Video: Pirate Wi-Fi on New York City subway

by Elizabeth Seward on

WeMakeCoolSh.it “L Train Notwork” Behind the Scenes from Matthew McGregor-Mento on Vimeo.

There was recently a pirate wi-fi network on New York City‘s L train. Available only in the last cars of the Brooklyn-bound train and only from 8am until 10am, this underground pirate wi-fi network was live and available only for a week. If you’re wondering why or how or who put this together, allow me to fill in those blanks as best as I can. WeMakeCoolSh.it tends to do precisely what their name advertises–they really are masters of cool. The L Train ‘Notwork’ was just one of their endeavors and here’s how it went. The people over at WMCS powered the ‘Notwork’ with person-portable battery-powered web servers. The wi-fi didn’t connect commuters to the internet, though. Instead of connecting train passengers to the whole world wide web, it connected them to content provided by local artists in addition to a chat room. Check out the behind the scenes video above for a look into the the world and work of the people who put this project together.

Find out more about what WMCS did for the L train here on Laughing Squid and keep up with WMCS so that you might be tuned in for their next cool endeavor here on the WMCS website.

Bedbug invasion hits New York City subways

by Jamie Rhein on

We don’t really have a bedbug fetish here at Gadling, but we’ve had something to say about these blood sucking critters on occasion. Here’s just one more that will make you think twice about sitting down on those fairly harmless looking wooden benches while you’re waiting for a subway in New York City. Wooden benches, like motel mattresses, can be a real bedbug hangout, according to this article in the New York Post.

These bedbugs are not happy just sitting on a bench minding their own business. Instead, they can jump on you for a ride on your business. A city authority on bedbugs admitted there have been sightings of these blood lovers down where the commuters wait for a ride. Exclamations like “That’s gross!” have been heard.

All subway stations aren’t involved in the invasion. To my dismay, the Union Square station, the one that is closest to where my brother lives, is mentioned twice. It’s one of those sprawling stations that goes every which way, so I have no idea which benches you should avoid.

Bedbugs have also been sighted at the Fordham Road stations and the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station in Brooklyn. Maybe they’ve become tired of their hotel digs.

Other Gadling bedbug stories:

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