Free UNUSEABLE Wifi

[OldHiker]

Originally Posted by Coma

I agree, Jack.

Remember the number of folks with flashing time on their VCR players, they couldn't figure out how to set the time? These are the same folks who now complain about bandwidth. There are CG's that have insufficient bandwidth, of course. If you don't have an antenna to augment your reception then you are not giving yourself a chance at good reception. Home work: Discover the properties of a Faraday Cage.

I stayed at hotels about 180 night a year, when I was working. Holiday Inns to Hiltons. Bandwidth was unrelated to the quality of the hotel.

Reality is the CG WiFi is usually farmed out and run by someone besides that CG manager. Many of these companies have little accountability, they are perfectly willing to accept payment for a service that is poorly provided. I use Verizon as they are accountable to me.

YMMV

I am not one of those people. Won't get into my credentials, but keep giving the owners a reason to DO NOTHING about this PROBLEM and they will continue to do nothing about it.

Most people look at the amenities of a cg before they reserve. Me, I could care less about bathrooms, laundry, pools, clubhouse, etc. For me it is a place to park for a few days before I move on. I use DishTV because I am tired of cg's that have 10 channels or less and no one cares. Why should I have to pay twice for internet - my own hotspot's cost and the cost of "free" wifi built into the daily charges. I am already paying approximately $12 per day for these two items. Add that to the $40 - $60 per day that I have to pay for a parking spot and I'm up to $1550 - $2150 per month. It's a mortgage payment for a house! That's why I want cg's to give what they state - usable "free" wifi.

Until it starts to affect cg's financially, they will not do a thing that costs money.

[Statgeek]

Originally Posted by OldHiker

You are missing my point. This is a case of false advertisement. When someone states they offer a free product, that's what I come to expect - a free usable wifi.

I have to agree with you OldHiker. Hard-wiring Ethernet cables to each camp site could be a great improvement until the time when WiFi broadcasting becomes easier and cheaper for places like campgrounds to manage. Of course... our RV's would need to have Ethernet cabling too.

In the mean time, I just wish campground would be honest and advertise what they REALLY offer. Wouldn't it be nice to know ahead of time that "Place A" has reliable high speed WiFi at 80% of their spaces, "Place B" has reliable WiFi at 25% of their spaces, and "Place C" has WiFi only in their main office? Then we could prioritize WiFi along with everything else that they have to offer and make better decisions.

Of course, I do read reviews for extended stays in different places, and I'm grateful for these kinds of details.

[OldHiker]

Fat chance!

[smiller]

Originally Posted by OldHiker

Until it starts to affect cg's financially, they will not do a thing that costs money.

Then you need to boycott CGs with poor wifi. But if that's '95%' of them then you have a problem...

[OldHiker]

Originally Posted by smiller

Then you need to boycott CGs with poor wifi. But if that's '95%' of them then you have a problem...

As I stated before, I do use RVParkReviews to see what people say about things in general and wifi and electric specifically. If they get a poor review about either, I won't use them. I'll boondock if that is my only option beside the cg. If that's not an option, I bypass that area.

It's my money and I'll spend it where I get the most bang for the buck!

[Coma]

Originally Posted by OldHiker

I am not one of those people. Won't get into my credentials, but keep giving the owners a reason to DO NOTHING about this PROBLEM and they will continue to do nothing about it. Most people look at the amenities of a cg before they reserve. Me, I could care less about bathrooms, laundry, pools, clubhouse, etc. For me it is a place to park for a few days before I move on. I use DishTV because I am tired of cg's that have 10 channels or less and no one cares. Why should I have to pay twice for internet - my own hotspot's cost and the cost of "free" wifi built into the daily charges. I am already paying approximately $12 per day for these two items. Add that to the $40 - $60 per day that I have to pay for a parking spot and I'm up to $1550 - $2150 per month. It's a mortgage payment for a house! That's why I want cg's to give what they state - usable "free" wifi. Until it starts to affect cg's financially, they will not do a thing that costs money.

The economic model is already set. Look at what hotels do. WiFi is no longer free. You must pay for it, but the service is no better.

I have to ask, why would you want to do anything on an open network?

[Gordon Dewald]

Originally Posted by Statgeek

I have to agree with you OldHiker. Hard-wiring Ethernet cables to each camp site could be a great improvement until the time when WiFi broadcasting becomes easier and cheaper for places like campgrounds to manage. Of course... our RV's would need to have Ethernet cabling too.

