My wireless world

Jessica Rao

Age: 18

Residence: Gardnerville

Profession: Part-time student, part-time barista, aspiring interior designer

How often I'm on the Net: A couple hours a day ... all day. I do my homework, check MySpace, watch videos on YouTube, Wikipedia. I'm studying graphic design so I will be using Photoshop.

My equipment: A refurbished Mac, $1,200, purchased online and a Nikon D80 that I plug into it.

How wireless access has changed my life: You don't have to pay for your Internet at home. It's a money saver. It makes life easier. If I don't have time to go home, I can come here and do homework.

Richard Dunn

Age: 59

Residence: Carson City

Profession: Securities trader, retired military

My favorite place to access Wireless: Comma Coffee, because they know my name.

How often I'm on the Net: I really am always on the 'Net. I trade securities, listen to radio stations streaming audio around the U.S. and in four other countries. I download books, read local newspapers. If I find a column I like, I send it to other people.

My equipment: Dell laptop (everything I need in a six-pound package), cell phone to listen to pod casts and radio streams, extra batteries.

How it's changed my life: It's transformed it. I used to have to be home to do what I needed to do - now I can be anywhere, whether that's in Carson City or any place else.

Thomas James

Age: 48

Residence: Reno

Profession: Truck driver

My favorite place: Coffee shops, when in Reno, Java Jungle

What I do: My finances, online conversations on forums. I follow the stock market.

My equipment: An HP I bought two years ago for $800.

How it's changed my life: What's great for truck drivers is they now have wired truck stops. You can get directions, check your e-mail, all without getting out of your truck. You can imagine, running in 48 states, how much directions are needed.

Gary Walsh

Age: 58

Residence: Carson City

Profession: Taxi driver

My favorite places: Java Joe's and Comma Coffee

What I do: Download music from BearShare, Morpheus, which won't play on my Palm Pilot anymore because they say I don't have the rights to transfer. The songs will play on my laptop. I don't know how to get the rights to play on my Palm Pilot, which is important because I listen to music while I drive. Fortunately I got a lot of my music before that.

My equipment: $106 Bose ear buds, $650 Toshiba laptop, $180 to purchase 1 gigabyte of RAM (memory). Now the screens update really quickly.

How it's changed my life: I don't have to pay a carrier. In the end it'd cost $60 a month. It's so much easier to use (a coffee house's) equipment. Another advantage is that I'm anonymous on the Web. I think that cuts down on Spyware. And I don't have a home phone. A cellular phone is more convenient.