The boat has arrived in the harbour, the mooring has gone well, all the work is done, and the skipper wants to download the latest weather report from the Internet or take a look at the next destination on Google Maps.
The family demands online shopping, the latest YouTube videos or news from their friends on Facebook etc. The harbour naturally has Wi-Fi. But the tedious process of logging every single smartphone and tablet onto the harbour Wi-Fi is immediately followed by disappointment: the internet is slow.
It takes minutes for a Facebook page to load, Google Maps fails completely and YouTube is out of the question. Walking to a bench at the start of the jetty promises better Wi-Fi reception - but either it's raining or the sun is shining so brightly that nothing can be seen on the device display.
Then the skipper thinks of the personal hotspot in his smartphone: all devices connect to the Internet via this and do without the harbour WLAN.
The connection is surprisingly fast and everyone is happy - but only until half an hour later, when a text message arrives informing them that 80 per cent of their monthly data allowance has now been used up and that they will have to pay for a top-up as soon as possible.
This or something similar is the everyday annoyance with the Internet on board. Why can't it be as uncomplicated as at home, where the network is simply always available at a good speed?
You can read the full report in the January issue of boote - on sale from 14.12.16.
