It’s getting harder and harder to be surprised about the MPAA’s silly tactics. So, surprise! The MPAA has successfully shut down an Ohio town’s municipal Wi-Fi network because one person was caught illegally downloading a movie. You know, peers and seeders and all that.

You’ll soon be able to surf the Web on your BlackBerry or laptop while onboard a Lufthansa flight. The German airline said today that it’s re-introducing in-flight Wi-Fi, and that everything will be up and running by by the first half of next year.

Yup, another airline is poised to offer in-flight Wi-Fi. United Airlines has said that it will start use of Aircell’s Gogo service beginning with flights between New York and California. It’s $12.95 for laptop access for the duration of the flight.

We’re pleased to say that 802.11n has finally been finalized (hmmm… “finally been finalized.” I see that’s why we make the big bucks, lol!). That’s right, you won’t be buying “draft n” routers anymore, as the Wi-Fi Alliance has updated its tests, going from “draft n” to “Wi-Fi Certified n.” Does that make a difference in your everyday computing? No, probably not—how many years now have we been using “draft n” items with nary an issue?

In an effort or “re-engage customers as a serious bookseller,” Borders is offering free Wi-Fi powered by Verizon in over 500 stores. Fair enough. Might be a nice little treat for those dudes who sit in the anime aisle reading book after book or the weird guy who is totally angry at the latest of Atlantic Monthly and willing to tell everyone about it near the cafe. It will, in short, make the Borders experience just that more varied and magical.

Pretty interesting article in the WSJ this morning dealing with the scourge of Wi-Fi-hogging laptop users in coffee shops, also known as cafés. It’s a trend story, and the trend is that, hurt by the recession, several New York area cafés are now banning the use of laptops. It seems laptop-wielding customers would frequently hog all the space, preventing “real” customers from eating lunch or whatever. So, ban.

A British DJ (well, ex-DJ), Steve Miller, claims to be allergic to Wi-Fi. As such, he’s had to spend recent days hiding away in his house, away from any and all Wi-Fi signals. Supposedly he’s one of the 2 percent of people who suffer from electromagnetic sensitivity.

Ever find yourself wandering around Manhattan with nothing but a netbook in your backpack? Who doesn’t, right? Well, if that’s the case, get thee to the New York Public Library. It seems there’s a new Wi-Fi room that’s the bee’s knees.

Whether we realize it or not, there’s a race going on in the skies above us. With the advent of wireless Internet access creeping into what once our sanctuary of solitude at 37,000 feet has now become a domain for self-righteous dingbats to livestream their flights for all to see.

Leading the way is Virgin America who announced today that they are the first airline in all the land to offer Aircell’s Gogo in-flight Wi-Fi service on every single flight. To mark the occasion an air-to-ground Skype video call will take place with thee Oprah Winfrey herself and will air on Thursday the 21st. VoIP calls aren’t allowed on any Virgin America flight, but, you know, you can’t say no to Oprah or she’ll eat you.

A few weeks back I hopped onto my first Virgin America flight with Aircell’s Gogo service on-board. It wasn’t the first time I’ve reviewed Gogo and if you recall I was on the first commercial Gogo flight with American Air. The plan was to interview James Weatherson, Virgin America’s inflight entertainment engineer, while I was up in the air, but there was a scheduling mix up and the interview never went down. So we opted to do it the old fashioned way. Below is my brief conversation with James about Red and where it’s headed.

A fascinating bit of Apple gossip for your Tuesday morning, gossip that piggybacks on the never-going-to-die “iPhone on Verizon Wireless?” rumor. Does an “iPhone lite” interest you? Or perhaps a “media pad that would let users listen to music, view photos, and watch high-definition videos” that makes calls using Wi-Fi?

Reader Michael writes:

I could not log onto my Starbucks ATT WiFi account today. I called ATT and they said it’s part of the Starbucks issue that they are tying to resolve as quickly as possible. And that it’s not a technical issue but rather a business issue that is the reason for the denial of access.

Just a quick update for the transcon flying tech folk. Virgin America updated their online booking system to show you which flights are wired for Wi-Fi so, you know what you’re getting yourself into before you board the plane. Also, starting April 5th, the following routes will all be wired for Wi-Fi: Boston to LA, Boston to San Francisco and Dulles to Los Angeles.

A bill that was introduced last week by two Texas Republicans would require all ISPs and anyone providing Internet access otherwise (that’s you and me, reader, if you have a Wi-Fi router) to keep logs of activity for up to two years. This bill aims to seek out those sick individuals who are trafficking child porn. The Internet SAFETY (Internet Stopping Adults Facilitating the Exploitation of Today’s Youth Act) Act, introduced by Rep. Lamar Smith and Sen. John Cornyn, threw out some numbers that are quite startling.

Virgin America, my favorite domestic airline, is launching service to and from Boston today with three daily routes from LA and two daily routes from San Francisco. This is important for those traveling between Boston and California because all flights to and from Boston are equipped with Aircell’s Gogo in-flight Wi-Fi service.

Update: We’ve got a list of all Wi-Fi-enabled VA flights after the jump.

I don’t know about you guys, but $109 for a flight from NYC to the west coast is dirt-cheap. Sure, airline flights are neither gadget-y nor gear-y, but VA has Wi-Fi-enabled flights and Doom on-board. Just book your transcon flight by February 17th and fly by April 1st. Virgin America flies from NYC’s JFK to Las Vegas, San Diego, Las Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle.

For those traveling between LAX and JFK, you’ll be happy to know that VA is offering flights between June 17th and July 22nd for only $105 each way. Score!

Virgin America

You may soon be able stop your packet sniffing, WEP cracking neighbors from stealing your precious internet with Wi-Fi blocking paint. That’s right. Nothing complicated, just paint.

Sony’s DSC-G3 point-and-shoot digital camera not only has built-in Wi-Fi, but it also has its own Web browser. Guess that makes uploading your photos to the Internet a little easier.