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American wilderness becomes American wirelessness as WiFi goes backpacking

You'd like to spend the weekend hiking through the wild with a group of mates, but you've had to cry off joining them, because your boss wants that report first thing Monday morning, and it needs a lot of Googlework. Not to worry!  California is installing WiFi along the trail.

According to mailto:todd_weiss@computerworld.com ComputerWorld's Todd Weiss, "wireless Internet access has already been deployed in about 60 of the state's 85 parks since last fall in one of the first state deals with SBC Communications Inc."

The crucial point noted by the Chief Information Officer in charge of the project is the fact that WiFi is going into areas where cellphone coverage isn't available.

There will, of course, be cries of rage from people like Brandon Hill who doesn't like the idea: "When I go hiking and camping, I'm trying to GET AWAY from our technology driven society and just enjoy my surroundings." But as the ComputerWorld story reveals, the projects starts with the "private parking areas" - which are, by another name, caravan parks. People drive their RVs to those parks "and they expect the same facilities they'd get in a hotel."

That, these days, includes Internet coverage.

Full Computerworld report in printable form

Anandtech's indignant rant