TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin WIFI CODES

for anyone walking the beach or in orient beach I thought i would toss out some Wif codes in case someone wants to check without haveing to stop and buy/ask for codes

[i] Codes deleted by Carol Hill [i]

It's acts like this that illustrate the need for ever constant changing of passwords. Restaurants and other establishments provide wi-fi as a courtesy to their clientele, and you are circumventing that. It should be the choice of the establishment who they give those passwords out to.

While you're at it, why don't you let people know your home network password, so people walking near your house can use your wireless.

I would encourage the administrators of this site to take down this post.

You may not realize but this is kind of a crappy thing to do. I encourage you to delete this post. If people want to use wifi they should buy.

Mscottc,
My mother would call their post a case of "benign ignorance", and I wholeheartedly agree with your response. I often see people give the SBR weekly codes. It's stealing.
I also agree that this post should be terminated. It does no good.


I also agree that this post should be terminated. it does no good.

I deleted the actual codes posted but left the post, so that the OP could see the responses. I agree with the other responses.

Oh please. Restaurants couldn't care less about this. As a matter of fact, since the wifi signal doesn't really extend very far, you really have to stand right by the place to use it which means that you might just want to buy a drink while you're there. Restaurants WANT people to come to them. The reason they have wifi is to attract people to come in. Many places don't even have a password.

I travel around a great deal on SXM when on vacation and I haven't seen very many, if any, unsecured hotspots. It is one thing to stop by a restaurant / bar and have a beer or lunch and use wifi and another to park just in range and "leech" off their system.

True Most places use a password. It's funny though many places never change theirs so year after year the password stored in my smart phone or laptop still works. But even if i'm a regular in a place and want to just check email I will always purchase something.

Absolutely. That's the right thing to do.

You just proved my point. Thank you.

No, it just means that they are not very tech savvy and have more pressing things to do, to try to keep the doors open. Yes, they do WANT people to come in and buy things, not steal their wifi. Wifi is NOT free to provide, not by a long shot!

Unless someone is being charged based on data consumption which they most likely are not, sharing wi-fi keys a non issue and it isn't costing them anything extra. However why not just buy a drink and get the code legitimately?

many sailors, myself included, have wi-fi extenders. We find the strongest signal in the anchorage, go ashore, have apps and drinks then return to the boat with the password.

Why would you assume that they are not being charged by data consumption? Regardless if someone who isn't patronizing their facilities is using their bandwidth, those who are legitimately using it are getting a slower bandwidth. So, yes, it is affecting those who are legitimately using it.

Because that's not how internet service works generally. You pay for a fixed bandwidth etc. The amount of people that it would take to severely impact that bandwidth to a point where it would be unusable would make the beach overrun with too many people to a point no one would want to be there anyways.

Again like I said, why not buy a drink and get the code legitimately just to be a nice person.

When It comes to businesses it's all about foot traffic. Some businesses pay exorbitant rents to get lots of foot traffic. Why do you think businesses have wifi in the first place? Why do some businesses give away free samples? It's to get the customer in or near the premises. Most times you can walk up to a server and ask for the password, whether you're buying or not. Would they like you to buy something? Of course, but as I said previously, most businesses couldn't care less.

Exactly. If they have it, its a cost of doing business.

Sorry, I'm going to agree to disagree with you on this one...

So if you leave your bike unlocked it is okay for me to take it?

If your bike was digital...

Not the same.

Sure it is the cost of doing business, like when people steal your glasses or silverware. They don't cost much, but the more you have to buy so your customers have enough to enjoy their stay there the less profit you will have. If they just wanted you to steal their wifi they probably would not have a password. If you are aquiring wifi passwords not as an approved way by the provider then that is stealing, not sure how people could see it any other way.

T

@ flaws in your argument. 1. If you steal silverware you must replace it and it costs you. You don't have to replace wifi.
2. While it's true that most places have a password many don't. And as I've said most places will give you the password just for the asking, no purchase necessary. You obviously are not a small business owner as I've mentioned that businesses want people to be attracted to their premises. For example, stores have sales where they have a loss leader where they lose money, but the idea is to get you into the store. The same thing goes for free samples. Here's s link to show what I'm talking about. http://smallbiztrends.com/2015/11/small-businesses-need-offer-free-wifi-customers.html Read the entire page and I won't have to respond here anymore.

