FASTPASS FAQ
Connecting to the Wi-Fi Service
What is Wi-Fi?Wi-Fi (short for Wireless Fidelity) is a technology that includes the IEEE 802.11b standard that uses radio waves in place of wires to transmit data. FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service uses this standard to offer our customers a high-speed wireless way to access the Internet and email at convenient public locations such as airports and hotels. What is a hotspot?A hotspot is a term that is used to indicate an area or venue where Wi-Fi is accessible to the public. Can I send and receive e-mails?Yes. How do I connect to the FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service?The only software you will need is the software driver for your Wi-Fi 802.11b wireless network card and an Internet-ready web browser. The FASTPASS Wi-Fi service requires no additional software.
- NOTE: If you receive an error page, type in any public URL such
as yahoo.com and you should be redirected to the FASTPASS Wi-Fi
Splash page. Can I connect to my email or company network?Yes. FASTPASS supports connections for companies that allow their employees to access corporate information through the Internet, and the most common method for this access is through a VPN (virtual private network). You can check with your company's help desk or IT manager to determine if your company offers a VPN or secure tunneling client software connection to receive and send e-mail or allows remote Internet access into the corporate network. Please refer to your corporate e-mail policy or your company's help desk if you have difficulty accessing your corporate email. What type of network technology does FASTPASS use?FASTPASS provides a broadband (T1 or higher) circuit to each property to supply the necessary bandwidth for high-speed Internet connectivity. A T1 line is capable of data transfer at 1.5 Mbps - 50 to 200 times faster than a standard modem or cellular-based connection. A local area network (LAN) on the property connects to this high-speed circuit to deliver Internet access to the traveler. Where is FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service offered?FASTPASS Wi-Fi service can be redeemed at dozens of public and private locations throughout the metro Atlanta area. http://www.fastpass.net/map for an ever increasing list of FASTPASS Wi-Fi venues. How much does FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service Cost?FASTPASS offers customers a variety of service plans to meet the needs of our customers. Each Connection to FASTPASS lasts a set amount of hours (based on the product you have selected) from the time of purchase or redemption at the same location. Customers can log on and off as many times at any FASTPASS venue during each purchased subscription period. If you are an existing commercial or residential Biltmore Communicaitons contracted customer, you can have FASTPASS Wi-Fi Monthly Recurring service added to your account. Please contact Biltmore Communications customer service, or your account representative for more information.. Does FASTPASS support roaming with other wireless carriers?FASTPASS does not currently offer roaming with other wireless carriers. We expect this functionality later in the 2004 year - please check back. Can I automatically renew my monthly service plans?Yes. The Monthly Recurring Unlimited service is automatically charged to your credit card. If you choose credit card as your payment method, the recurring charge is every 30 days, starting from the date you first sign up for the subscription package. The start date for the auto-renew option is always the day that the subscription is activated, and the thirty-day period is counted from that day. Is there a time commitment on the monthly recurring service plans?No. FASTPASS does not require customers to sign up for a time commitment. Can a monthly recurring service plan have a finite lifespan (e.g., a 1 year subscription)?No, at this time a monthly service plans will no automatically renew. How can I cancel my monthly automatic charge?Customers may cancel the recurring billing option through the online account management or by calling our customer care team. The cancellation does not take place immediately though and only applies to the subsequent billing period. The user has up to 24 hours prior to the start of the next billing period to cancel the automatic renewal feature. The current access period continues until its natural expiration and then would no longer be renewed. FASTPASS will not pro-rate the current monthly charge. A customer may choose to reactivate the monthly recurring option up to the end of their current subscription. For example, if the customer's subscription automatically renews on the 25th day of every month and the customer cancels on the 7th. The customer has until the 25th of that month to re-activate his or her recurring billing option. How am I being billed for my usage?The FASTPASS Wi-Fi service can be billed through one of the following payment options:
Once you have registered, you can easily log into your FASTPASS Wi-Fi account and re-purchase new 24-hour, 30-day access services by entering your user name/phone number and password/PIN and charge the new purchase to the billing method associated with your account. What are your hours of support?You may contact FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service support at 404-961-7079 24 hours a day. Safety and SecurityWhat security features protect the transmission of my password and credit card information over Wi-Fi?FASTPASS Wi-Fi uses SSL to encrypt your passwords, credit card, and other personally identifiable information before transmission over Wi-Fi. You should always be careful about sending any passwords or credit card information over the Internet, whether you are at home or in a public area. SSL is a proven technique used to protect your information from eavesdroppers. So you should always make sure that SSL is active before you send sensitive data. You can determine if SSL is "ON" by checking for the "padlock" icon on the browser bar, shown in the picture below: 
