We arrived in NYC Saturday morning, two hours late due to “mechanical” issues on our Delta Connection flight. After an uneventful AirTram/Subway trip into the city, we checked in to the Sheraton.
We had already scoped out the wireless charges at the hotel ($14.95 per day). That was a shocker, so we called the hotel and asked about connectivity in our room. They confirmed that guests had to pay the wireless fee; however, they said, there’s high speed connection in your room. What they didn’t say was that the in-room connectivity also came at $14.95 per day.
Fortunately I had checked for free hotspots at Glenn Fleishman’s WiFi Networking News. We wandered down to Bryant Park (adjacent to the NYC Library and two stops south of our hotel) and had a lovely visit in the park as we checked mail for free. You can quibble about ‘free’ since we paid a subway toll — but we have an unlimited seven-day subway pass.
The volunteer committee met Sunday morning to get rosters and stuff conference attendee bags. I learned there that the “old” (circa 1996) system for getting connected has gone the way of the dinosaurs. Back then, when I last worked this conference, the committee ran and supported a network.
Today, the two members of the networking committee install wireless transponders in each meeting room. That’s how I’m connected at the moment — sitting outside today’s eCommerce session.
Now I know why conference planners had not insisted on including the in-room service with our room fee.
