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Google’s Gift: Free WiFi in Mountain View
By Larry Hendrick | August 17, 2006
Free WiFi from Google is up and running in Mountain View, CA. With speeds up to 1Mbs, this will provide a great service for visitors and residents as well. If you go through Mountain View, let us know how it works. Fun stuff!
MercuryNews.com | 08/14/2006 | Google’s gift
Google is about to give its hometown a wonderful gift: a municipal wireless network covering the entire city of Mountain View, with free Internet access for both residents and visitors.
I checked out the network last week, now getting fine-tuned ahead of its imminent public launch, and I’m delighted to report it works better than advertised.
Not that I’m above looking a gift horse in the mouth. Google’s grand gesture is incomplete in one crucial way — the company will not provide live human tech support, which is often crucial for first-time users.
Google said last year it would build the network out of its own pocket, giving only vague explanations. As a way of learning about muni wireless systems, the company sometimes says, or as a perk for its roughly 1,000 employees who live in Mountain View.
Topics: Business, Technology, WiFi |