Can’t connect to Wellywifi? You’re not the only one

Above: Trying to log into Wellywifi. If you get the second screen, you’re already doing well.   Despite being the person who successfully pushed for our city’s free wifi programme in 2009–10, I note the irony of being the only person (according to Wellington City Libraries staff I have spoken to) who cannot connect to […]

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What Vodafone’s Super Wifi is really like in practice

While I saw Vodafone’s Super Wifi commercials, I never thought to act on them, since (mistakenly) I thought it was something to do with cellphones. Might have been the gadgets they used in the commercial.    But, after talking to Raghu, their sales’ rep in Pune, a city outside of Mumbai that I know well, […]

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One year on, the same issues remain pressing

In 2011, the issues that I spoke about during my campaign remain as pressing as they always did.    We still need better, wider and earlier consultation, whether we streamline current processes or create new ones for citizen engagement.    We still need to build a city-wide wifi network, one which exists but needs a […]

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Creative or reactive? Your choice

The Fairfax Press has been very interesting in its coverage since the beginning of my mayoral campaign. A Miramar Wharf hotel–training centre development that I pushed for missed any quotes from myself, while today’s announcement of wifi for the waterfront by the incumbent and the Fairfax Press itself again does the same.    But, you […]

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Making free wifi pay—at no cost to ratepayers

With the first billboard going up in town, I’ve been asked about whether my free wifi programme will cost ratepayers.    In a word, no. The wifi programme will be supported by selling the space on the home page.    Upkeep of such a service, and I am looking at several alternatives, is in the […]

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Getting Wellington out of debt—by growing the right businesses

In plain English, when a city is hundreds of millions of dollars in debt—depending on who you believe, the figure is between $200 million and $400 million—how do you get out of the hole?    1. You can sell the family jewels, and there’s water left. We tried this in the 1980s, and now so […]

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Chatting to TV, radio and internet journalists for the mayoral campaign

There have been a few times in the history of this blog where I stepped away from writing regularly. At the end of 2006, I had a pretty good excuse: I was in France. This time, my reasons for stepping away for a few weeks do not include: (a) I was spending too much time […]

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Wellington wants free wifi

While I’ve been a LinkedIn member for many years—my LinkedIn ID has six digits, which gives you an idea of how long ago—I have to confess that I did not browse the brilliant Wellington, New Zealand group till quite recently.    And free wifi is being talked up there, too, as something Wellingtonians genuinely want. […]

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