# Hunting for Free Wireless in Eaton Centre



## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

I figure this might serve as a bit of reference for some people:

This morning, I decided that I had had enough of the heat and humidity and decided that I might be able to leach some free Wi-Fi down at the Eaton Centre while enjoying air conditioned comfort at their expense. 

I started off by looking at the WiFiBandit's website to see what they thought was available...hrmmm...two APs...one at Telus and the other at the Sony Store. Kewl! 

I went downstairs...walked past the Sony Store and did not stop because there was no seating. I continued on to the Telus store and and asked if they still had free WiFi? The girl said no, they don't. Odd...but it could be old data...the WiFiBandit's entry was from 2003 I think.

I then went upstairs to the Info booth and the girl there said that she has never heard of any store providing free Wi-Fi at the Centre. Disappointed but went down to the food court to see if maybe they didn't know what they were talking about. Fired up the old IBM T20 and lo and behold found at least four wireless networks! 

The strongest and most open seem to be the Rogers' hotspot that was provided in conjunction with the Second Cup and, once you agreed to their "Terms and Conditions", you get a free trial period. I decided to go up to the Rogers' store on the third level to ask how long was the free trial period good for. Here's the conversation:

Me: "Hi there, you guys have free wireless right?"
Rogers' drone: "No, we do not."
Me: "You sure?"
Rogers' drone: "Yes...why? Are you picking up something?"
Me whipped open the T20 and showed them the log-in page.
Me: "Yeah, I just wanted to know how long was the trial period for...but since you don't know anything about this."
Rogers' drone recovers quickly enough to suggest asking at the Second Cup just across.

Second Cup had no clue and they were actually closing (permanently) that location the next day.

So, I sat down next to the Disney store to figure out my options...while there I scanned around for other networks...found a couple more but they were private ones...such as the law firm that booted me off their network.

I also tried Indigo but they must have leadlined walls because there is absolutely no wireless network signal in that store. 

I went back downstairs to see if maybe the Telus girl was wrong. Sat down outside the store and fired up the T20 again...and what do you know? I connected to "Teluswifi" but was unable to surf the web due to the earlier wireless altercation with the law firm.

So, I gave up after close to an hour and a half of wandering around the place looking for free Wi-Fi. I may go back tomorrow and see if I can surf using the Telus connection...hrmmm... 

Well, that's it for this rambling post...if anyone knows of any free Wi-Fi hotspots in the vicinity where I can get Internet access without paying a dime, either directly or in terms of victuals, let me know!


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

Anyone who asks for free wifi should expect that if there was any, there won't be any at that location any more, and that they will be depriving all thos who know better than to ask of this benefit at that location.


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## Grunt (Jun 14, 2005)

HowEver said:


> Anyone who asks for free wifi should expect that if there was any, there won't be any at that location any more, and that they will be depriving all thos who know better than to ask of this benefit at that location.


Whether or not this is true depends on the technical expertise of the people running the store.


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## tonybeak (Mar 4, 2005)

Union station, upstairs. You know where you can buy VIA or GO tickets? That great hall?... Well right beside Harveys and by the payphones, there is a free Bell hotspot. I was using it and I was quite satisfied! But no point asking where it is, I asked the front desk and nobody even knew there was a hotspot. =/

EDIT: Akk, sorry if this is confusing


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## Ohenri (Nov 7, 2002)

Hmmm....

I used to catch the Sony and/or Telus one often enough. I would do the same @ Fairview as well - same 2 retailers. 

H!


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## xorpion (Jul 26, 2002)

i went to vaughn mills mall yesterday with my ibook and picked up a signal while eating lunch in the food court.

i picked up another signal while in Winners.

then i left.

PS why would you ask anyone about it? just leech until they boot you.


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## RobTheGob (Feb 10, 2003)

Haha - I've never heard of anyone asking to use an open WiFi network...

I figure it's like an unlocked washroom door - if they didn't want me to use it - they'd lock it...


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## Bighead (May 3, 2005)

IronMac said:


> I also tried Indigo but they must have leadlined walls because there is absolutely no wireless network signal in that store.


Yeah, the Indigo location is really strange. Not only Wifi signal is absent, even cellular network has a hard time in there. Must be the piping or something...


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## harzack86 (Jan 30, 2005)

tonybeak said:


> Union station, upstairs. You know where you can buy VIA or GO tickets? That great hall?... Well right beside Harveys and by the payphones, there is a free Bell hotspot. I was using it and I was quite satisfied! But no point asking where it is, I asked the front desk and nobody even knew there was a hotspot. =/
> 
> EDIT: Akk, sorry if this is confusing



This is probably the free Bell Access Zone from the VIA 1 lounge...


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## oryxbiker (Nov 29, 2001)

its possible they are running a 802.11a network. or they could be running something in the 5.8 GHz range.


