenements (most wireless
routers have a range of approximately 150 feet).
In the apartment building Levering Heights, for example,
residents say they often have access to several different wireless
networks.
This makes it possible for students to mooch wireless access
from their neighbors. Arthur Soroken, a fourth-year electrical and
computer engineering student at UC Davis who lived at Levering
Heights last summer, is one such individual. Soroken said he
usually had access to four connections at a time, and solely used
others’ connections to surf the Web.
“˜The Internet is expensive these days, and college
students are frugal,” Soroken said. “I didn’t
think twice about it. I felt companies are pushing prices to their
limits, so I felt it was a rebellious act.”
Because of this, some students password-protect their wireless
networks.
“I just don’t want anybody using the Internet free
when I pay 30 bucks a month for it,” said Nick Martin, a
fourth-year aerospace engineering student. “I know if a
hacker wants to use it, he could, but it’s keeping the honest
people honest.”
So if your neighbors password-protect their networks, here are
some tips on how to not pay for Internet access in Westwood
Village, though it will probably involve buying one of those
disgusting boba things.
In Westwood Village, students have several options for their
wireless Web surfing needs. In my opinion, the establishments that
offer pay-only access will go the way of the dinosaur. Starbucks is
one such business, using a service provided by T-Mobile.
Starbucks patrons may purchase access a month at a time for
$29.99, or a day at a time for $9.99.
I investigated the state of wireless use in the Starbucks on the
corner of Weyburn and Broxton avenues on Saturday afternoon. While
Starbucks was packed, and there were many students studying
(c’mon dorks, it’s a Saturday) only one student had a
laptop. She wasn’t using the wireless service.
Across the street from Starbucks at the much smaller Boba Loca,
six customers were using computers and enjoying free wireless
access. It quickly became evident that free wi-fi access is a
draw.
“I come here for the caffeine and the free
wireless,” said M.K. Asante, Jr., a first-year UCLA film and
television graduate student and editor-in-chief of Nommo
newsmagazine. “I would not pay for it.”
Other Westwood beverage emporiums like Peet’s Coffee &
Tea and Green Tea Terrace do not offer wi-fi access, while The
Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf plans to have a pay service for its
Westwood locations.
Iso, a cafe on Gayley Avenue that serves Asian cuisine, coffee
and other beverages, offers free wireless access in addition to a
relaxed atmosphere that, in my opinion, puts it at the fore of
Westwood beverage and food boutiques. As I interviewed manager
Sergio Flores, music by the Postal Service wafted softly above, and
at a long communal table on the second floor, students quietly read
their books, tucking into steaming rice bowls and coffee.
It’s the closest thing to utopia that I’ve ever seen in
Westwood. Flores said Iso takes pride in being very
student-friendly.
“It’s kind of like a library ““ the majority of
customers are students,” Flores said. “We have a
friendly vibe and the drinks are not too expensive.”
The cafe even offers the use of a computer on the second floor,
so customers who don’t own laptops can still take advantage
of the free Internet access.
I think there is still hope for a Los Angeles without wires,
even if businesses and generous students are leading the way, and
not the government.
“Maybe pockets of shared resources ““ in innovative
places like Philadelphia, Westwood Village and Cucamonga ““
might pave the way for citizens all over to wrest control of their
own public discourse,” Sabean said.
E-mail Miller at dmiller@media.ucla.edu.