In the mean time, I just wish campground would be honest and advertise what they REALLY offer. Wouldn't it be nice to know ahead of time that "Place A" has reliable high speed WiFi at 80% of their spaces, "Place B" has reliable WiFi at 25% of their spaces, and "Place C" has WiFi only in their main office? Then we could prioritize WiFi along with everything else that they have to offer and make better decisions.

Of course, I do read reviews for extended stays in different places, and I'm grateful for these kinds of details.

Interesting comment. Hard wiring to each site you say!

The resort we patronize has 495 sites, is about a mile long and anywhere from 300 to 500 feet wide. It also has mature ficus trees and paved streets. And all of the services are buried.

Our resort also does advertise what they "really" offer. Clubhouse, large pool, hot tubs, pickel ball court, shuffleboard court, organized activities, subsidized meal events, horse shoes, cable tv, subsidized social events, etc.

While it is great to sit in your unit and watch streaming video it seems most of you have figured out that it is more dependable if you provide it for yourself.

[OldHiker]

Originally Posted by Coma

The economic model is already set. Look at what hotels do. WiFi is no longer free. You must pay for it, but the service is no better.

I have to ask, why would you want to do anything on an open network?

I really don't know how you can make that statement. I did a quick search and found the following.
Holiday Inn Express - Free wifi and local and toll-free calls
Marriott - many of the brand
Loews - all
Most cheap hotels offer FREE usable wifi!
And many more. Only the high priced luxury hotels charge, but that's changing fast. Do a little research and you can find this out.

Why do luxury hotels charge for Wi-Fi, but cheap hotels don't? | Marketplace.org

What Hotels Have Free Wi-Fi Or Free Wired Internet Access? | Gadling

[BamaBob]

Originally Posted by OldHiker

I really don't know how you can make that statement. I did a quick search and found the following.
Holiday Inn Express - Free wifi and local and toll-free calls
Marriott - many of the brand
Loews - all
Most cheap hotels offer FREE usable wifi!
And many more. Only the high priced luxury hotels charge, but that's changing fast. Do a little research and you can find this out.

Why do luxury hotels charge for Wi-Fi, but cheap hotels don't? | Marketplace.org

What Hotels Have Free Wi-Fi Or Free Wired Internet Access? | Gadling

X100 - I travel for a Living (yes..*Sigh* I still have to use the W*rk word 5 days a week

The Posters comment that hotels charge for WIFI is...silly. An NO it is not because I am a Marriott Platinum member either. Hell, most major airports offer free WIFI now. Won't be long before the Airlines start dropping the petty $9.99 for WIFI as well.

I look at WIFI similar as the proliferation of the lnd line telephones. "Back in the day" there were folks who thought why do you want a personal phone? A Party line is good enough for me.

We see how long that lasted (he says as he signs off and puts his iPhone in his pocket

[MandG-Fun]

It is obvious from the responses that free high bandwidth WiFi is very important to many people. It also seems that most or all just show up and expect their expectations to be met. Perhaps when you make your reservations you can discuss your bandwidth needs and ask for an honest assessment of what you can expect given your needs. I am guessing that many CG employees are very clear on the quality of their service. You can then make a go-no go decision in advance. This may help to eliminate all of the disappointment that is being expressed here and help CG owners quantify the number of lost reservations because of their Internet services.

Keep in mind that these are small businesses that are likely not very technical. They are not Internet Service Providers or multinational corporations selling you a silly cup of coffee for $10, they are campground owners who are trying to make a buck in most cases with a seasonal business.

A better approach may be to research in advance and make reservations accordingly rather than being disappointed and complaining after the fact.

[tricotec]

This is a subject which is important to me as I work in my RV and depend on GOOD internet. I also periodically have to download or upload large files which can put a serious drain on available bandwidth in the park. Here are the techniques I've used to overcome issues:

1. Poor reception due to weak and poorly place transmitters: Everyone has experienced parks with internet that only works near the office or has huge dead spots. I completely eliminated this problem by buying a product called the Rogue Wave. This product, intended for boats operating off the coast, combines a very high gain antenna (about an inch in diameter and two feet long) and a high power transmitter. It is designed to allow connection to a wifi site 7 miles distant over open water. I have not had a single park since getting this that I cannot connect to wifi easily. Whether the wifi works once connected is another issue. Many places have very limited bandwidth, and some of them can't economically get more, so I try to be courteous. If adequate bandwidth is available at non prime hours I might stream a TV show or download/upload something, but I avoid doing so during prime hours when everyone is using the net and it appears congested. Common courtesy is something we should all use in these cases. The park where I'm staying now is at the highest level of business internet service available to them, and frankly it is just not enough. It is not their fault. They may have some other options, but not economical ones.