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

xorpion said:


> PS why would you ask anyone about it? just leech until they boot you.


I was hoping to save a few minutes booting up and looking confused when there was no signal.


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

Bighead said:


> Yeah, the Indigo location is really strange. Not only Wifi signal is absent, even cellular network has a hard time in there. Must be the piping or something...


Odd but my Telus phone worked fine there.


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## Myradon (May 13, 2005)

that's a fun story, Thanks


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

harzack86 said:


> This is probably the free Bell Access Zone from the VIA 1 lounge...


No, tonybeak is right...there is a free Wi-Fi hotspot courtesy of Bell next to the Harvey's. It looks like an odd sort of phone box. This was set up sometime in 2002-2003 as one of about a dozen hotspots by Bell in an experiment where they contemplated using their phonebooth access to provide wireless Internet (Verizon in NYC did the same thing but they rolled out a much bigger deployment. Unfortunately, that seemed to be a bust because they only did half of the one thousand hotspots that they were supposed to do.). Use it as much as possible before they decide to get rid of it! I suspect that Bell has simply forgotten that these are still in place.


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## dmpP (Jun 1, 2004)

I have a great app on my dell axim x50v... it's called wififofum... it's shows you the access points available and all in relation to your position... as you move around it too adjusts and picks up new signals etc... tells you if they're WEP enabled, etc.

on my PB I have an app called macstumbler... it picks up signals and tells you if they're WEP enabled (ie. locked down) and their strength...

having said this... I would probably use my pda to find a signal... and try to connect on it... if I could connect I'd have a seat nearby and fire-up the lappy


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## yatko (Oct 9, 2004)

Walk down on Yonge before King get in to Mc Donalds on the East side they have free legit WiFi at newly removated 2nd floor.

Asking questions about an open WiFi signal is not nice. What may not be working for you might work for somebody else. No?


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

IronMac said:


> No, tonybeak is right...there is a free Wi-Fi hotspot courtesy of Bell next to the Harvey's. It looks like an odd sort of phone box. This was set up sometime in 2002-2003 as one of about a dozen hotspots by Bell in an experiment where they contemplated using their phonebooth access to provide wireless Internet (Verizon in NYC did the same thing but they rolled out a much bigger deployment. Unfortunately, that seemed to be a bust because they only did half of the one thousand hotspots that they were supposed to do.). Use it as much as possible before they decide to get rid of it! I suspect that Bell has simply forgotten that these are still in place.


I used that quite a bit during 2003, in fact it was a rep at the 'Centrino' store in Royal Bank Tower that told me about it. Then I tried using it last summer and it was a pay for site, $6 for an hour but it was any part of the hour, i.e. use 5 minutes and then sign off, there goes the rest of your hour, no credits.
So is it now back to a freebie or did you actually get past seeing the connection. Lots of what look to be freebies actually have a signon page that prevents you from getting past without paying. I know that the food court at First Canadian Place is like that.

As for the Second Cup, if it is like the one here in Cambridge, it is about 10 minutes then you get the boot but you can log back in again. Fine for me, enough time to check mail, etc.


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

yatko said:


> Walk down on Yonge before King get in to Mc Donalds on the East side they have free legit WiFi at newly removated 2nd floor.


Don't you have to purchase some victuals first?


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

Oakbridge said:


> I used that quite a bit during 2003, in fact it was a rep at the 'Centrino' store in Royal Bank Tower that told me about it. Then I tried using it last summer and it was a pay for site, $6 for an hour but it was any part of the hour, i.e. use 5 minutes and then sign off, there goes the rest of your hour, no credits.
> So is it now back to a freebie or did you actually get past seeing the connection. Lots of what look to be freebies actually have a signon page that prevents you from getting past without paying. I know that the food court at First Canadian Place is like that.
> 
> As for the Second Cup, if it is like the one here in Cambridge, it is about 10 minutes then you get the boot but you can log back in again. Fine for me, enough time to check mail, etc.


Thanks for the info, Oakbridge! Too bad it's now a pay site..I was actually at Union station yesterday afternoon but it was a hot madhouse so I just zipped through without stopping.


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

IronMac said:


> Don't you have to purchase some victuals first?


Since they tend to let the homeless and indigent hang out for a little while before turfing them, let's assume that you sitting there with a notebook computer surfing freely would improve the look of the place.


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## iLabmAn (Jan 1, 2003)

Ma Bell was down last night in our neighbourhood, so my neighbour and I (he armed with his Compaq notebook, me with my iBook) walked around our street and found 5 open wifi networks.


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

Sadly, last night's outage helped me determine that my neighbours use Sympatico and not Rogers.


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## ArtificiaLard (Feb 8, 2005)

The huge Sam's the Record Man just a few steps north of Dundas on Yonge has free wifi advertised and open seating inside. I haven't used it, but have seen many people with their own laptops inside...


