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Feather Support

If you are not a Feather customer (i.e. your Login Name looks like username@featherwifi.net), please select your wireless internet service provider to access support resources for your Wi-Fi product:

We are continually striving to improve the products and services we make available to you, and your comments and suggestions are invaluable. Please take a moment to give us feedback by completing our Customer Satisfaction Survey.

If you still need assistance after reviewing the FAQs below, call Feather Customer Support at 866-WIFI-CITY (866-943-4248). Phone Support is not currently available to Free Users.

Hours of Operation: English Support - 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
Spanish Support - 7AM to Midnight EST


About Your Feather Pass About Feather NestsSM
Features & Benefits
Security
Connecting to the Feather Network
Other Available Wi-Fi Products & Services
Troubleshooting
Billing

 

About Your Feather Pass
  • Do I have to use my time all at once, or can I use it whenever I want?
    Our one-hour, one-day and three-day passes all count the time purchased continuously. That is, as soon as you sign-up, your pass becomes active. When the duration for the time purchased has passed, your pass will expire, whether you were connected to the Feather network the entire length of the pass or not.
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  • When does my pass start?
    As soon as your order is complete you are connected to the internet and your pass becomes active.
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  • Can I sign out and sign back in again?
    Yes. If you sign out, the clock will continue running on your pass. However, as long as you return when there is time left on the clock, you will be able to log back in and resume your service. If your pass expires, you will be given the opportunity to refill your account upon your next sign-in.
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  • Can I use my pass in any city with a Feather network?
    Your pass will work in any city where the Feather network is available. See our coverage maps for more information.
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  • Can I receive a refund for unused time?
    Unused time is non-refundable.
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About Feather NestsSM
  • What exactly is a Feather NestSM?
    Feather is the brand name for the wireless services that EarthLink's municipal Network division provides to municipalities. A Feather Nest is an area in the city where EarthLink is providing free internet access to anyone who can detect and connect to the network
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  • Where can I find a Feather NestSM?
    Visit our coverage page to see a map of the Feather Nests in your city.
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  • Do I need to an account to use the Feather NestSM?
    You do need to register/create an account so that you have a login name and password, but the registration is completely free.
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  • What if I already have an account on the Feather/EarthLink WiFi networkSM?
    You can log in with the login name and password of your paid account. If you do this, you wont have to register for the free account, and the few restrictions that are associated with the free zone wont apply to you.
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  • So how exactly do I get connected to the Feather NestSM?
    Just go to one of the Feather Nest locations, connect to the network, and register for a free account to get started.

    If you have the appropriate equipment on your laptop, your computer should tell you that wireless networks have been detected. Or, you can click on the appropriate icon in your system tray to see the list of available networks. From the list of available networks, select "FeatherByEarthLink."

    This will take you to our sign-in portal. Here, you can either register for a new account and then connect for free, or sign in with an existing login name and password. Before doing either, we strongly recommend you download our free secure access software to ensure the best experience while using the Feather network.
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  • How long can I stay connected in a Feather NestSM?
    You can stay connected for up to 3 hours at a time. At the end of 3 hours you will be disconnected - but you can immediately sign-in again if you are not finished using the Internet. (This policy helps preserve network resources by disconnecting computers that have been left idle, which helps everybody have a higher quality service.)
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Features & Benefits
  • How fast is the Feather Wi-Fi service?
    While the actual speed of the connection you achieve depends on a number of factors, such as the type of laptop card or integrated wireless card you are using, the distance you are from the radio transmitting the signal, etc., our network can achieve speeds up to 1mbps.   The signal is "symmetrical" which means we achieve the same speed both up (sending data from your computer to the internet) and down (receiving data from the internet to your computer)

    Tip:  If your Wi-Fi card supports 802.11g, changing to this protocol from 802.11b may help you achieve a faster connection.
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  • What can I do when I'm connected to the Feather network?
    Anything that you can do when connected to the internet using a traditional internet access account, including email.
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  • Does my Feather account include email?
    No. While the login name might look like an email address, there is no email service associated with the account.

