How-to: live on lo-fi WiFi

It's not too often you see someone drag their desktop system into the local coffee shop, but for Corey the homeless Starbucks nerd, it was just about every day. It ain't easy being homeless anywhere (especially in NYC), but Corey was able to ease the pain with a dumpster PC, free WiFi and Yahoo! Chat. No foolin'.

[richard @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

my hero

[too_lazy_to_stand @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Ya, a "win-win" situation he says, unless you're one of those people who actually buys a coffee, maybe something to eat, and wants a place to sit down a relax for a minute. 'Squaters' like him really get annoying.

[mark @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

How does he get free WiFi at a Starbucks? I thought Starbucks charges for it, using Tmobile.

[Some Dude @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

I dunno but I ran a Starbucks franchise I'd probably make sure I don't have a smelly homeless guy drag his stuff into my establishment. Especially if he's just taking up space and not ordering anything.

(Yeah, this is probably just a late April Fool's joke.)

[Frankie @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

@mark

The guy wasn't using Tmobile. He was using a public WiFi signal that fortunately for him floated through Starbucks.

@some dude

Starbucks doesn't sell franchises. All the self-standing Starbucks stores are owned by corporate. Mwa-hahahaha...!

[fixedgear @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Did you read the story? He spends what little money he has on toiletries and showers at a nearby church. They mentioned how well groomed he appeared. Not an April Fool's joke. The *$ employees took a little pity on him and gave him the stuff that they would normally throw away at the end of the night.

[All Music Site @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

And where puts he his pc, in his shopping bag....don't believe this....

[Some Dude @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

@ Frankie:

Oh, I didn't know that. Learn something new every day. Thanks man.

"Why make a trillion when we could make... BILLIONS!?"

[Connor @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

@All Music Site

"And where puts he his pc, in his shopping bag....don't believe this...."

Shopping cart. You need to learn how to understandf what you read and not just skim for "big words"

[Ernie @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

I'm not sure, I still think it's a late April Fool's joke. But if it is true, I feel bad for him.

[frankie @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

This is one of those 'The Onion' type pieces. Funny but there's no way this is true.

[Elliott Back @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

It's not, it's not... I met this guy in NYC the other week, when I was passing through starbucks at 3 AM on my way to Orlando:

http://elliottback.com/wp/archives/2005/03/24/the-starbucks-guy/#comments

[Andre @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

law a guy just like this @ Starbucks in New York . 41st and Madison.

[logicnazi @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Interesting story but the morally superior tone of the narrator really annoyed me. I mean if any normal person choose to skimp on food to buy some gadgets we would praise them for being thrifty or wisely using their money (think of a college student who eats pasta to save for an ipod). Yet because this guy is homeless the narrator tells us how irresponsible and hopeless this guy is.

Now this isn't about the moral issue of whether it is right for the man to accept charity for food when he chooses to spend his money on food. Personally I have no problem with this (I think we should even support people who don't want to work at a certain minimum level) but this is another issue. The point is the narrator sorta arrogantly assumes that this guy couldn't possibly be acting reasonably to maximize his welfare just because he is homeless.

[RRF @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

I have an old punch card reader which I'm planning to take with me to the Dunkin Donuts down the block.

If you see me, please don't ask me to scan your punch cards!

[whitlock @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

God speed.

[Chewbaka @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Is that an evil guy with bright eyes i see watching him in the top right of the pic? he's scary O_O;;

[James @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

It's Kevin from Sin City!!

[Cisco Kid @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

You know what I ve always wondered why people take their lap tops to coffee establishments or book stores as if they didn't have a home to do their work. I'd gladly buy this guy a scone or cup of coffee just so that he'd be able to stay their without being harrased.

[Dave @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

The whole thing makes me sick. What kind of self-respecting gadget-geek would drag around a giant old crappy PC--and then brag about it? Most of us are used to being around people who love technology and hate soap--but I'd have a lot more respect for the guy if he just made a little more effort and actually stole something decent instead of accepting whatever crap he happened upon.

