Using multiple applications with ASPNETDB

As a web developer, I have used ASPNETDB several times to manage the membership and role information for my applications. It has been a while since I have done software development in ASP.NET. So when I try things now, I realize there are several small things that I knew at my fingertips back then, come with a little more effort right now. I hooked up a new application to use the ASPNETDB, and tried to create a new login. I got the error that the username already exists.

This was surprising, because it was a new application. I realized that the application was actually pointing to the same instance of ASPNETDB on my DB server. I knew that there was some way of isolating multiple applications in the same membership database. After a bit of research I recalled out to do it:

In the web.config file, look for the following section:

<membership>
<providers>
<clear/>
<add name="AspNetSqlMembershipProvider"
type="System.Web.Security.SqlMembershipProvider, System.Web, Version=2.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b03f5f7f11d50a3a"
connectionStringName="ApplicationServices"
enablePasswordRetrieval="false"
enablePasswordReset="true"
requiresQuestionAndAnswer="false"
requiresUniqueEmail="false"
passwordFormat="Hashed"
maxInvalidPasswordAttempts="5"
minRequiredPasswordLength="6"
minRequiredNonalphanumericCharacters="0"
passwordAttemptWindow="10"
passwordStrengthRegularExpression=""
applicationName="/"
/>
</providers>
</membership>

Change the value of the applicationName attribute inside the providers element to then name of your application, and you are good to go!

Free Internet?

This is a short post from the Greater Rochester International Airport as I wait for my flight. No other service at an airport makes me happier than free internet. The first time I saw this was when my flight to Memphis was delayed by a couple of hours and I was stuck waiting at Charlotte Douglas Int'l airport. I saw an unusually high number of people using their laptops and somehow got the feeling that there might be internet connectivity. I booted up my machine and to my pleasant surprise, I was right. I was able to establish a secure connection to my school network and get some work done while I waited. For internet savvy people like us, there isn't really much you can do if you are stuck waiting at an airport, and a free connection just saves your day.

But I was wondering what is it that allows an airport to host a free wifi connection. Large and prestigious airports like the O'Hare Int'l airport at Chicago do not have a free wifi connection. What is it that prevents them from doing so? What is the business model followed at the lesser known airports that lets them provide this service to travellers?