Because geek is cool and clever

Wi-fi on the go-go October 22, 2007

My job requires that I make the occasion trip to the company’s head office which is right in the heart of London.

It’s nice to get out the office and see some different faces once in a while but the time spent travelling to and fro really takes a chunk of productivity out of my day.

Some time ago I made the clearly sensible decision that getting to our nation’s capital during the week is easier conducted by coach.

Yes, the journey will take longer but at least I’m assured a seat and it’s far easier for me to leave my car at the Park and Ride before picking up the coach.

I also choose to take Oxford Bus Company’s espress service (that’s the green bus) rather than the red Oxford Tube because it stops at Baker Street thus saving me a slow crawl through the city traffic.

However, I always looked on enviously as Oxford Tube passengers sat inside a bus that boasted wifi connectivity – something lacking on the espress.

Until now.

It may have taken them a little while to catch up on their rivals but Oxford Bus Company says the interim period has allowed it to test various available networks and find the best one suitable for the job.

Providing mobile wifi is tricky because, by definition, you’re always on the move. The new espress service does its best to combat any signal dropouts by using two satellite dishes instead of the usual one. The claim is that this results in just one brief spell of a potential loss of signal around junction 6 due the lie of the land.

Given that a return trip to London can mean around four hours on the bus, the ability to work and stay connected for that time is of immeasurable benefit. I’ve tried the odd bit of offline work before but its invariably only minutes before I need access to the internet to continue.

The inclusion of on-board power sockets will also ensure that I don’t turn up at the London office frantically seeking the nearest plug.

By the time you read this I will have made my first trip on the espress since the service was in put in place so expect a brief review of it in next week’s column.