Free Surf 83

Cut wires, surf free in wireless Foster City.

FOSTER CITY -- You may know the scene in "2001: A Space Odyssey" where the prehistoric human throws a bone in the air, signifying the discovery of tools and the dawn of mankind.

This wasn't quite as dramatic.

But the wire-cutting ceremony at Leo J. Ryan Park Monday represented a big step forward for Foster City, which became the first city in San Mateo County to provide free wireless Internet access to its residents.

The Wi-Fi network, provided by Mountain View-based MetroFi, has a coverage rate of about 95 percent, so that anyone using a computer equipped with a wireless modem should be able to get online from most city locations.

Mayor Linda Koelling, two council members and MetroFi CEO and co- founder Chuck Haas symbolically cut a high-speed Internet line to commemorate Foster City's technological leap.

"This is a great opportunity for our residents and even visitors who come to our community, to have access to the Internet free-of- charge," Koelling said.

MetroFi has installed Wi-Fi networks in Concord, Cupertino, San Jose, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale, but those networks cover only the downtown areas. Foster City is the first to get city-wide coverage, Haas said. The network is supported by 113 transmitters perched on streetlight poles throughout the city. The strength of the signal is best within a few hundred feet of a transmitter.

Reception may be spotty indoors, so some residents may need to purchase a wireless adapter, a one-time cost of between $60 to $100, Haas said. For homes blocked by tall buildings, MetroFi can install an external antenna.

Foster City's deal with MetroFi is non-exclusive, meaning that Foster City still plans to participate in Wireless Silicon Valley, a project to blanket 43 municipalities, 1.5 million residents and 1,500 square miles in four Bay Area counties with a wireless network.

Steve Toler, Foster City's administrative services director, said MetroFi simply gave the city the chance to get a head start.

"We just wanted to make sure our residents had wireless access guaranteed and this was a way of controlling our destiny in that regard," Toler said.

In September, the regionwide project chose Silicon Valley Metro Connect to build its network, which remains a year or more from completion. Metro Connect is a partnership between Cisco Systems, IBM, SeaKay and Azulstar.

Like Metro Connect, MetroFi plans to turn a profit through online advertising. MetroFi users will see a banner advertisement at the top of each Web site they visit and about four times per hour, users will see a full-page advertisement on the way to their next destination, Haas said.

For those who don't want to see any ads, MetroFi offers a subscription service of $19.95 a month. Other paid services will be available to city agencies and local businesses.

Haas said the fact that MetroFi is free spells the end, here at least, of that slow-witted dinosaur known as dial-up Internet service.

"For anyone still on dial-up, there's no more excuses" not to switch, Haas said.

Staff writer Aaron Kinney can be reached at akinney@sanmateocountytimes.com.
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