I’m off in Winnipeg, visiting relatives for Christmas, and I’ve been experiencing severe bandwidth issues. I brought my laptop along to do some work on my next book, check email and to play movies for my son, but I’ve barely even had it on. Dial-up isn’t usually a problem for me, even though I have broadband, I use it in hotels all the time and it works fine for email, etc…. but I just haven’t been able to get anything done this time around. It turns out that the issue is lack of a suitable time to get connected, not the connection itself. I’m staying in a small apartment with people sleeping in almost every room… and since I hate to try and do work when I should be visiting or playing with Connor (my son), I normally restrict my work to after everyone else goes to sleep… but once everyone is asleep, there is nowhere for me to hook up without bugging someone 🙂

I finally gave up and decided to just find a wi-fi spot at a Starbucks and do some email and other network-based work there, but Starbucks in Winnipeg doesn’t have wi-fi and (other than the airport) it seems that nothing else does either!

I’m spoiled and I know it, but if I still lived here I would start petitioning some local coffee shop (like the FYXX) to provide wi-fi (for free)… I suspect that the increase in geek customers would more than justify the cost.

Ah well, for now I’m sitting in the dark trying to type quietly.