2. Cable internet: If I'm staying for over a couple of weeks in a park with cable I almost always open an account with the local cable company. I insist on buying my own cable modem and they will usually have a list of approved ones. I have several, many of which I've used in more than one place. Usually once you set up an account you can simply plug in the modem and it connects right away and all you need to do is enter your new account number on the screen when you fire up your computer. Cable modems are highly standardized so this is pretty painless. I never rent the modems because I never want to have to worry about having to return them. Comcast is the only company that has been a pain in the backside, falsely billing me for not returning equipment I never leased, and in one case refusing to open an account altogether for some stupid non-reason.

3. DSL: I've been in at least one park where no cable was available, but they did have phone lines. Got DSL for nothing down, no contract and $20/month. I did pay for the modem, which I still have, and can use again.

4. CLEAR: Clear wireless is the only 4G wireless internet that is cost effective. Clear was bought by Sprint and no longer sells the modems, but they can still be found on Ebay. Clear offers very good highspeed internet for $59/month. If you happen to be in a CLEAR area it's a great deal, and very suitable for an RV. Unfortunately CLEAR is not expanding coverage, and what they have will be it for them...probably forever.

5. Verizon: I got the broadband telephone adapter/router which gives you a POTS telephone line that works anywhere Verizon has 2G or better service. We got a wireless phone with two remotes and the router provides us with 4G LTE internet when other options aren't available. This is pricey, but reliable and is our last resort.

6. AT&T - Last resort for non Verizon areas I can use my AT&T phone or tablet to set up a hotspot.

7. Satellite: Don't even think about satellite in an RV unless you are a millionaire. The equipment is very, very expensive, and mobile service is ridiculously expensive. The reasonably priced home services you see offered on TV are spot beamed to your home and won't work at all in an RV unless it never, ever moves. They are also very tightly limited on data volume and have very high latency, making them unsuitable for gaming.

[smiller]

Originally Posted by tricotec

1. Poor reception due to weak and poorly place transmitters: Everyone has experienced parks with internet that only works near the office or has huge dead spots.

This is the most common problem by far. You don't necessarily need something as sophisticated as the Rouge Wave unit but you do need some kind of repeating system using an external antenna.

There are primarily two issues that cause poor wifi performance in campgrounds, either inadequate backhaul or inadequate signal at the receiver. The latter is the most common problem and is caused by users expecting good performance on a laptop (some have good wifi chipsets and some don't) used inside an RV. Add to this many users in a relatively small area (and the resultant high noise floor) and you are just asking for problems.

I built a simple system using two WAPs connected together with an ethernet cable, one is operated in client mode and connects to the campground wifi using a high-gain directional antenna and the other repeats the campground wifi within my unit at low power and on a separate channel (and separate subnet for security.) This usually works very well as the client WAP (with the gain antenna) can usually maintain a reasonably high s/n ratio even if the CG WAP isn't close by while providing a clear channel for my local equipment (so they are not noising up the main channel.) All of the hardware cost me less than $200.

Using this setup my experience has been usable wifi (I don't try to stream video) at perhaps 80% of the campgrounds I visit. The rest of the time I use a cellular hotspot but I don't need it very often.

[Jack Mayer]

I'm in no way defending campground owners that do not maintain their equipment. Generally, "paid for" services not under the control of the campground that have issues are not under their control. But locally managed networks should work at their design capabilities.

Anyone that says it is "easy" to get adequate bandwidth for all campgrounds is out of touch with reality. That is simply not true. Wish all you want, but when the phone companies (typically all you have in rural areas) will not support fast backhaul there is little a campground can do. Sometimes there are alternatives with WISPs or other suppliers, but often not. Urban areas are generally not an issue, and those campgrounds could and should supply reasonable service. However, ANY campground that has more than a few sites is not going to be able to support streaming. As an example: I'm supporting 145 sites at the campground I'm in at the moment. With 100 mbps fiber backhaul you cannot support guaranteed streaming. Period. It "may" work sometimes, but there is no rational way to make it work when the network is loaded.

[smiller]

Originally Posted by Jack Mayer

As an example: I'm supporting 145 sites at the campground I'm in at the moment. With 100 mbps fiber backhaul you cannot support guaranteed streaming. Period. It "may" work sometimes, but there is no rational way to make it work when the network is loaded.

Yep.