How do I secure my connection to the Internet thru FASTPASS Wi-Fi wireless service?FASTPASS strongly recommends that its customers take measures to ensure the security of their wireless connections, such as virtual private networks (VPNs), encryption and firewalls. As with any high-speed wireless service, the FASTPASS Wi-Fi network is not inherently secure. Furthermore, wireless communications can be intercepted by equipment and software designed for that purpose. Notwithstanding our efforts to enhance security with respect to the service, we cannot guarantee the effectiveness of these efforts and will not be liable to you or any other party for any lack of security that may result from your use of the service or your device. You are responsible for taking such precautions and providing such security measures best suited for your situation and intended use of the service. Can people read my e-mail (and watch me browse the Internet) when I use Wi-Fi?Yes, but… Unless you are using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) or encryption software, your e-mail (or the web site you are browsing) could be copied and read at many nodes that are part of the public Internet. This can happen no matter where you are, even at home. The only additional vulnerability from Wi-Fi is it is possible that someone sitting near you can "see" your e-mail (or the web site you are browsing). To do this they would need a special computer system and be close enough to you to capture your radio signal. Furthermore, many web sites transmit sensitive information submitted by you via SSL, which provides additional protection from eavesdroppers regardless of the type of Internet connection. What is WEP?WEP is a form of data encryption, primarily used to limit specific users on a private network. WEP data encryption may prevent (I) access to the network by "intruders" using similar wireless LAN equipment and (II) capture of wireless LAN traffic through eavesdropping. WEP allows the administrator of a private network to define a set of respective "Keys" for each wireless network user based on a "Key String" passed through the WEP encryption algorithm. Access is denied by anyone who does not have an assigned key assigned by that administrator. Does FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service Support WEP?No. Because FASTPASS Wi-Fi is not a private service users need to turn off the WEP key in order to use our public service. Connection & ConfigurationWhat equipment do I need to connect to service?All you need to access the FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service is a laptop with embedded Wi-Fi or a laptop or handheld device with a Wi-Fi compliant (IEEE 802.11b) wireless network interface card (see network card information below). Where can I purchase the wireless network interface cards needed to access FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service?Wi-Fi Network Interface Cards (NICs) are available from major networking vendors such as Lucent,, Cisco, 3Com, Linksys, SMC, Intel, Sony, Symbol, Xircom and Buffalo. Recently, most new portable computing devices include an embedded 802.11b Wi-Fi comliant network interface. In addition, you can purchase a NIC from your favorite computer or electronic stores. NICs are also available through many on-line vendors. FASTPASS Wi-Fi service works with most major Wi-Fi manufacturer's Wi-Fi cards which are 802.11b compliant. Do I have to change my network settings?FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service utilizes Dynamic Host Configuration protocol (DHCP). DHCP is a protocol for assigning dynamic IP addresses to a device on a network. Most users will not require any additional network setting changes to use the FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service. You should ensure that your Wireless Network Interface is set for DHCP enabled. Do I have to configure the SSID on my Wi-Fi client or software?SSID stands for Service Set Identifier. The SSID differentiates one WLAN network from another. For wireless network access on the FASTPASS Wi-Fi locations, configure your SSID setting for your network card to FASTPASS. (The SSID is case sensitive.) Instructions on how to configure your laptop or PDA may vary. Please refer to your wireless card documentation for specific instructions. You can also call the FASTPASS customer care team at 404-961-7079 for assistance in setting the SSID. What is a cookie? Why does FASTPASS need to place a cookie on my PC?A cookie is a small file sent by a web server and stored directly on your computer. When you re-visit that web server your browser will send the file back to the server each time it requests a page from the server. FASTPASS promotes the use of cookies to simplify the user experience for our customers. Cookies remember specific information such as user preferences and some registration information. Cookies are commonly used to identify users and prepare customized web pages for them. An HTTP cookie cannot be used to get data or your personal data, such as username/password, credit card information or your email address, from your hard drive. When you join the FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service, the FASTPASS server places a cookie on your computer. This information can then be used to identify you as a member and to track information on the computer state, configuration and user preferences. To take full advantage of all of the FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service, do not delete the FASTPASS cookie enabled in your browser when you are using the FASTPASS Wi-Fi Service. How do I check for proper network interface card (NIC) defaults?In order to verify that your Network Interface Card (NIC) is working properly, you may need to check for proper NIC defaults. To check for proper NIC defaults in Windows:
To modify the card's properties:
TroubleshootingWhat if I have trouble connecting?Call Biltmore Communications FASTPASS support at 404-961-7079 for immediate assistance with any connection issues 24 hours a day.. Why am I unable to connect to the network when I can see an available signal?Signal strength may be too weak from where you are. Signal strength from the wireless access point may not be strong enough to allow reliable connections. Not every access point provides a signal that is strong enough for customers to connect from a substantial distance. Physical location of the access point also plays a role determining how close you must be for a reliable connection to occur. The wireless access point is a radio antenna similar to the cellular systems with which we've become so familiar. The available signal strength and associated connection reliability is directly related to your position relative to the access point antenna. The closer you are and the less obstructed your line of vision to the access point, the higher your chances of success will be. Watch the signal strength indicator at the bottom of the available signals window to tell you when the signal strength is at its strongest. It may not be a publicly available access point. Your connection software locates local wireless signals, and finds wireless networks. Not every network detected by the software will be a publicly available network.
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