Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Why doesn’t Metra have wireless internet on its trains yet? Mostly because it would be enormously expensive and a technological challenge, too. But should they?
Should Metra get Wi-Fi? Even if it’s expensive and hard to implement and maintain? The commuter-rail network is considering the possibility, the Chicago Tribune and other news agencies report, but price and technology continue to be two major barriers, despite that a DePaul University report shows 48 percent of Metra riders use personal electronic devices during their commutes. According to the paper, it could cost over $70 million to install wireless internet on all 11 Metra lines over five years—though some of that could perhaps be recouped by paid plans or sponsorships—and there’s a fear that the technology might quickly become obsolete or go unused by customers who prefer other connectivity, like smart-phone hotspots or air-cards. "(…
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
A new cell site at Route 53 and Beamis Road should improve web browsing and download speeds for Glen Ellyn residents in that area, according to AT&T.
Surfing the Internet just got a little faster for some businesses and residents in Glen Ellyn. Internet users in Glen Ellyn who have service with AT&T should now be able to surf the web, download files faster and user more mobile applications. On Tuesday, AT&T announced it has activated a new mobile Internet cell site in Glen Ellyn that will enhance coverage for area residents and businesses, according to a news release from AT&T. The new site will improve coverage for the businesses and residents near Route 53 and Beamis Road. “As part of the Glen Ellyn community, we’re always looking for new opportunities to provide an enhanced customer experience, and our investment in the local wireless network is just one way AT&T is accomplishing it…
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
But am I counting the days in anticipation or just marking time until my eventual demise?
When I first entered the workforce, back in ye olde 1980s, the Interwebs did not exist. There was no Facebook or Twitter, no online shopping or eBay, no TMZ or People.com. I’m not sure that we screwed around any less at work than people do today, so I won’t go off into one of those “in my day…” rants. We were just limited to killing time with actual, rather than virtual, people and activities. If I wanted to gossip about people behind their backs, I had to do it with co-workers. Or call my friends who were also in dead-end entry level jobs. You just had to keep your eye on the opening-to-your-cubicle-which-cannot-really-be-called-a-door in case the boss happened by so you could bust out some officious-sounding convo, which was the '80s …
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Finally, one of my autistic daughter’s fixations has morphed into something constructive.
High on the list of autistic traits are “narrow interests,” which can range from the fairly benign, like a nerdlinger obsession with American presidents and dinosaurs, to the mildly annoying, like Thomas the Tank Engine, to the more, shall we say, impactful, like dismantling toilets. There is virtually no obsession too esoteric that it cannot be indulged today via the Internet, specifically sites like YouTube. We have many little friends that are into elevators, and you would be amazed at how many videos can be found of random people riding elevators … and helpfully telling you details about them. Suffice to say that if I ever find myself at the Tanglewood Mall in Roanoke, VA, I will never have to wonder if their JC Penney has a Dover …
Friday, November 25, 2011
Am I the only one with a keen perception of the obvious?
I’ve gotta stop reading that Chicago Tribune op-ed page because it’s making me crazy. There was a time when, of the five newspapers arriving daily on my driveway, the Trib would be the first freed from its overstretched plastic prison. Now the Sun-Times is No. 1. And here’s one of the reasons for that top-five shift. In a Nov. 18 editorial, the Tribune tackled the touchy topic of Internet sales tax by coming out in support of U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin’s “Marketplace Fairness Act,” which mandates attaching sales tax to every Internet purchase. Considering individual states’ prior boondoggle-ish attempts to collect that tariff, the editorial did manage to get one thing right. Durbin’s streamlined bill is head and shoulders above anything …
Gregory l
3:32 am on Thursday, May 16, 2013
Tony P, why are you sucking your thumb??? more ›