Truckers and Yuppies love that Wi-Fi

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What do a button-down satellite salesman and a long-haul trucker have in common?

Why, it's Wi-Fi, of course. Wireless Fidelity lets computer users share a high-speed Internet connection anywhere there is a "hot spot." That means it doesn't matter whether you are driving New York to LA in an 18-wheeler, or cabbing through Manhattan to your next meeting, you can surf the Web or check your e-mail with Wi-Fi.

Truck plazas, universities, cities, and corporations are just some of the markets the wireless industry has tapped since the late 1990s when Wi-Fi was introduced.

Today, long-haul truckers might chat on the CBs, but chances are their good buddies are swinging into truck plazas with Wi-Fi hotspots and flipping open their notebooks to check their e-mail.
Businesses like truckstop.net are working on getting 3,000 Wi-Fi hotspots in place. Once they do, drivers will be able to buy password access to the wireless network by the hour, day, week, or month.
But big companies and truck stop chains are not the only new Wi-Fi networks. Wi-Fi gear for homes and small offices is now big business and in 2003, posted sales of more than $1.3 billion, according to Synergy Research Group.

Chances are you can find all the equipment you need at your local department store to become your own wireless network.

Long Island Technology Articles > Truckers and Yuppies love that Wi-Fi