Many indie coffee cafes now restrict, or ban outright, the use of e-reading devices

[tubemonkey]

Free WiFi at the following:

• Apple Stores
• Barnes & Noble
• Borders
• FedEx
• McDonald's
• Panera Bread
• Public Libraries
• Starbucks

[obs20]

I stopped at McDonald's for coffee at 7:30 on a weekday evening. The place had free WiFi. In the back two women set up what looked like a call center. The place was fairly empty so I didn't really mind and apparently neither did the management. But if it were crowded and I was looking for a place to sit I could see myself becoming upset.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by jerrywojo

How would you know to "hate" coffee shops if you don't drink coffee?

weird...

I don't drink coffee and hate the atmosphere too. Reason? Coffee smells horrible.

[ficbot]

I go to a Starbucks about once a month (it's my father's preferred meeting place for our monthly coffee date) and it is very difficult to get a table there. I don't think they should 'ban' Kindles or ebooks readers if people want to sit and read something while they have their coffee, but I do think that people should not be allowed to tie up tables for hours and hours doing work on a laptop when people might want to come in and have a table for a quick snack or coffee. When you're standing there with food and drink trying to find a place to sit and EVERY table is full with laptop people, it IS discouraging and I think that they should be able to kick those people off if new customers need a place to sit and eat.

[snipenekkid]

never understood why coffee shops have no begun selling readers anyway. I know if I owned a small indie shop I sure would look at that sort of thing and possible added revenue it could bring in if a deal could be worked out with whatever online book seller a given reader seems teamed with.

But hey we are taking NYC here and that is enough explanation for stuff like this.

[elcreative]

Really depressing attitude... to be glad to hate something and a member of the "I hate Apple/Microsoft or whatever" brigade. Liking things is far better and much more interesting to share...

Originally Posted by jhempel24

I'm glad I:

A.) Don't drink coffee

B.) Hate the coffee shop atmosphere, it's like hanging out in a Mac Store.

[GlenBarrington]

Originally Posted by jhempel24

I'm glad I:

A.) Don't drink coffee

B.) Hate the coffee shop atmosphere, it's like hanging out in a Mac Store.

Agreed! The smug, self satisfaction on the faces of, well everyone in those places is appalling.

While I don't agree with the attitude, I guess I sort of understand the faith in their divinely appointed 'specialness' in a young stock trader or lawyer eaning a half million+ dollars a year, I DON'T understand the same atitude in the staff in those places. They are STILL just waiters eaning minimum wage with no benefits.

What's so special about them?

[Scott Nicholson]

Yet another reason to avoid pretentious, overpriced places that smell like scorched beans, stale cigarette smoke, and patchouli? THANK YOU!

Scott

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Free WiFi at the following...

Agreed. There are plenty of other places to go... why go someplace where you know you're not wanted?

I tend to "ghost" through coffee shops (and bookstores) myself... come in, get what I want, and go... so I'd rarely notice a place that didn't want me to stick around. But I've never felt unwelcome at a Starbucks... maybe there's a reason where are so damned many of them, then.

[DixieGal]

Are you sure that y'all are not projecting some of your own biases onto your feelings about coffee shops? I have often asked strangers with laptops if i may share their tiny table while waving my scone and iPad, and the assent is always gracious. You exchange a smile, quick comment on the weather and coffee, and both dosappear back into cyberworld.

I understand not enjoying coffe shops if you don't like the smell. I do not smoke, so bars and casinos smell repulsive to me.

The biggest and coolest Starbucks that I have ever seen was in Geneva. It had room for all with empty space, as well as a large outdoor area. Plenty of outlets for charging your device. In the 3 hours I spent revising our travel plans and hotels, Tim went shopping for Swiss army knives to bring home as gifts. We spent about 25 euros for coffees and food during that time. I think that is key to how welcome we were in that Starbucks. I would never presume to sit there using their bandwidth for several hours while only having a small plain coffee for $2. Free wifi access is not a gift, but is a marketing strategy to get people to linger longer and spend more money.

[Andrew H.]

Some posters in this thread are *much* more pretentious than the most pretentious people I've ever met in a coffee shop.

The coffee shop owners aren't *luddites*; I'm sure that they use all kinds of technology in their business. What they are is unsure how to make a profit when people with laptops buy a drink for $2-4 and then spend two hours a table doing homework/facebook/shopping/etc.

Other places imagine having a more social coffee shop where there is more interaction among the customers (I don't think that they'll get it banning laptops, but I don't own a coffee shop, since you would want to have the option of doing something else while waiting for social-ness to develop).

I don't think that either of these ideas will spread much beyond NY city, where the rent is much more expensive than in the rest of the country, and the coffee isn't priced so much more that they can make up the difference.

[RockdaMan]

Originally Posted by ficbot

When you're standing there with food and drink trying to find a place to sit and EVERY table is full with laptop people, it IS

...time for that establishment to expand and grow into a new space. Let me know where it is so I can move a competitor in next door.

Originally Posted by elcreative

really depressing attitude... to be glad to hate something and a member of the "I hate Apple/Microsoft or whatever" brigade. Liking things is far better and much more interesting to share...

I think hating people who use Apple devices makes some people feel really grounded and...something.

[RockdaMan]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

What they are is unsure how to make a profit when people with laptops buy a drink for $2-4 and then spend two hours a table doing homework/facebook/shopping/etc.

The article says:

>>too many coffee shops in town have had their ambience wrecked when itinerant word processors with laptops turn the tables into office space<<

[SeaBookGuy]

I don't understand how my e-reader that has no internet capability is forbidden, when a print book (or newspaper) is fine?

[DixieGal]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

I don't understand how my e-reader that has no internet capability is forbidden, when a print book (or newspaper) is fine?

Aw Sweetie, you are a nice guy just reading an ebook and not freakIng people out. I'm sure that you would wave over a person looking for an empty seat to sit at your table. You would be okay, no barista would chase away a good customer.