Staying Connected to WiFi

[neumannu47]

Let me confess to being brand new to the iPhone 4 that I just bought. Last week, when I was in a hotel, I was able to connect to WiFi with no problem. When the screen on the iPhone went blank and I had to slide to slider to unlock the phone, I had to log into the Columbris interface. (When you log in as a guest on the WiFi network, you have to authenticate again on the Columbris page.) Obviously having to log in each time makes the WiFi connection useless.

When I returned to work, I experienced the same problem, also with Columbris. Is there a way to keep the connection alive to that I don't have to log in each time I want to check my email?

 

[mstrze]

I don't know about Columbris, but any network I had joined in the past is easily joinable again on my 3G. It's invisible to me, it just happens in the background. The only issue I might have if the network admin changed the password.

This sounds like one of those 'free' wifi services that require you to log on with a website for X-hours of wifi access. If you access through a 'normal' wifi router I don't think you will have this issue.

 

[Applejuiced]

No way around it unless you don't lock your screen and leave it on connected.

 

[neumannu47]

No way around it unless you don't lock your screen and leave it on connected.

That's discouraging.

 

[Applejuiced]

I know.
Those web based wifis annoy me too.

 

[mstrze]

You don't have any other wifi connections available? Surely at work you should have a passworded one for use in-house that's not web-based?

BUT...even the ones that are web-based that I have used at airports and starbucks don't require me to log-in again after I have gone through that first run-in with the browser.

 

[neumannu47]

The only one that has presented a problem so far is Columbris. It's strange that the hotel and my office use the same system.

There is another WiFi in the building. They just gave me the password, and it works fine (no middle-level gateway like Columbris), but the signal is not very good at my desk.

If all else fails, I'm going to try adding a switch and a wireless access point to my Ethernet connection at my desk. Maybe the router (with its WAN set on DHCP) will keep the connection alive. I'm not sure how the iPhone would work with double NAT, but since I'm not doing any port forwarding, maybe it will work.