Why Lug a Laptop When You've Got Libraries?

  
The most irritating part of taking work along on a summer vacation or getaway is the baggage. This week, KYW’s Jay Lloyd shows you how you can leave the laptop behind but still get the work done.

by KYW's Jay Lloyd

So there I was, at Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris, in a security line -- shoes in hand, the laptop computer balanced on top of its bag, and another bag hanging from my shoulder.

I heard the crash before I even felt the Dell laptop slide nose-first onto the deck. Computer hash.

That was a painful and expensive lesson.  Now, I try to use public libraries.  From Scotland to Spain, from Maryland to Texas, they all offer free (or for a token donation) access to computers and the Internet. Why schlep a laptop?

There’s more to public libraries than books. Overseas, they’re a good source of current English-language newspapers. Considering that the International Herald Tribune runs more than $3 a day, it pays to look at the library’s copy.

And librarians usually know the neighborhood -- including the most reasonable restaurants, the ones inhabited by locals.

And they become the ideal meeting place after members of the family go separate ways for shopping or running errands during the day.

One friend also points out that libraries often have the cleanest restrooms, are air conditioned during the broiling days of summer, and are a warm spot to escape the chill of winter.

(File photo: Internet access at a library in Waterford, Ireland)