LAS VEGAS--One of the things I heard about this insane city that surprised me the most was that the Monorail had Wi-Fi on it.
I'm in town to cover the technology of the Cirque du Soleil on my Road Trip around the Southwest, and I had heard it from a friend. That in and of itself wasn't enough to make me believe it. But then I read something on the Intarweb that I thought confirmed it. After all, the pipes never lie, do they?
And if there's one thing I like, it's finding new ways to get online when on the road.
Contrary to what I'd heard, there is no Wi-Fi on the Las Vegas Monorail.
(Credit: Daniel Terdiman/CNET News.com)So, next thing you know, there I was, toting my laptop into the station and onto the train, thinking that I'd be able to blog from there about the great way to get online.
Sadly, it's not true.
Although, at the very end of my ride, which I took from the Harrah's stop to the MGM Grand, I did pick up a signal from the MGM itself. Excitedly, I tried to connect, only to be told I could have my Internet, but only for a $12 fee. I declined and got off the train.
GROVELAND, Calif.--This is a very old town. It is just about the last piece of civilization before the western entrance to Yosemite National Park, and the town is studded with 19th century Wild West saloons and wooden buildings with wraparound porches.
Ah, but it isn't the 19th century anymore, is it?
Today, this venerable town, which millions of people surely pass through each year on their way to Half Dome and Yosemite Falls and such, is doing its best to keep up with the times.
And the most visceral symbol of that?
In Groveland, Calif., progress means the general store is right next door to the Net Stop--a place for travelers to get some high-speed Internet
(Credit: Daniel Terdiman/CNET News.com)It's surely the fact that Groveland's general store--the centerpiece of any small town--is directly next door to the "Net Stop," a place where travelers can sit down and get a high-speed Internet connection.
It's quite a funny juxtaposition. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised given that the Internet is everywhere these days. But in a town like this, where the first things you see are such old buildings and a sense pervades of being in another time, it does feel a little out of place.
Yet, it is perfectly appropriate. In the old days, the general store, or the trading post, was the place where people would come from miles around to get word of the world at large--or at least towns beyond a short horse ride. So, this is that reality, writ modern.- prev
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