Author: Ian Betteridge
Date: 17/03/2008
What's the etiquette for connecting to the net?
According to Businessweek, London is now officially the wireless networking capital of the world, with usage of hotspots soaring by 156% over the past year. And, as you might expect, business users are at the forefront of WiFi usage.
But what’s interesting is where they’re using it. As well as the places you’d expect – hotels, travel terminals, and the ubiquitous coffee shops – there are others too. Restaurants, for example.
Now I don’t know about you, but when I’m sitting down to eat, I’m generally less focused on work than on filling my stomach – and I really don’t want to check my email. And if I’m with someone else, then surely pulling out my laptop for a quick browse of the web is just rude?
Perhaps what we really need is a system of etiquette, a kind of Miss Manners for the hotspot generation. At least then we might avoid making some social faux pas while we log on to the net.