gettin' online

**Fr8 Shaker** · 07-06-2006, 01:32 PM

Cheri, No you don't need to be online. Just bring up your freedomlink and that box that comes up that searches for networks, on the left side you should see where it says locations, click on that then when that loads click on a state then look for the city then click search.
hope that helps.

Good Luck,
Fr8 Shaker

**dieselphreak2K** · 07-06-2006, 09:03 PM

ahh, I was on one of those called just in time pickups. Not thinking. The air card is okay in Alpena, until the towers will go EVDO, and then it'll fly like it does here in Minooka, IL.

**rode2rouen** · 07-07-2006, 09:22 AM

I use a Verizon air card to access the web. That way you can surf just about anywhere without being tied to truckstop WiFi.

For navigation I used ALK's CoPilot Truck Laptop4 from it's introduction. ALK recently brought out CPT 9, and while I've only used it for a week, it it a better program.

Rex

**ATeam** · 07-07-2006, 11:43 AM

Ditto what JohnO and others said about Verizon. We have also used the Wilson amplifier to increase the Verizon air-card range with delightful results. The amplifier boosts cell phone performance too.
See: http://www.wilsonelectronics.com/

The amplifer difference is most noticable when we are driving. The signal is more stable so stays connected for longer periods of time. Signal drops and reconnects are reduced. For a solo driver, the booster would be of little use with an air-card since one does not drive and surf the web at the same time (let's hope!).

Wi-Fi cards are cheap and many Wi-Fi networks are free. If your laptop computer does not have Wi-Fi built in like many new ones do, you can buy a card at CompUSA, Best Buy, Circuit City, Radio Shack, Fry's and other electronics stores.

There have been times when we've been in hotels where the Verizon signal is weak. That's when the Wi-Fi card comes in handy. We've also used it as cheri1122 does, if we are needed to get online in a remote area and the Verizon signal was not available. It is noteworthy that some states now offer Wi-Fi hot spots at some rest areas.

If you are in a van, Cheri's technique is easier to use than if you are in a truck. Vans are more nimble and it is much easier to run around in a hotel cluster or retail area until you find a free hotspot. What might take a few minutes to accomplish in a van may take a half hour in a truck.

We carry two laptops in the truck because we got tired of waiting for the other to finish using the one we shared. Wi-Fi cards are great for setting up a wireless, peer-to-peer network between the two machines. I do that to back up each computer to the other. In addition to storing our backup data at home and away from the truck, one computer mirrors the other. If one breaks down we can get on the internet or into our business or personal data with the other computer without missing a beat. Wi-Fi makes it easy to keep the two machines in sync.

That technique could also be used by drivers that have a desktop computer at home and laptop in their truck. When home, it would be easy to connect the two using Wi-Fi and move backup data between them. Both machines would need a Wi-Fi card (built in or external) to do this.

I LOVE the ability to get online for an unlimited amount of time while parked away from truck stops and even while Diane drives down the road.

At the moment, we're sitting in an upscale shopping mall, parked near the delivery trucks the grocery store uses here. We spent a quiet night here with a cool breeze blowing through open sleeper windows.

If I wanted a cup of store-bought coffee, I'd walk over to Starbucks. The grocery store bathroom has signs on the door and inside about how management prides itself on clean bathrooms. They have the same chart on the wall for the attendant to initial that truck stops do. The difference is in the grocery store, the attendant actually cleans the bathroom before initialing the chart.

Here, there are no pubic-hair collections to view, no fear of trucks backing into yours while you sleep, no smell of urine and a litter-filled parking lot, and none of the other negative features that makes truck stop life so special.

That's the difference Verizon internet access makes. That quality-of-life enhancement on the road makes Verizon worth every penny we pay for the unlimited access service.

Wi-Fi has its advantages as noted above. Wi-Fi's biggest disadvantage is limited range. We have and use both Wi-Fi and Verizon. If we had to choose just one over the other, it would be Verizon.

**Fr8 Shaker** · 07-10-2006, 10:41 PM

Cheri, Just wondering if you found that location tab yet on your Freedomlink ?

Fr8 Shaker

**unorthodoxneon** · 07-11-2006, 06:18 PM

Ateam, do you have just one of the verizon wireless cards in one laptop? There is a way to use that verizon card and be able to run both computers online. They have routers that take the verizon card and then send it out like the WIFI at home so you can use both computers online and have one verizon card while on the road. I've been doing alot of research on this lately as i'm going to get this eventually as i think getting a wifi connection for like flying j is kinda pointless as i wont be parked at a J everyday, might not even be on for a few days and if i dont have my internet i get cranky :+

Also i'm guessing you have the external antenna with your Verizon card outside the truck? I was checking into that too. Its like 2 feet tall and think that there maybe some height issues with that.

**romoore245** · 07-11-2006, 09:46 PM

We use a sprint air card for our online service $80 month unlimted usage. Microsoft Streets with GPS for navigation, only a few streets they left out, some glitches you have to run the route a few times to make sure its true. The air card works well in the cities, but it slows down in the country, so we got a wilson repeater, it has an outside attenna that connects to an amp. That sends a boosted signal to the air card and our cell phones. It lets us use any of them in the truck in areas where there is no signal outside. Welcome to the tech headache days. The computer will always crash when you are fifteen miles to a diffuclt del. Good Luck

**nightcreacher** · 07-12-2006, 08:09 AM

lots of ways to get on line
most of the time you can park near a motel and get on free,and i have tractor trailer,but if i cant find a free site, then i go to my friendly TSA, use my points card and sign in there.
If I can figure out how to do this,you should be able,I'm not a geek,but i do know how to mess up a computer,i've even screwed up the c-link(others call qual com),but i can draw a smiley face on it now
If i were in need of my lap top in motion, then for sure id have an air card,but I dont need it to talk on line. Alltel circle of friends,talk on cell,yes dispatch and main switchboard is in the circle
have great day

nightcreacher
oo fed ex cc
ooida 263839