Want Portability? Try Laptop Internet!Let us review a few things. Technology has exploded since I was a child, first of all. When I was, say, five, the smallest computer filled an entire building. By the time I was in my twenties, there were the forerunners to the PC or Personal Computer. There were no laptops, there were no PCs and there was no laptop Internet! Well, just reviewing the changes in the forty five years since then, we now have laptops that weigh less than two pounds. In fact, we have laptop internet that actually can fit in the palm of one's hand. It is dizzying to me how fast the technology has changed. So you can imagine that my mother in law, who is around 77 or so, has trouble understanding how her desktop Internet works, let alone how I can go to the library and access the Web via my laptop Internet connection. She doesn't understand what broadband Internet access is, what Wifi means, or what a gigabyte is, let alone a 3g wireless network. Still, for someone who didn't know one end of the computer from the other just five short years ago, she gets around pretty well, mostly with email. She does not have a laptop or laptop Internet, but she does well enough. For me, there is so much more that I want to do with my laptop. I want to delve more deeply into genealogy and laptop Internet is perfect for that. I can take my computer with me when I go to Salt Lake for research and I don't have to take a cellular Internet connection - I can just use the Wifi that is available right there at the Family History Library. As it is with anything that I get into, shopping for laptop Internet service requires looking into at least three different providers of cellular services, including Wifi. I want to know if the provider offers good customer service, if their network is at least nationwide (United States) and if there is any hope of accessing the network internationally, should I decide to travel and take my laptop with me. Finally, if I can bundle my laptop Internet service with my cell phone, and possibly even my cable service, I may be able to get a better deal on all three services than I would if I subscribed to each one individually. So I do my research carefully. |