[mythtv-users] Mythtv and Choice Hotels

[Brian Wood]

On Monday 29 December 2008 19:07:36 steve wrote:
> David Brieck Jr. wrote:
> > Were you able to SSH into your server at home? If you are able to do
> > that, you can forward ports over the SSH connection. The other thing
> > you can do is setup openvpn and use that to connect directly to your
> > home network. Since it's a VPN connection you are less likely to have
> > it blocked since they wouldn't want to upset their business customers.
> >
> > When staying at a hotel I never use their connection directly, instead
> > I either VPN into another network with a proxy server and use the
> > proxy or SSH into another network and forward the proxy port and
> > access the internet that way.
>
> yeah, thats a good idea, ive found nearly every hotel ive stayed at and
> tried wireless, ports are blocked.  Ive invested in an option gt max
> cell card, never had a problem, ssh, tunneling, non standard ports, all
> work 100%.  if you can swing the $60 month or tether your phone for
> cheaper thats what I do.
>
> > If you're connecting directly you have no idea what the hotel is doing
> > or who else might be illicitly sniffing traffic to steal passwords,
> > cookies, etc. Same goes for wi-fi.

I can tether a Windows machine to my Blackberry, but I have not figured out 
how to do that with a Linux machine.

Anyway, I have discovered that the smaller "Mom and Pop" places, often along 
the Interstates, have very few problems. The larger, more expensive "Big 
Name" hotels are where I have problems.  

Partly this is because the major hotels charge for internet access, so for 
every packet you want to pass, the system has to check if you have paid, if 
it's time for you to pay again, etc. This seems to result in a lot of 
problems and restrictions, slow service and limited to a single stream. 
The "M and P"s, are usually free access to the net in all respects, oddly.

Often the major hotels entered into contracts with service providers, this 
being before it was easy and cheap to set up access. The result is you get 
inferior service for higher cost at the major hotels. One hotel wanted to 
charge me twice if I used a second machine.

Not saying this is universally true, it's just been my experience.

If you want decent internet service, stay at a cheap hotel :-)

-- 
beww
beww at beww.org