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Orlando Cancels Free WiFi Project
EvilStein writes "According to local news, the City of Orlando has cancelled the city WiFi project. The 6 month pilot program ran for 17 months instead of the planned 6, but in the end, it was costing the city too much money and very few people were using the service. Might other municipal WiFi projects go the same way?"
I don't think they ever publicized that there was free internet available anywhere. But aside from that, I can't see how it would be convenient for anyone to tote their laptop out to Lake Eola, anyway. That's a very tiny part of downtown Orlando. This is nothing close to a city-wide public internet project. I don't see how this should have any ramifications for other cities who'd like to try it out. You've pretty much got to drive into downtown Orlando, and usually have to pay to park in a garage or on a lot somewhere, depending on what time of day it is. Most of the people down there who have laptops probably work down there in an office building and have internet at work.
I live there too...25yrs old, Comp Engineering graduate, and never heard of this either.
:(
There was absolutely no advertisement of it. I went downtown alot, and saw 1 sign in the last 6 months that said something about wireless, with no explanation what it was, or what the fee/cost was.
It seemed like it was someone's pet project, and no one ever advertised it to the masses. If someone here advertised it on TV or Radio, it would have been huge I imagine. Theres a number of cool eateries downtown that have outdoor seating...too bad I didnt know about it
...I live in Orlando and I had no idea the pilot program was going on. You'd think they'd advertise it somewhere - maybe even at the local university. In fact, I don't know anyone that knew such a project was in place.
Orlando is a large city, that's true. But Lake Eola is just one tiny little speck smack dab in the middle of what's called downtown Orlando. This was hardly "free internet everywhere" that wasn't being taken advantage of. It was free, unadvertised internet in one very specific, kinda out of the way place.
Having personally experienced the wonderment of Orlando's failed municipal WIFI, I can personally say that it will not be missed. Connections were sub-2400-baud-modem speed if you could connect at all. If Orlando's experiment was the standard of municipal WIFI, it won't surprise me if all such experiments fail for general lack of interest.
I hope this doesn't disuade other cities from trying public WIFI. It would be a shame if Orlando's poor implementation of a good idea might doomed municipal WIFI.
On the other hand, perhaps Orlando is a bellweather of sorts. Municipal WIFI might fail for incompetence. On the other hand, without a municipality cluttering up the spectrum, interested residents of downtown Orlando might have the incentive to set up a cooperative ad hoc network. Er...right.
Just want to add another voice - regular computer geek guy in Orlando who listens to local AM and FM but never heard of this.
Saw the headline and thought WTF. Maybe I should look into this "Local 6" thing...
Hell, Lake Eola is a great place downtown - I would have have enjoyed this...
was that they didn't really tell anyone either. I live in Orlando and I wasn't aware of this test project running... First I've ever heard of it was today... too late now I suppose..
figures.
"why don't you just slip into something more comfortable...like a coma!"
What happens when you let the "free market handle these situations"? Why don't you visit Sea-Tac airport where the "free" market offers travelers multiple choices for wireless access at rates as low as $5 per day -- 178,000 times the rate Orlando citizens paid for their wireless access.
Actually I lived in Orlando for 15 years and I had no idea this even existed until reading about it on Slashdot... I'm not sure if that says more about the marketing of the service or about me as a person ;)
Seriously, I asked a number of people I know in Orlando if they knew this was even there and they have all said no.
- Relatively few people actually live in the City of Orlando. Most actually reside in the Orange and Seminole County suburbs far from downtown.
- Likewise, relatively few people visit downtown. Other than some offices and local government, downtown Orlando has been in a death spiral for at least a decade. The vast majority of economic, social, and cultural (what little there is) activity occurs in the suburbs as well.
- Since the majority of people who visit downtown are there for work, they probably have better internet connections from their comfy, air-conditioned cubicles.
- The City of Orlando has some good programs but suck at getting the word out. They are also disconnected from the needs of there residents. Just 4 blocks west of this hot spot is the Parramore ghetto, an area you'll never see in a "Happiest Place on Earth" advertising campaign.
In summary, with little motivation to visit downtown in the first place, I can't imagine many people out of the blue dragging their laptops to a downtown park for a free connection.Free city sponsored wireless makes sense in places like Austin and San Francisco which have sophisticated and centralized populations. For a blue collar, sprawling suburban metropolis like Orlando, it makes little sense.
Lake Eola is a 9 square block area. It is a single path surrounding a large lake. There are a few benches along the path, a small deck with 4 or five rocking chairs, and an outdoor stage with rows of metal-wire seats (100-200) where homeless people can usually be found sleeping and congregating. There are a few grassy areas, a kids playground and a few sculptures dotting the landscape. With that in mind, would you rather go to this park and either sit on a wire-seat with homeless people or on one of these benches with joggers and people feeding the pigeons and ducks in 90 degree(F) Orlando humidity without a power outlet or a table, or would you rather go to Stardust Video, a 5 min. drive from there, where they have a full espresso bar, a broad selection of beers, comfortable seating, your selection of popular and underground videos, occasional live music, and most importantly AIR CONDITIONING along with their free wifi?? I always went to Stardust.