Making connections

A traveller desperate for an internet connection, you finally locate a wireless hot spot. Then you stare for a seeming eternity at an hourglass on an empty screen as you try to connect, until a message finally appears: "Try again later." Or, wonder of wonders, you get connected, but the joy is short-lived, as the link cuts off and those e-mails you sent never arrive at their destination.

And you're charged outrageous prices for all of this aggravation. Wasn't technology supposed to make our lives easier?

It used to be that travel was a break from the daily routine. But now that we're able to carry laptops or log on to computers anywhere we go, people expect us to be working and sending them messages even if we're vacationing at the ends of the Earth. So you've got to try your best, even though internet connections on the road are still about as dependable as a watch cat.

Here are some tips from the pros to give you a fighting chance of meeting the mobile-connection challenge.

Everything up to date

Make sure before you leave home that you have the latest updates for your wireless equipment, both drivers and software. That's Rule 1 from computer pro Frady Yacoub, who carries the title of field marshal at Best Buy Canada's Geek Squad of support technicians.

"Companies in the wireless business are literally tweaking things daily," he said.

That means if you have software or hardware that was released even a few months ago, there will invariably be free fixes available from the maker's website that can improve signal quality and stability.

And consider upgrading the hardware if you start to encounter problems when trying to make or maintain a wireless connection. The pace of change in Wi-Fi land means newer equipment offers better performance and reliability. A system more than three years old is more likely to lose a signal than the latest gear.

Hunt for a deal

Some hotels and motel chains offer free internet, so when you make your reservation, ask. You may be able to arrange a package including internet, as you would a breakfast, as part of the deal to keep your costs down.

But remember, you get what you pay for. Where internet surfing is free, the service can be appalling. Don't be surprised if you get a message that says, "Service not available; try later," or get halfway through a web search and find that the connection has conked out. Human service in terms of support can be just as sketchy. Whether you are paying or not, it's unlikely the hotel staff will know how to fix a problem with the connection if it arises.

And keep in mind that hotel and restaurant hot spots are regularly attacked by hackers looking to steal data, so many have set up elaborate firewall systems. While this increases security, it may prevent you from sending or receiving files bigger than a certain size, or sending pictures.

Where the surf's up

If you run into trouble getting online at the hotel, go in search of an internet café. These facilities generally have someone on duty who may be able to offer advice if there is a problem. To locate an internet café in the city you will be visiting, try sites such as cybercaptive.com or JiWire, which lists wireless hot spots in 128 countries.

Print out a list of potential places to surf before you leave home, because when you are on the road you face a chicken-and-egg dilemma — you can't get online to find a hot spot without being at a hot spot.

Seek an alternative

And make sure that your list includes more than one local option. In crowded places with lots of computers connected to the same wireless system at once, it can result in people fuming about snail-like response times. Microwaves, cordless phones that use similar frequencies, and even a lot of nearby metal or electrical wires can also create interference that bogs down a Wi-Fi connection. With the unpredictability of wireless availability and performance, it's good to have some alternatives in case you need a connection in a hurry.

A tip from Yacoub: in public Wi-Fi areas, there may be more than one signal available. All too often, he says, people tend to choose the one that is at the top of the list on their computer's wireless log-in screen, which displays servers alphabetically. So the server listed first may actually be a weak link. By scrolling down and looking at the height of the bars that indicate signal strength, you can choose the signal that is strongest and most likely to keep you connected.

Learn self-defence

If you send and receive sensitive information or do banking and e-commerce while travelling, get encryption equipment or software that uses passwords and codes messages to make sure no one else has access to your signal — and plug in an Ethernet cable when you have the option instead of using Wi-Fi. Yacoub says he is surprised how many people don't realize that when you use a wireless system that is not encrypted, anyone can access your personal information and get access to your computer.

And always remember to delete your e-mail from a hotel or internet café's computer. Almost everyone forgets, leaving a trail for nosy surfers who use the machine after you.

Power up

It's a simple tip, but start with a full charge on your laptop battery (or plug in if possible) before starting to surf, since wireless gear tends to be power-hungry and you don't want to run out of power in the middle of sending or receiving files.

This can require some advance planning, since you'll need to have the correct power adapter for the country you're visiting. You may also need a step-down transformer if your laptop can't handle the 240-volt power you will encounter in some places overseas.

The good news is that, unlike cellphones, computer equipment from Canada should be compatible with data networks anywhere in the world, as long as you can find a place to link to the internet via an Ethernet cable or Wi-Fi connection, Yacoub says.

But getting a connection is where the fun really begins for travellers, and every aggravating second spent waiting for a slow site to load costs you cash.

Most innkeepers consider the web a profit centre. To surf in the privacy of your own room can cost up to $1 a minute in Europe, where older hotels are using fees to pay off the costs of installing the equipment. And the meter starts running from the time you log on, not when you start sending or receiving files. They'll often add connection fees and taxes, too.

Log off

One of the most insidious pitfalls for travellers is forgetting to log off properly. It's not enough just to close the browser and shut off your computer when surfing some pay-per-minute systems. If you don't go through the hotel's procedure for logging off, it may consider the connection still open, and you'll burn through a lot of cash while you go out for dinner.

Do your thinking offline

E-mail can get expensive if you write it while you are connected to the internet on a pay-per-minute system, because the time you take to write the message is costing you money. But if you write the message as a document, you can send it as an attachment or paste the text into an e-mail when you do connect. That way, sending several messages can cost only pennies.

Something to keep in mind if you are thinking of buying a new wireless computer system is that you might want to wait for a new wireless standard called IEEE 80211N (known simply as N) with a much wider range and more stable wireless connections. Since it is not expected to get final ratification from regulators until early 2008, most laptop computers being sold today still have equipment that uses the previous G standard. Some pre-N systems are being sold, but even they may still require you to upgrade to get the full benefits of N when the standard is finalized.

Wallace Immen is a frequent traveller who prefers to check his e-mail infrequently while on the road.