Wi Fi

To be honest I wasn't sure how many wi-fi hotspots there were in Northern Ireland, but I found an Irish hotspot directory on the blog site of a US journalist living in Dublin. It didn't make good reading, nine in total, if you don't count the one in Waterford which definitely wasn't part of Northern Ireland when I left but I haven't been keeping a close eye on the peace talks (apparently the DUP have improved their negotiation skills so who knows)!

To contrast this I did a quick search for hotspots in Seattle and found 203 which I think is a pretty conservative list to be honest, it seems like everywhere in this city has internet access.
I'm blogging this from a Starbucks in Kirkland while I'm waiting for my car to be fixed (I know I just bought it, don't ask).

Anyway, I realize the security implications of 802.11 but it's just so convenient!

Are there enough places in Belfast where people "hang out" to make hotspots viable? I suppose the obvious place for them in NI would be in the pubs but I can't see anyone pulling out a laptop in Laverys unless they wanted it wrapped round their head!

I've now been in Starbucks for over 4 hours, I expect I would have been thrown out, or at least glared out, if I'd sat in any place in Belfast for that length of time; here it's actively encouraged.

I suppose pubs are Irelands "third place" but I can't help thinking that the coffee shop (Seattle) or cafe (mainland Europe) is just a much better third place.

Too much time on my hands I suppose.

b.