Cruising with a laptop

snowleopard

snowleopard

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I used to run a Win95 laptop for a few simple apps and weatherfax. For email I would use internet cafes. Now I have a more up to date machine I'm thinking about taking it on the boat, largely for interweb access while cruising the SW and N France. I know lots of people do this so how about some advice?

a) how often will I encounter a wifi base station while in harbour and what are the charges likely to be? (OK Pessimist, I know about Dartmouth)

b) what do I need in the way of an external antenna?

c) how often am I likely to find free wifi in cafes etc?
 
In Alderney I managed to find a free wifi point, but not with the inbuilt antenna - I had to put a Netgear WG311 up the backstay on a usb lead (I already had the kit - so no expense!).
Sat here in St PP I needed the USB dongle again to get to the Vic Marina free service, but I managed to drop the dongle on the screen whilst not paying attention - broken screen DoH! Will repair it, but it's a pita to say the least!

The Macbook pro now has a good signal with the inbuilt unit, but the iPhone is intermittant ... so - yes, it's worth taking, but you'll prob need some sort of external antenna for reliability ...
 
Along the English coast you will find decent GSM reception in +50% of harbours. I have a short 2m usb extension cable so I can raise the height of the usb dongle style GSM antenna.

In French harbours a wifi network called NetAbord predominates but I was told it was not possible to subscribe without a French address.

About 20% of French marinas have a free PC in the office for short online sessions.

Ashore 1 in 10 cafes offer free weefee access for customers bringing their own laptop. In practice many of these don't work or something about the wifi passcode gets lost in the translation.
 
Calais
Boulogne Sur Mer
Saint Valery sur Somme
Dieppe
Saint Valery en Caux
Fecamp
Le Havre
Saint Vaast La Hougue
Cherbourg
Carteret
Saint Quay Portrieux
Paimpol
Treguier

All covered by Netabord. 14 euros buys you 24 hours of use ... and I mean use .... a little box starts ticking down and we still have about 13 hours left and '3' months to use it. Very good signal using just the inbuilt laptop aerial.

Guernsey. Free but useless. Signal incredibly weak. Gave up. So did others.

Lezardrieux. Free. Out on a buoy we could still pick it up using an EnGenius USB aerial.

Pontrieux: Free. Couldn't pick it up on the boat even using the USB aerial but you can go into the harbour office and even plug in to the leccy.

Paimpol. Free. Had to use aerial.

Binic. Free but the tourists in the apartments overlooking the harbour use it as there is no code. A bit variable.

St Cast. Free but never got it on boat. Again they are happy for you to plug into leccy in their portacabin.

St Malo. Free ... helps to use USB aerial.

Just read the bit about Netabord/French address .... not true ... been using it for 3 years ... they just need your credit card number.
 
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snowleopard said:
I used to run a Win95 laptop for a few simple apps and weatherfax. For email I would use internet cafes. Now I have a more up to date machine I'm thinking about taking it on the boat, largely for interweb access while cruising the SW and N France. I know lots of people do this so how about some advice?

a) how often will I encounter a wifi base station while in harbour and what are the charges likely to be? (OK Pessimist, I know about Dartmouth)

b) what do I need in the way of an external antenna?

c) how often am I likely to find free wifi in cafes etc?
Click to expand...

My advice is, don't bother with wifi. When it is available in a marina, it's usually BT which you have to pay for. If you pay for it (a small fortune for temporary access) then you'll almost certainly come to the next marina only to find they're on another system and you have to pay again. I've found it in cafes, but not often enough to reply on. When marinas offer "free wifi" there is almost always a catch, so I've found. You'll get an hour for free, then have to pay, or something like that.

However, I highly recommend a dongle. You get get a pay as you go "three" dongle dead cheap, and pay as little as a tenner for a top up. I can't think of a place I've stayed where I have failed to get a connection, although sometimes it's only just fast enough to scrape down emails and xcweather, it is more than often plenty fast enough to stream youtube or iplayer. It even works when sailing. I did an entire leg from Hartlepool to Blyth with net access all the way.

So, there's my advice. Oh, and in terms of being worried about the electronics... I have three laptops onboard, and all of them still work.
 
Just read the bit about Netabord/French address .... not true ... been using it for 3 years ... they just need your credit card number

Netabord also takes paypal, so if you have a paypal acct it is quick and easy to purchase.

Word of warning, it doesn't log you off when you close browser, the clock keeps ticking down until you log out of their site.:mad:€6 down the drain while I went for a beer.

France does not have a satisfactory 3g set up for non residents as yet. Tried to sort it yesterday with no success.
 
Cruising With A Laptop

Have to agree with Nathanlee, we bought an unlocked 3G dongle off e-bay for £49 including £10 of data dowload. £10 buys you up to 30 days connection without dowloading large files, certainly OK for e-mail and weather. Great thing is you only need to buy a £10 top up when you need it, no recurring charges.

Certainly works OK for us, being unlocked we were also able to buy a Vodafone sim in Portugal for use there.
 
nathanlee said:
My advice is, don't bother with wifi. When it is available in a marina, it's usually BT which you have to pay for. If you pay for it (a small fortune for temporary access) then you'll almost certainly come to the next marina only to find they're on another system and you have to pay again. I've found it in cafes, but not often enough to reply on. When marinas offer "free wifi" there is almost always a catch, so I've found. You'll get an hour for free, then have to pay, or something like that.