[MACALEX @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Did Corey say that he wants to have a job? Maybe he prefer that kind life style, most of the homeless people in Russia will beg you to have the same life environment as he has. Free shower at church, free food, free Internet, what else guy need? ;) He could already setup Warez HotLine server at STARBUCKS and make money through warez soft sales for example. ;)
Corey get a life, tracker-tracker.com is what you need, not yahoo chat. :D
Yes, of course you should setup for him paypal account that people could transfer money for new PB G4 with large 100Gb HD for his server. ;) Corey, also you need to move quickly around the country that will make you more secure from FIB folks, sometimes they wake up and hunting for some warez servers. ;)

I don�t know why, but he reminds me of Kevin Mitnick in the young age, Corey is the next big hacker! :)))

Good luck

[Jo @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Its sick. He sits around all day living off the charity of others while there are hard working people out there who are barely able to afford an honest living. What message does this send? That it's okay to sit and enjoy life on someone elses dime?

He should go out and get a job like anyone else that wants the luxuries of internet chat and a freakin scone.

[pat @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Jo....

Who are you to judge him?

Not every single person out there in the world can simply go out and get a job, for a start what kind of address is he supposed to get the people to send snail mail to and what is he supposed to do in a job interview when they ask about why he hasn't had a job for some inordinate amount of time? "oh yeah, see.. I'm actually homeless and yeah"... People like you look down their nose at people like this and i seriously say good on him for doing something other than sticking drugs in his freaking arms all day.

Do you know him?... He could have a mental problem and be chronically depressed, he might lack simple social skills that hinder his progress in the work place, he might have had something terrible happen to him that he never really got over.

No it doesn't send a great message "hey i'm living off someone elses money" when you look at it like that.... But when you look at it from the perspective that there are still *enough* people in the world who are decent enough to help this guy out in some small way i think that really says something for society. Life should be about giving everyone a bit of an opportunity.

Your attitude makes me sick.

I *almost* wish that today you had to live in a situation like his and were forced to rely on the generosity of other people... Make you appreciate what you don't seem to understand.

[acidreflux @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Yo Pat!

Who are you to judge Jo?

First, it is called a P.O. Box, Pat. People don't know why you have a P.O. Box, it doesn't mean that you are homeless because you have one.
Also, he could go to the church and see if they could help him find a solution. Where there is a will, there might just be a way.

Second, when the job interviewer asks him why he hasn't worked in so long, he can tell them the truth. It does work Pat! He ain't applying at Microsoft just yet!
Also, he is bound by the consequences of his decision not to work in the first place. I don't make the rules Pat!

Pat, couldn't he work AND not stick drugs in his arms all day? There are lots of people that actually do this! Then he would be SUPER GOOD, you fool!
Also, Pat are you suggesting that if something really awful happens to me, that it is more reasonable for me to stop working, then to keep working and cope with it another way? Are you against coping skills to Pat?

As for someone knowing him, well it doesn't sound like you know him, so all your assumptions are as weak as those who you attack (Jo). He may NOT have a mental problem. Your probing assumptions just defend your initial beliefs and perspective in regards to his mental health. I did read the original article, and he did seem to have some conventional and social awareness that "he was wearing out his welcome" at Starbucks. Seems at least somewhat socially cognitive! Second, he was excited to speak of the new computer components that the interviewer paid for (to her dismay), so chronically depressed might not be the truth. If he can type on Yahoo all day, and is smart enough to set up wifi, then I am sure he can make my Whopper with Cheese! He instant messages all day, but has sub human social skills, that he can't get a job?

Third, Pat this guy lives in America, and you want to talk about opportunity? Name a place on earth, where your ouput isn't a function of your input (there are exceptions, like the lottery!)

I think your a goddamn fool!

Hey Pat! The good news is that he doesn't have to live in this situation! Stop rationalizing why people CAN live a pathetic life, when they could have so much more! Stop defending this guys lifestyle and how I should react to him, so you can rationalize to him how to be a loser.

I think it is reality to say that some people don't want to work in life, and this dude may be one of them. Some people are physically or mentally handicapped and cannot reasonably work. This dude may be one of them. There are no facts representing this guys mental health, so to assume he is mentally disturbed is pure speculation, and I personally believe against good reason.

[barry bell @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Was that reply for Pat? I wasn't sure...

[L'Emmerdeur @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Gaping holes in social welfare, millions dying due to disease, hunger, violence, a deteriorating environment, lunatics hell-bent on anarchy and nihilism, and you guys are arguing because this poor schmuck takes up a table at a crappy "coffee" place, eats stale leftovers destined for the trash bin, and spends a few bucks on an LCD and some memory.

