Dealing With Life's Delays - How Wireless Internet Has Revolutionized the Wait

Long lines at airports have always been something that's expected. A punch line for jokes, an excuse for showing up someplace late, they are often thought of as an annoyance, but a fact of life. In the past, airlines managed to ensure that people who missed flights at least were placed on the next connection, and aside from particularly bad bouts of severe weather, no one spent the night camped out in the airport or hours holed in in an endless line to go through security.

Unfortunately, things have changed. Whether it's security scares, new methods for screening that airports aren't prepared to handle, or just a lack of staff, people are ending up delayed not for hours, but for days. And while a lot of airports have wireless internet, meaning that people can get on their computers or smartphones and Tweet their rage or talk to friends, most of the time, those networks cannot quite survive under the strain of millions of stranded passengers all trying to let their loved ones know that they won't be home for dinner.

Create An Iphone App

There are some ways around this, though. Some people opt out of the wireless network at the airport and instead spend money on their data transfer to use iPhone apps that will give them the closest hotel to call for reservations, while others simply use a pay phone while everyone else is busy trying to get online. But there is a growing trend in airports, where people are able to continue typing away contentedly while everyone else around them goes crazy.

If you are prone to rage blackouts at unnecessary delays yet can be calmed by the soothing glare of a computer screen, there are a couple of things that can help a great deal. The one that seems to be the frontrunner, however, is WiMax. Created to provide wireless just about anywhere, but with a national network instead of a terrestrial, location-based router, this is the way that wireless will likely operate into the future. It takes the smartest parts of the cell phone industry, sending a strong signal from tower to tower, and applies it to getting online through a laptop or desktop computer. Simply turn on your computer once it is configured, and it will automatically connect to the network from just about anywhere, just like a cell phone.

Unlike a cell phone, a WiMax-enabled computer offers you a larger screen for doing everything from having real-time video chat with friends and relatives to streaming whatever television shows or movies will keep you occupied while flight after flight gets canceled. And in case you packed your phone charger with your checked luggage and your cell phone is dead, you can alert family and friends of where you are and when you are expected to be home, since your internet connection will remain secure.

So for business travelers, leisure travelers, or anyone with a laptop who always has the bad luck of getting caught up in endless delays, there's no need to rush the ticket counter or throw a fit. Just try to relax and enjoy the soothing speed of 4G and the knowledge that sooner or later, you and your luggage will make it home.

Dealing With Life's Delays - How Wireless Internet Has Revolutionized the Wait