However, I highly recommend a dongle. You get get a pay as you go "three" dongle dead cheap, and pay as little as a tenner for a top up. I can't think of a place I've stayed where I have failed to get a connection, although sometimes it's only just fast enough to scrape down emails and xcweather, it is more than often plenty fast enough to stream youtube or iplayer. It even works when sailing. I did an entire leg from Hartlepool to Blyth with net access all the way.

So, there's my advice. Oh, and in terms of being worried about the electronics... I have three laptops onboard, and all of them still work.
Click to expand...

I was going to suggest a dongle too.
 
I cannot recommend too highly the Repeatit antenna from Wifispark in Newtown Abbott.

It's directional, so enables you to latch on to free wifi from at least 3 miles away.
 
Padstow,Cardiff,Portishead

free wifi at all three harbours
2 at Padstow has harbour wifi also old custom house
2 at least at Cardiff at Cambrian(on Ely) and at Cardiff yacht club
 
Vara said:
Just read the bit about Netabord/French address .... not true ... been using it for 3 years ... they just need your credit card number

Netabord also takes paypal, so if you have a paypal acct it is quick and easy to purchase.
Click to expand...
Ok. That came from the harbour master at Benodet, Brittany. I thought is was odd, wish I had set it up at home before leaving for France.
 
Guernsey. Free but useless. Signal incredibly weak. Gave up. So did others.
Click to expand...
Probably because I'm sat on it downloading all the apps I need on this new laptop! ;)
Seriously - it is quite a good connection - provided you've got a good antenna - which is vital if you want to make use of free wifi connections. In the UK I've got a 3g data connection (on my phone) which is more reliable than trying to find a wifi - but if wifi is there I'll use it as it is generally quicker.
 
SW France:
In Vendee you get "Wifi Vendee" for 1€ per day, works throughout Vendee and usually active in all the ports - but you never know........
From La Rochelle and all the Charent Maritime ports you pay about the same price - but in each port. (but you never know...... also applies). Sorry no info regarding Isle de Ré, Marans and La Tranche but I imagine it's the same deal.
Port Medoc, the most expensive, noisiest and most avoidable Marina in France apart from Nice, it's free (but you never know times two.......)
Dunno about Arcachon, the sandbanks give me the willies so I don't go there anymore.
Hendaye & St Jean De Luz as above with individual port hotspots that cost.
 
....there is a pattern emerging then: go with both a dongle and Wifi.

In the last couple of years I have been astonished at the amount of un-password protected Wifi around from domestic and business routers near the water throughout Europe the Caribbean and USA. One wonders when the owners of these routers will get wise to the theft of their bandwidth. It takes a highly developed sense of fair play not to make use of such signal once discovered.

Companies such as BT/FON charging a fiver for an hours Wifi are on a hiding to nothing. Then you need a dongle.
 
I agree, dongle and wifi. It works for me. Just have to watch battery drain from 64 watt laptop. Solar and wind help.

Just to mention, it is widely recommended in some quarters that one should not protect you bb connection with encrypted keys, unless you are a 'power' user of the line. The idea is that it does not matter if someone uses your line some times, they cant access your data or your computer. They simply don't matter. This is assuming of course that the interloper is well mannered and does not hog the bandwith with downloads of huge files, graphics streaming video etc. I have come across a bad mannered case, and simply put a lock on it for a while and the student concerned went elsewhere. Lock then removed.

Good luck to reasonable visitors. I don't know they are there.

Mike
 
I do not know about this year as I have been to Holland but last year anyone could subscribe to Netabord by doing it on the log on page.


jonjo said:
Along the English coast you will find decent GSM reception in +50% of harbours. I have a short 2m usb extension cable so I can raise the height of the usb dongle style GSM antenna.

In French harbours a wifi network called NetAbord predominates but I was told it was not possible to subscribe without a French address.

About 20% of French marinas have a free PC in the office for short online sessions.

Ashore 1 in 10 cafes offer free weefee access for customers bringing their own laptop. In practice many of these don't work or something about the wifi passcode gets lost in the translation.
Click to expand...
 
snowleopard said:
I used to run a Win95 laptop for a few simple apps and weatherfax. For email I would use internet cafes. Now I have a more up to date machine I'm thinking about taking it on the boat, largely for interweb access while cruising the SW and N France. I know lots of people do this so how about some advice?

a) how often will I encounter a wifi base station while in harbour and what are the charges likely to be? (OK Pessimist, I know about Dartmouth)

b) what do I need in the way of an external antenna?

c) how often am I likely to find free wifi in cafes etc?
Click to expand...

Why get a dongle if you can use your phone. I have a Siny Ericsson from T-mobile. I can either connect using bluetooth or usb. I have web n walk. When abroad downloading email and weather costs very little when wireless not available. It helps to use gmail when then has a little app on the phone so the download is tiny

When in Spain I use a Spanish sim in an unloacked phone and get the weather from movingweather.com Then it is very cheap and independent of wi-fi


Tudorsailor
 
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