    Of course, you can access any system that is available to the Internet in general, including email servers. Your normal email account (Webmail or POP3) should work while connected to the Feather network.
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Security
  • How secure is the Feather network?
    That depends on how you connect. We recommend connecting to the network by setting up a secure connection following the instructions below.

    You can configure your operating system or a third-party client to achieve a secure connection. This is the approach that we recommend when connecting to any Wi-Fi hotspot. Connecting via this method provides the highest possible security available for your wireless connection.

    You can choose to not to connect securely and log into the Feather network without any additional software other than your preferred web browser. When not using additional encryption software, your connection is secure when connecting to a secure website, but other internet activity (including email and instant messaging) can be compromised.

    For users who want to connect to Feather securely with their current Wi-Fi software included in their operating system, instructions are available for Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows Vista, and Mac OS X.


    If your operating system is not listed above, general instructions for configuring third-party clients are available and may be useful in assisting you with setting up a secure connection to the Feather network.

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  • Can you tell me more about Feather's free encryption software?
    The software is completely free and offered as a service to customers. The latest version can always be downloaded at http://home.feather.net/downloads/.

    The current version of the Feather Secure Client is only available for Windows XP SP2 and Windows 2000 SP4. If you are unsure of your operating system, you can check by running our free system check, or follow the instructions available here.

    The software serves three primary purposes:
    1. It provides data encryption so that all of your internet activity is secure
    2. It will automatically identify the Feather network whenever you are in an area where service is available
    3. It will store your login name and password and log you in automatically without requiring you to re-enter your credentials every time you access the Feather network.
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  • What if I want to set up a secure connection and I don't have one of the operating systems mentioned above (the software isn't available to me)?
    If you are using a Mac with OS X v10.3 or later, you can configure the software on your computer to connect securely to the Feather network. Click here for detailed instructions.

    The Feather Secure Cient is not currently available on any earlier versions of Windows or Mac OSes. Other 3rd-party clients may be available for your operating system. However, these software packages are not supported by Feather. Click here to see a list of 3rd-party clients.
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  • How do I tell if a website is secure?
    While using the Feather Secure Client when connected to the Feather network, all of your communications are secure. However, even when using the Feather Secure Client, you are encouraged to use secure websites when transmitting sensitive information such as credit card numbers. If a webpage you are visiting supports secure communications, you will see a "lock" icon in your browser window (usually in the lower right corner, or next to the URL address bar at the top of your browser.
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Connecting to the Feather Network
  • What type of equipment do I need to have to connect to the Feather network?
    Your computer must be equipped with a 802.11b/g compatible PCMCIA/PC Card or USB wireless adapter. Click here to verify your wireless card. Alternatively, your computer may already have built-in Wi-Fi capabilities. Consult your manufacturer's documentation to determine whether your system supports Wi-Fi. Click here to see EarthLink recommended Wi-Fi equipment.

    If your computer is not equipped with Wi-Fi, two options are available. You can order a laptop card from EarthLink by calling 877-Wi-Fi Sales, or you can buy the proper equipment at many internet and national computer/electronics retailers.
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  • Where can I find a Feather hotspot?
    The EarthLink Feather Wi-Fi network is different from traditional Wi-Fi "hotspots." Our network will blanket the city, thus as long as you're in an area that's been built so far, the WiFi network will be available.

    To see where the network is currently available, visit our coverage page.
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Other Available Wi-Fi Products And Services
  • What other products/services are available on the Feather Wi-Fi network?
    Learn more about these options at the Feather Plans page.
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  • If I buy a monthly subscription after buying a pass, will I get any credit for the pass I just purchased? Can I keep my login name?
    If you sign up for monthly service, you'll be establishing a new account. Unfortunately, the Feather pass you just purchased is in no way transferable.
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Troubleshooting
  • I forgot my Login Name and/or password. How do I recover them?
    When you registered for your account, you were sent a confirmation email. Your login name was provided in the email. By visiting the Login Name and Password Recovery wizard and answering the questions listed, you will be able to retrieve your login name or reset your password.
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  • How do I change my Login Name and/or Password.
    Visit My Account to change your Login Name, Password, or any of your account-related information.
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  • Why am I unable to access websites even after paying for service?
    When you completed your order, you should have seen a welcome screen confirming your order and session time remaining. If you did not see this page, your order may not have been completed or processed properly.

