The Learning Curve -- Starbucks and T-Mobile

Where I am now: inching my way upward, painfully slow.

You are supposed to be able to open your lap-top computer, in Starbucks, and other "hot spots" provided by twenty-first century businesses, and have free immediate access to the internet. Exciting.

But leaning how to do that is a chore.  Since it is such a new idea, it is not set up nicely as a plug and play feature. No one seems to be able to tell you to do this...step one, step two, etc.

I find you have to subscribe to the service via T-mobile wireless.  Just contacting them has been my first chore.  Their web site gave me fits. You have to have a password.  You can get the password by entering your T-Mobile cell phone number on line, and they send you the password on your cell phone.  Then you put the password online and...well, I don't know and what.  Several tries brought only the message:  "Your password is            ."    Blank?  That was no help so I tried telephoning.

Finding their telephone number is difficult.  You'd think a big company with something to sell would be easy...but it isn't.  You get connected all right, to a recorded voice and choices of buttons to push...but none of the options seem to fit what you are after.

A trip to the Mall and the T-Mobile kiosk was no help either.  They had lots of phones to sell, but little help to offer.  They referred me back to Starbucks.

Back to the telephoe. After three hours on the telephone mostly waiting for the next available representative, I find that there is a $29.99 card that I plug into my lap top, that will enable me to connect to Starbucks free service for a year.

Well, that is something, anyway, and worth a try...where is it available in my city?  NOWHERE.  It IS available in Fresno, and hour's drive away.

And that is where I am on the learning curve, still very near the bottom.

Stay tuned.