TPL wireless & linux

[Matt Price]

Hi folks,

Have other people noticed that the Toronto Public Library wireless
doesn't work for them?  For me, the connection went fine, and I was
assigned at 10.1 IP address; but use of the network requires you to
check a box on a web page & then do a handshake which registers your MAC
address with their routers.  the web page won't load on my ubuntu
machine; I had to call tech support (1-888-855-3555, if you're ever in
this situation), and they just executed the handshake manually, because
apparently 'there's a software problem and linux isn't supported.' 

After that my internet worked, and I found the following post somewhere
else:
-----------------------------------------------------------------
If spyders.local is a local network address, it might be a problem (or
lack) of proper name lookup. Try enabling WINS name lookup as additional
to standard DNS.

In Ubuntu/Debian you would do this by installing the winbind packages,
together with samba I think. Once winbind is up and running, add "wins"
to the end of the "hosts:" line in /etc/nsswitch.conf. Like this:
***** /etc/nsswitch.conf ******
....
hosts files dns wins
....
*******************************
You might need to restart your network or reboot, but IIRC it usually
works right away.
------------------------------------------------------
I'm posting this here:
1 - to ask if this solution works for other people (I can't test it now
-- my laptop's already registered here)
2 - to ask what this even *means* -- Why the heck wouldn't they just use
DNS here?  
3 - to make that 888 number available, if you don't want to have to mess
about with your system to access a public service to which you're
entitled and from which you absolutely shouldn't be excluded.  

Matt

-- 
Matt Price
matt.price-H217xnMUJC0sA/PxXw9srA at public.gmane.org
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