Panera Bread
#15, Legends Shopping Center, KCK
802.11g
SSID: PANERA
Not bad as Panera locations go, what with conveniently located power outlets along the bottom of some of the booth seating. The one thing I'd quibble with-and I hope it's just something users will run into here and not systemwide, given that I don't stop at Panera as much as I once did-is the clickthrough page. Oh, I don't mind the page itself; it's good to be reminded not to take up a table for four with my gear, etc. It's that in order to click through the page, I have to enable JavaScript and reload it.
Savvy Internetters know that allowing websites to run scripts should be done with discretion, especially in today's environment with its emphasis on Web-based browser exploits delivering malware via compromised servers. JavaScript or its Internet Explorer equivalents should be turned off except when visiting a known, trusted site which requires them, then turned back off once that site is left. Yeah, it's a hassle, but in a decade and a half of surfing with browsers ranging from ye olde text-only Lynx (come on, oldtimers, how many of you remember that one?) to the latest version of Firefox, I've never fallen victim to a web-delivered exploit. It's the user's choice whether to be safe or sorry, but Panera really ought to be helping the odds here. It's possible for you to provide a clickthrough without client-side scripting, and you should.
Oh, and while I'm here, I was hoping I'd be able to deliver kudos to Books-A-Million for taking me up on my suggestion of a few years back that they offer free WI-Fi..but unfortunately, the network behind the open access point my finder saw carrying their corporate name is only free for members of their loyalty club, and play-for-pay for everyone else.
Great-I put my privacy at even more risk and allow my mailbox to be stuffed with even more dead-tree detritus in return for maybe a few cents off on the few books I buy each year, and however much-or little-"free" surfing I can shoehorn into my visit.
No, thanks. Ma Bell will pick up the tab for me at Barnes and Noble, and they're not as far out of my way as you are.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009
One slight correction to the preceding...
...and it's a happy one. If you're planning on visiting this branch to do historical research that will involve viewing microfilm, you're somewhat in luck. There's a strip of power outlets running along the wall behind the readers. In fact, one of them has a convenient multi-outlet extension strip plugged into it, adjacent to the microfilm reader that's to the right as you face the wall.
However, I don't think I'd risk what one intrepid laptopper is doing as I'm writing this-running his Dell off that strip after plugging into it and taking a seat at a table across the passageway from the microfilm machines. If someone doesn't send his rig crashing to the floor after tripping over his cord, it's likely only a matter of time before someone from the library politely suggests he remove it. He ought to anyway, of course, without being asked.
However, I don't think I'd risk what one intrepid laptopper is doing as I'm writing this-running his Dell off that strip after plugging into it and taking a seat at a table across the passageway from the microfilm machines. If someone doesn't send his rig crashing to the floor after tripping over his cord, it's likely only a matter of time before someone from the library politely suggests he remove it. He ought to anyway, of course, without being asked.
Sorry I don't share my partner's command of Scripture, but...
Mid-Continent Public Library, Lee's Summit Branch
150 Northwest Oldham Parkway, Lee's Summit
802.11g
SSID: MCPLIBRARY.FREE.WIFI
Looks like Mid-Continent really has gone whole hog when it comes to free Wi-Fi. About time, too. Eleven of the twelve public-access workstations behind and to the right of me have been occupied since I walked in, and there have been at least a couple of fellow laptoppers that have dropped in for a bit.
That's the upside of things; on the distaff side, I'm sorry to report that not only is there nary a power outlet in sight, but unless a major renovation is planned for this place, there won't be any. They'd have to tear up the floor to run power to the vicinity of these tables in the middle. Oh well, laptop battery life is getting better all the time.
And if you don't live out this way, here's a heads-up: The place can be hard to spot if you're not familiar with the neighborhood. I had to hang a u-turn in a shopping center parking lot after not seeing it until I'd driven past. Oldham Parkway is essentially the south frontage road for U. S. 50 (actually it lies west of the highway, which runs north and south in this area). If you come off the highway at Third Street, go back west (north) on Oldham and look for a dark brown bank building that actually resembles a church more than a bank to your left before you get to the shopping center. The tan library building will be just beyond it across the street.
As to whether the rest of MCPL's branches are lit up, I think it's safe to assume they are, so unless anyone knows differently, we'll probably leave it at that.
Oh, and to the library administration: A little blurb on your website letting everyone know about this might be nice.
150 Northwest Oldham Parkway, Lee's Summit
802.11g
SSID: MCPLIBRARY.FREE.WIFI
Looks like Mid-Continent really has gone whole hog when it comes to free Wi-Fi. About time, too. Eleven of the twelve public-access workstations behind and to the right of me have been occupied since I walked in, and there have been at least a couple of fellow laptoppers that have dropped in for a bit.
That's the upside of things; on the distaff side, I'm sorry to report that not only is there nary a power outlet in sight, but unless a major renovation is planned for this place, there won't be any. They'd have to tear up the floor to run power to the vicinity of these tables in the middle. Oh well, laptop battery life is getting better all the time.
And if you don't live out this way, here's a heads-up: The place can be hard to spot if you're not familiar with the neighborhood. I had to hang a u-turn in a shopping center parking lot after not seeing it until I'd driven past. Oldham Parkway is essentially the south frontage road for U. S. 50 (actually it lies west of the highway, which runs north and south in this area). If you come off the highway at Third Street, go back west (north) on Oldham and look for a dark brown bank building that actually resembles a church more than a bank to your left before you get to the shopping center. The tan library building will be just beyond it across the street.
As to whether the rest of MCPL's branches are lit up, I think it's safe to assume they are, so unless anyone knows differently, we'll probably leave it at that.
Oh, and to the library administration: A little blurb on your website letting everyone know about this might be nice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)