Before You Complain About Your Internet Connection, Read This.

It was the mid Nineties. Nobody had an Internet connection. I was laughed at by other lawyers who refused to use email. One of them told me "I have a Quill pen, and that is fine for me". I wrote this from an Internet Cafe in Alaska, after walking around for several hours looking for an Internet connection. So, before you complain about the Internet lifeline that is keeping you sane these days, remember that there was a time when we would all be holed up in our houses going crazier than we are now. Twenty Five years ago, I felt like the Pied Piper.

"FUTURELAWYER
The Wired Vacation-You sent Email from Where? 

(Sometime in 1997)

Well, the FutureLawyer has just returned from a cruise through the Inward Passage in the beautiful State of Alaska, on the M. S. Statendam of the Holland America Line.

I was required to teach Internet and Computer Technology on board to pay my passage. It's a dirty job, but somebody has to do it!

I write this column in SurfCity, the only hard-wired Internet Cafe in Alaska, in Anchorage. I am killing time until I catch a flight back home, and this little Cafe is proof positive that the Internet has created a whole new communications connection between citizens of the world. Part of the column were written while viewing majestic Alpine mountain peaks out of the picture window of the library on the ship. At the foot of a mountain range in Valdez sits the Alyeska Oil Terminal, the southern terminus of the 800 mile Alaskan oil pipeline. It is eerily quiet there, as if the world has stopped for a breather before moving on.

I am happy to report that the Internet is alive and well in the Alaskan wilderness. At each stop along the way, the FutureLawyer began his walking tour with a reconnaissance mission to locate Internet terminals. Frankly, I was dubious about the possibility of finding publicly available Internet access during the 5-8 hour port stays of the cruise ship. Happily, I was in for quite a surprise.

In the 1990's , searching for public Internet terminals is a great way to connect with the locals, and essential for the wired traveler in need of an Internet fix.

Terminals are available in almost every public library now, even in remote areas, and in coffee shops, hotels (even tiny ones), and office supply stores.

In our first stop, in Ketchikan, Alaska, I found "Cyber By The Sea" , an Internet bookstore on the Second Floor of the Salmon Mall, a small two-story structure, 2 blocks from the cruise ship dock.

This little mall is populated by a coffee kiosk, serving Raven Coffee (a wonderful blend of roast that woke me up) and souvenir shops selling Alaskan souvenirs to the tourists, who stream from the cruise ships in search of scrimshaw, Eskimo dolls made by native craftsmen, and all of the other tacky stuff we tend to purchase on vacation.

Cyber by the Sea is a small place, but its 4 terminals are always busy, and the FutureLawyer spent a relaxing hour surfing the net, and checking up on email from home. The total price for the hour was under $5.00, and included access to an analog phone line, so that I could use my own computer for access. The call back to Florida and my local access number there, was free. I was surprised that the lack of a local Alaska access number for my service provider seemed to cause no problems at all.

Cyber by the Sea has its own website, at http://www.cyberbythesea.com. Stop by sometime, and tell them the FutureLawyer sent you.

Our next stop, in Juneau, Alaska, was also interesting. This time, I was trailed by some of the cruise ship computer class, and I felt like the Pied Piper as we struck out through the streets in search of Internet access. We made a few friends along the way, and only occasionally got looks of puzzlement as we requested directions to the nearest public Internet terminal.

Finally, we were directed to Copy Express, a small copy and office equipment store, with several Internet terminals. I gathered my small group around me, and plugged in with my notebook computer to a local phone line. Again, there was no charge for the long distance phone call to my Florida access number for my host provider, but the hour long Internet and email class cost around $13, which was somewhat expensive. I resolved, after carrying the notebook computer with me on the first two forays into the Internet wilderness, that I was going to access my POP mail through HotMail or RocketMail at the next stop. It was apparent that public Internet access is becoming mainstream everywhere, and I was now confident that I could find a terminal anywhere, without having to use my own computer.

Copy Express is located at 200 North Franklin St., Juneau, Alaska.