Yeah, we should have him liquidated, as he is the cause of all of humanity's problems.

[OddManOut @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

I'm amazed he hasn't been able to acquire an obsolete but useful laptop yet. I picked one up out of an abandoned box during the waning hours of a flee market once. It was a P-133 but it had win95 and worked fine with a universal powersupply. IMHO he should sell/pawn the LCD and hit a second hand store. Of course then he'll lose the 'sheik' of using a desktop as a mobile machine.

As for his social responsibility and or ability to work... I don't know. I don't want to tread on anyones opinion (as all are valid), but as an IT profesional (*snicker*) I check the job listings in that field occasionally (as we probably all do) and as an off again on again college student/graduate I still encounter/see/notice the job boards on campus and at the libraries and such. I can honestly say, they actually do on occasion PAY people to do exactly what he is doing anyway (web surfing/web accessing/minor data entry/processing). And there are many programs available in most municipalities that will assist people in finding employment (in some cases there are ones designed SPECIFCALLY for those with some of the potential mental/psychological problems mentioned). Maybe not your dream job, but honest, gainful employment.
My job in help desk support requires you to be able to lift 30lbs and to be able to climb stairs (though not specifically at the same time) and to have no less than one years experience working with computers . If he can get an old CRT into SB's and set it and an older PC up then he could probably do similar work...or at least be trained to do similar work (as most desktop support people will tell you, you just get in and swim and read the text books on the way as needed).
Based on this job (which I am grateful to have) I'm by NO means rich, but I can afford a roof, some food and transportation to and from work and my other required activites. This guy could probably do as well...

VERY TRUE however that I don't know the guy and or his issues. In desktop, support your biggest problem is almost always the end user (finding out what REALLY happened, what they did, what they actually saw, getting them to get out of the way so you can fix it,etc. etc.), so if you have poor social skills or uncontrolable social disorders (chronic anxiety or terets for instance) you might not be able to handle the interpersonal part of this particular job (I probably would have been fired by now if I always blurted out what I was thinking...heck, truthfully I'd probably be in jail or a psych ward). But there are IT jobs out there that have minimal customer interaction if any. Shoot the 6pm to 4am sys/network admin jobs (when it's just you and the backup tapes) are some of the highest paying ones.

But heck why limit it to IT, he could work at the very same locations after hours as a JANITOR and be making honest money. Enough to afford better digs than a card board box or a doorway anyway, and there's nothing wrong with being a janitor...

I don't know. I agree that humans, being social creatures, should be willing to help each other out. If everyone had that general attitude and actually followed through on it we'd have virtually no problems in the world (aside from environmental type stuff).

I say, when he's ready to ask for help AND willing to put in effort for effort with those helping him (the gov, bystanders, friendly lepperchauns on the street, whatever) THEN I personally would be inclined to give him a hand...'cuz THAT's when it will actually do some good. But if this guy is satisfied living this way...let him do his own thing...Don't *help* him, don't hurt him.

I mean, is living the kind of life that he does any crazier or more destructive than SMOKING ? A habit (usually entered into voluntarily) which will eventually kill the participant, and in the mean time harms everyone around them ?

Just my perspective...

[OddManOut @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

(clarification)

"Don't *help* him, don't hurt him."

By this I simply mean that if he really is satisfied with that lifestyle he doesn't really need *help* per se. If he's willing to accept handouts and the like anyone is of course completely free to provide such. I'm not treading on ANYONES rights...

And I'm not taking a stab at smokers (most of those that I encounter are usually nice enough to confine their smoking to themselves as best they can). It was simply an example of another choice of lifestyle that is considered controversial.

PS -I just noticed his PC appears to be a Dell GX110, which is exactly what I (and many of the people I support) use at work. During my first couple months as a marginally paid intern pretty much all I did was tote those things around (often on a cart), set them up, and drink coffee. LOL! He really is doing my job (back then anyway...I've progressed some since then...)...

[krotch @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

The military doesn't require you to have an address. BAM!

[Buffalosighting @ Dec 19th 2005 1:22AM]

Met Corey in Buffalo, NY today. Now he's running a thinkpad T21 with a busted screen and a 15" flatpanel on the side. A bit lower profile. Manager of a local coffee shop tried to kick him out, so I bought him a cup of coffee.