If I'm a paying customer I'm also getting the benefit of "free" wifi, if people are not paying the establishment anything and just stealing their wifi, for those paying, the signal gets depleted and its less of an experience. Sure that can be said if the place is packed and everyone is on, but this is different. As a small business owner, I would not offer a "loss leader" that would be detrimental to those actually paying. Can you imagine going into Starbucks and not a table free but no one is buying anything?

I am a small business owner, since 1986. I understand clearly why business owners provide WiFi to their "customers ". Gaining a code from the entity that pays for the bandwidth without their permission is stealing, simple. It is up to the business how they wish to share it.

If a business providing free wifi that requires a password wants to make it easy for people to use its wifi and provide easy access to the password, obviously that is the choice of the business. Although I think most businesses ideally want to encourage interaction for a person to get the password (ideally, positive interaction with your well trained staff - in the real world of small business food & beverage operations, good luck with that) but I have seen some places where the password is posted for all physically present to see. Maybe there are lots of examples I have not seen or do not remember, but I do not recall any provider of free wifi that requires a password post the password online. I think that is what stands out as different in what the OP did. If a business wants to post its password online, I think that should be the decision of the business. I think it could be reasonable to find little difference in sharing knowledge of a password between friends sitting on a beach (just a hypothetical of course) and posting it online - but I think it clear that most find that it crosses a line.

And this is the flaw in your argument. Wifi bandwidth is a finite resource. If a bunch of people are stealing it then there will not be enough for those paying customers who want to use it, and then the business owner must "replace" it by paying for MORE bandwidth.

Stealing wifi codes is simply stealing. Nothing more, nothing less. Of course, if you walk in and they give you the code for the asking, that is their choice. Fine. Use it. But posting it on a forum, or sharing it around willy-nilly is no different than any other sort of theft.

Guys,

Every place we went to gave us wifi codes we'll before we got any drinks or food. We were dealing with medical issues with folks back home and while walking the beach if we needed to check e mails it was comforting to get a text saying the operation was great. We were not downloading movies on Netflix. Everyone on orient could not be nicer. Just easier than having to stop someone from doing there job to get the code. Not one person would not give us a wifi code.

Forgive me if you think I went around stealing bandwidth.

For future - if you have Verizon for 10 bucks a month you can get a package with some data, telephone minutes and texts. Makes it much easier. Especially if you have an emergency and want to stay in touch.

Kim it's $10 a day with Verizon if you use it on any given day and it uses the minutes, data and text from your plan at home

Even still - in an emergency situation I would think it would be worth it instead of looking for wifi. We had something different that was 25 bucks for 200 minutes, 250 texts and 25 mb data (which is nothing!!) but if I turned off data i could still get texts. Snuck away 3 times last year and still had to work. Would never rely on island Internet!!!

Nobody said that you were stealing bandwidth if they gave you the codes.

There is, however, a very large difference between the business in question giving you the codes, and posting the codes on a public forum for anyone and everyone to use. It should be up to the business to decide if they want to give away the code, not anyone else.

Yes I can imagine going into a Starbucks and having people just sit there all day. And they love that because it ultimately makes money for them. Seems like a successful business model to me.

If you're a small business owner then you also know about how important foot traffic is. The sole reason to have wifi in a business is the attract people into your store. Giving away free samples also costs businesses money as does having a loss leader on sale. It's all about the foot traffic. Have you ever been in a business that refused to give you the password? Neither have I. Starbucks is a perfect example of what I'm talking about.

It only makes money for them if the individuals sitting there all day actually makes purchases. Fortunately, most people understand that there is an unspoken agreement that the "free" wifi comes with the caveat that a purchase will be made and use it appropriately. There are always those few people that can make a coffee last for 3 hours while they use the system but thankfully these are the minority. I completely and strongly disagree with your premise that it is harmless to share wifi passwords as it encourages some people to "leech" off the system without making a purchase. And some of your justification, not wanting to bother the employees by asking for the password, is ludicrous. If this was a problem for businesses they would put up a sign with the password rather than a sign that the business offers wifi (I think it's understood by most people that this is for patronizing the business).

Wekks, sorry my friend. You are wrong on this one

While on St Maarten, I have witnessed a person being asked to leave because they were using the wifi and not purchasing anything.

Also, I do not remember ever being refused a password that is provided to other customers. Why would they since I would certainly fulfill my role as a customer?

Do you have the providers permission or not? That is what makes it right or wrong. Simple