In our next stop, in Sitka, Alaska, I was disappointed to find that the first Russian Settlement in North America, having been abandoned by the Russian Sea Otter hunters long ago, seemed to be less Internet aware than the other towns. However, I was soon directed to a barber shop, next to the SubWay sandwich shop, 4 blocks into town. My source advised me to go through the barber shop, right by the men getting haircuts among magazines, to a coffee shop in the back.

I was amazed to find two occupied Internet stations in the coffee shop, and further surprised to find the Supervisor of the Ship's Casino (whom I now knew quite well for reasons that should be obvious), with one of the Casino dealers, checking their Email, and happily keeping in touch with family and friends in Australia.

After allowing me to check my email on the station they were using, we had a nice chat about the use of Internet free mail at the HotMail site by many of the cruise ship employees, who spend long months away from home and family, and who find long-distance telephone calls to be prohibitively expensive as a way of maintaining contact with family.

Our last stop, before taking a bus to Anchorage for the flight home, was Valdez, where this column began. My experience at the Valdez Village Inn hotel was memorable.

This little hotel, in the middle of a small town, was perhaps the biggest surprise. The clerk at the desk, when asked directions to the nearest Internet terminal, brightly offered that there was a free Internet terminal in the waiting room, and cheerfully ushered me into a small room, with a coffee maker, a microwave oven, and an old 486 computer, running Windows for WorkGroups 3.1, with NetScape Navigator 2.0.

While the slow connection brought back memories of long waits for web pages before 56kbps modem access, the friendly conversation, and willingness to help, caused me to reflect on the sea change that Internet access is bringing to communications among citizens of our great country. At each stop along my trip, I was heartened by the American spirit, and the new personal connection that the Internet has given to us, as citizens of a shrinking world. This spirit is further exemplified by the proprietors of SurfCity, in Anchorage. SurfCity is state of the art, with a hard wired permanent Internet connection, 9 terminals, and a Sixties coffee shop atmosphere that raises recollections of my college days in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. We are now in touch with each other in an immensely positive and satisfying way, and the result is an interaction and refreshing idealism that makes us truly brothers and sisters on the planet.

The next time that someone derides the Internet as a haven for criminals and evil persons, remember my experience, and remember that every great advance in communications in our century has ultimately been a wonderful boon to communications among us as human beings.

The Internet naysayers are wrong about the impact of the Internet, and I believe that this revolution is wonderful for America, and that it will bring all of us closer together, as we navigate the virtual world of which we are all becoming a part.

If your ever find yourself in Valdez, Alaska, check in at the Village Inn, or at SurfCity in Anchorage, or Cyber by the Sea in Ketchikan, tell them I sent you. See for yourself what the future looks like, in person. Or, better yet, send them an email.

Richard M. “Rick” Georges is a sole practitioner in St. Petersburg, Florida, and is the immediate past Chair of the Technology Committee of the Florida Bar. He is the author of the column, "Future Lawyer" tm, which is published in Warfield’s Tampa Bay Review and many other publications. He is a member of the Florida Courts Technology Commission by appointment of the Florida Supreme Court and the Law Office Management Advisory Service Advisory Committee of the Florida Bar (LOMAS). He has taught law office management, computer-assisted legal research, and micro-litigation skills at the College level. He has presented seminars and training on all aspects of the use of technology in the legal profession, for local, state and national bar associations, and for may public and private entities. He can be reached via email at rgeorges@futurelawyer.com, or at his home page at http://www.futurelawyer.com."

Comments

[John Upton]

Imagine the deep s**t we'd be in now if someone managed to disable the internet.

[Jay Brinker]

Crazy how much has changed in 20+ years and what we now take for granted. I laughed at the mention of 56mbs line and remember when we paid $100/month for an ISDN line offering double that speed and thinking we were blessed with incredible connectivity.

In the end, the old Internet cafe prices are a steal compared to what cruise lines charge today. $30/day was the last I remember. And those barons want government help now? SMH.