By Amber Berglund Gazette Staff Intern
A dream came true for web-junkies this month when Long Beach’s plan to
transform Pine Avenue into a cyber “Hotzone” of free, wireless Internet
access became a reality.
The city’s Economic Development Bureau teamed with four
techno-companies to bring wireless Internet service to visitors and
residents of Long Beach as a way to announce to the rest of the world that
Long Beach is a business friendly city, EDB officials said.
“Wi-Fi” or “Wireless Fidelity” allows several computer users to access
the Internet quickly using technology similar to cellular phones and
towers. The only Wi-Fi connection available on Pine Avenue prior to the
city’s introduction of the new system was the T-Mobile “HotSpot” service
available at Starbucks at a rate of $2.99 per 15 minutes.
Lorenzo Gigliotti, the web designer responsible for the portal page for
the downtown Wi-Fi, said that the process of hooking up to Long Beach’s
free wireless Internet is very simple.
“All that’s required to take advantage of the free service is a Wi-Fi
card, which is a standard 802.11B card available at any computer store,
and a laptop computer,” Gigliotti said. “You don’t have to dial anything,
you just turn on your computer, click your web browser, and a screen will
pop-up asking for your e-mail address. Click enter and the next thing you
will see is the portal page, and you are ready to go.”
The city’s free service will allow computer users one hour of free
Internet access per day anywhere on Pine Avenue from First Street to
Fourth Street. A wireless signal is transmitted from an
eight-inch-by-eight-inch box attached to a traffic light at the
intersection of Pine Avenue and Broadway. It allows computer users access
to the Internet from anywhere on the sidewalk. City officials said that
the service will allow users to surf and dine at any street-facing
restaurant patio along Pine Avenue.
Gigliotti said the focus of the project now is really to spread the
word that this service is available in Long Beach. He said computer users
can “get around” the one-hour time limit simply by logging off and logging
back on. He said the one-hour time limit was installed in an effort to
keep computer users from abusing the system by “cyber-squatting” at Pine
Avenue restaurants and cafes.
According to Bruce Mays, the EDB’s Wireless Project manager, Long Beach
will be the largest city to offer the largest-range, free “Wi-Fi” of
anywhere in the country.
“The whole project started about a year ago at the mayor’s technology
symposium,” Mays said. “The Economic Development Bureau put together the
project plan.Š We put together a core group of vendors to make it happen.
“It’s been running on a test basis since mid-November.”
The group responsible for the service includes four companies: Color
Broadband, Intermec, Vernier and G-site. Color Broadband provides the
connection to the Internet. Intermec provided the hardware that relays the
signal to the computers. Vernier controls the access and monitors computer
usage and G-site provided the web design.
Mays said that the city would only pay $4000 a year in operating costs,
which is roughly 50% of the total cost.
Wi-Fi project officials said Wi-Fi access will be brought to the Long
Beach Airport, Shoreline Village and the Long Beach Convention Center in
the coming months. |