    If you did see the welcome page, and are unable to access websites, please try the following steps: First, try loading a public website such as www.cnn.com or check for connectivity by opening up your mail client and sending/receiving email. Second, if you still are unable to access the internet, you may need to reset your Wi-Fi connection and reconnect to the Feather network. After re-associating with a Feather access point, you should see the Feather landing page when opening up a browser. At this point, you can sign-in with the Login name and password provided during sign-up.

    If you are still unable to access the Feather network after following these steps, please contact Feather Customer Support at 866-WIFI-CITY (866-943-4248).
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  • I am connected to the internet but cannot send/receive my email.
    If you are able to receive email messages through your mail client, but are unable to send messages, your email service provider, ISP, or company may require you to be connected to their network to send messages. This is generally done to increase security and decrease spamming incidents. For more information, please consult your email service provider or IT department.

    Feather also blocks port 25 for outbound email messages in an effort to reduce spam sent from our network. If your email program is configured to use port 25 for outbound messaging, you will need to change your email program's settings to send outbound email. Refer to our Port 25 Blocking FAQ for more information, or contact your mail provider for additional support.

    Alternatively, if your email provider supports a Web Email interface, you should have no problems accessing your email.
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  • I was connected and my internet connection seemed to be working fine, but then I was disconnected. What can I do to prevent this from happening?
    The signal strength of your connection may have dropped to low enough levels to cause a disconnection. Your Feather pass may have also expired. You can refill your account by purchasing an additional 1-Hour, 1-Day, 3-Day pass.
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  • My connection is slow and/or keeps dropping. Is there anything I can do to improve my connection quality?
    There are a number of reasons you may have a slow connection or keep disconnecting from the Feather network. The following tips are for Windows XP systems:

    Check your Wi-Fi signal quality. A low signal (Less than 30%) can cause slow connections and even dropped connections. To check your signal quality/strength, click on the wireless network icon in the sytem tray of XP (lower right-hand corner).

    The closer you are to a Feather access point, the faster your connection and stronger your signal strength will be. Check your Wi-Fi device's signal strength. This is general indicator of your proximity to a Feather access point.

    You may also be experiencing interference from other wireless devices in your immediate area.

    To improve signal quality, ensure you are not near solid walls, and try to move away from devices that are also transmitting on the same frequency (2.4 GHz) as the Feather network or which otherwise might cause interference, including:
    • 2.4/5 gigahertz cordless phones
    • Bluetooth devices
    • Fluorescent lighting
    • Microwave ovens
    • TV sets or computer monitors
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Billing
  • How do I change the account information I provided when I purchased my Feather Pass?
    To update your Feather account information, you can visit My Account. At My Account, you can change yor contact information, login information, billing information, and login name/password recovery answers.
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  • When will the charge for my Feather pass appear on my credit card statement?
    Typically, you will see this charge within 2-3 days of purchasing service from Feather. Your card is charged immediately at order success. However, the amount of time the charge takes to appear on your credit card statement depends on a variety of factors including the card issuer and/or bank policies. Feather will be listed as the company making the charge.
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  • How can I get a copy of my invoice/receipt?
    Upon completion of placing your order, an email confirmation, including invoice details, was emailed to the contact email address you provided during the registration process.
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  • Can I change to a monthly subscription plan?
    Sure! You can sign up for one of our subscription plans at any time. Check out our Monthly Access Plans for more information. Monthly subscriptions are billed separately from your Feather pass and any unused time from your pass will be lost if not used.
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