Can you have internet without a land line or cable?

[Dee*Jay]

Storm, thanks for those three suggestions! I will look into them and see if any will work.

And oh yes, there is all sorts of wiring and rewiring going on! I am not going to wire for a stereo system though because I really think those are going totally wireless in the pretty immediate future. There are even some decent wireless options on the market now (that are surprisingly not even that expensive) and I'm going to put one of those in with the thought that it will be easy to upgrade in the future as things change.

As for lighting... I spent four grand last weekend on mercury glass pendant lights and Lutron receptables with screwless coverplates and two circuit track... oh my...

 

[sonnyjane]

Not exactly the boonies DF -- 1.75 miles from the Sears Tower!

There was never any cable in this space as far as I can tell, and I can't imagine where a land line comes in... believe me, the space is gutted down to the studs at this point so I would think I'd have seen it (but I suppose anything is possible I am missing it somehow).

The problem is this is commercial space I'm converting to a residence so not all of the "normal" things you think of in a home are readily apparently. E.g., the area that I'm going to put my bed in used to be the reception area. And the old offices? Welcome to the dining room! (Although to say "room" is kind of a misnomer because the only walls are to enclose the bathrooms. Basically I'm going to live in a 2800 square foot studio.)

That being said, I suppose I could have a phone line or cable installed, but I am just so surprised in this day and age that I can't easily go all wireless.

You'd think it would HAVE to have phone lines if it was an office with a reception area?

 

[Dee*Jay]

I know -- right?!? There is a box on the wall by the kitchen where a phone used to be mounted when when the guys took that apart all the wiring was already gone. There may have also been phone wiring in the offices or reception area, but I can't figure out where it it/was, and the place is gutted right down to the concrete floor in those areas. If I can't get a totally wireless solution I will liklely have the phone company come out and reinstall phone wiring for DSL. All of the reviews for AT&T (the provider in my area) are SO terrible -- apparently they *tell* you you can have naked DSL (which is a regulatory requirement since 2007) and then you end up with a bill that has phone service on it and it's a b!tch to get it straightened out.

 

[marymm]

You can buy a Wireless HotSpot device from AT&T and pay for a monthly data plan, and run your laptop off that - you can plug your laptop into the device or you can get a wireless card for your laptop and be wireless (but I think you have to be within a certain feet/yard-range of the HotSpot device). The device is small and portable, so you can take it with you if you want to use it on the road or on a trip.

I did this for a couple of years and it worked just fine for me - I was in a small apartment with no landline and no TV/cable - I forget the original purchase price but very, very reasonable - my husband bought it as he was an existing AT&T wireless customer so I think we got a break in the purchase price and in the monthly data plan charge - we may have had to commit to a 2-year contract but we knew we'd use it that long. More recently, I traded in the HotSpot for a cell phone (with the same phone number the HotSpot device had been assigned), so we don't have it anymore but it was sure was useful and cost-effective.

 

[blackprophet]

You should have lots of options. Some of these have been covered already, but I'll give a more comprehensive answer.
(The disclaimer is this is what is available in my area, but options to ask about in your area).

Cell - Any updated android, iPhone or blackberry 10 device can act as wifi hotspot. You don't need cords. All you need is a data plan with a lot of space. If you have an unlimited data plan, even better. The speed wont be cable speed, but it should be good enough to stream as long as you have 4G or LTE in your area. This would be the easiest option. Google "how to use my (insert brand here) phone as a mobile hotspot" to find out how.

Wireless Hub- You can get a internet modem that doesn't need cable or dsl. Here is an example from my area (http://www.rogers.com/web/link/wirelessBuyFlow?forwardTo=PhoneThenPlan&productType=normal&productId_Detailed=MF28BBLKR) you would have to pay for a plan along with it. All you do is plug it into a socket and away you go. You would need to pay for the plan to go along with it.

Mobile Hotspot - Similar to the above, except runs off a battery so you dont even need to plug it into the wall (untill it needs to be recharged anyways (http://www.rogers.com/web/link/wirelessBuyFlow?forwardTo=PhoneThenPlan&productType=normal&productId_Detailed=AC763SBLK&N=52+11+4294868752#). A more versitile option.

Wireless wifi USB stick - Like the two above but plugs into the USB port of your computer. (http://www.rogers.com/web/link/wirelessBuyFlow?forwardTo=PhoneThenPlan&productType=normal&productId_Detailed=AC330REDR&N=52+11+4294868752)

Satallite Internet - As stated, recieveing internet from a satalite dish. You live near a netropolitan area, so the above three options are much better.

If I think of anything else, I will post again.

(To my understanding FiOs is still a "wired" solution)