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

HowEver said:


> Since they tend to let the homeless and indigent hang out for a little while before turfing them, let's assume that you sitting there with a notebook computer surfing freely would improve the look of the place.


LOL!!!


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

ArtificiaLard said:


> The huge Sam's the Record Man just a few steps north of Dundas on Yonge has free wifi advertised and open seating inside. I haven't used it, but have seen many people with their own laptops inside...


Thanks AL...I may try that next...was hoping for a/c though.


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## tonybeak (Mar 4, 2005)

Does anyone know if there is a wireless signal on the actual Via trains? Because I read somewhere on their site that they do...


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

tonybeak said:


> Does anyone know if there is a wireless signal on the actual Via trains? Because I read somewhere on their site that they do...


Supposedly there is...but you have to be using Via1 service...it's not available if you're in "Coach".


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

IronMac said:


> Supposedly there is...but you have to be using Via1 service...it's not available if you're in "Coach".



Are these different cars on the same trip? Try sitting in coach near to Via1.


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

HowEver said:


> Are these different cars on the same trip? Try sitting in coach near to Via1.


Yep, different cars on the same trip. I'm pretty sure that they're going to be using some sort of authorization scheme which will stop non-Via 1 customers from leaching the service.


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## iKV (Oct 3, 2004)

iLabmAn said:


> Ma Bell was down last night in our neighbourhood, so my neighbour and I (he armed with his Compaq notebook, me with my iBook) walked around our street and found 5 open wifi networks.


Before I left my flat in London, we were stealing (err, sharing) wireless with a few mates who lived in a unit three floors down. Couldn't get over the fact that the signal went through so much concrete. Any chance you live close to any of those blokes to do the same?


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

IronMac said:


> Yep, different cars on the same trip. I'm pretty sure that they're going to be using some sort of authorization scheme which will stop non-Via 1 customers from leaching the service.



Umm, okaay, but "supposedly" and "pretty sure" aren't exactly definitive. You never know until you try.


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## IronMac (Sep 22, 2003)

HowEver said:


> Umm, okaay, but "supposedly" and "pretty sure" aren't exactly definitive. You never know until you try.


Fair enough, you can always check the following link:

http://www.viarail.ca/wirelessinternet/en_wire_tomo.html


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## DEWLine (Sep 24, 2005)

My last trip on VIA Rail was last month, and it was definitely "free for 1st class passengers, everyone else pays extra on top of their ticket fare".


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## macsackbut (Dec 15, 2004)

DEWLine said:


> My last trip on VIA Rail was last month, and it was definitely "free for 1st class passengers, everyone else pays extra on top of their ticket fare".


Well, despite the fact that this is a really old thread, the most recent contribution is interesting to me since I'll be taking the train to Toronto in December. But I'd like to know where you saw this, DEWLine. <a href="http://www.viarail.ca/classes/en_serv_clas_via1.html" target="_blank">Via's own site</a> says: [in Via1 first-class] "You can read as much as you like, snooze or even use our pay-per-use wireless Internet service (Wi-Fi access is available on all our trains in southern Ontario and southern Québec)."

I know last time I took Via and paid more than double for Via1, I was mighty ticked off at having to pay even more for a few hours of Internet access (it used to be free). Next time I'll just pay coach and pay for the wireless if I need it.


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## funkylizard (Mar 12, 2003)

Just took Via... Via sucks ass!! Via1 is NOT worth the money at all! Same stupid seats as coach...internet is 8.95 for 24hrs (don't ask)...the only benefit of Via1 is that every seat has a electrical plug for your laptop...oh, and they feed you crappy food. Coach only has one plug per car... have fun trying to get to it.

If you can get Via1 discount ticket, it may be worth it especially if you are travelling for more than 4-5 hours... otherwise, take coach, use your laptop until the batteries die and sleep the rest of the time


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## andrewenterprise (May 22, 2005)

Pretty sure that it isn't free, but we've got all sorts of Wi-Fi antennas scattered throughout Waterloo Region. Is anyone using this, and how well does it work?


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## AlephNull (Jan 28, 2005)

Most of the wireless around Waterloo is provided by a fibre company called Atria. I got a free month card when I started at UW this year, and the coverage is nice, a lot uptown Waterloo within a couple blocks of King St. Theres also coverage throughout RIM park and a few scattered hotspots around KW and Cambridge.

The speed is also quite impressive, I'm not sure about the cost, but I'm fairly sure one account gives you access to all of their offered hotspots, and I'm considering it considering how much time I spend in the University Plaza and King/Weber Starbucks.


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## Cow (Jan 12, 2005)

Did you try the free wifi at Yonge & Dundas Square provided by http://wirelesstoronto.ca/ ?


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