The proliferation of wireless Internet in cafes is growing on such a substantial level that it is almost impossible to find a cafe without a Wi-Fi connection.

With laptop in hand, my partner and I traveled around DeKalb in search of wireless connections. We found them even when we weren’t trying to.

Whether driving through residential streets or through the city, we picked up signals from everywhere. However, the hot spots were always cafes such as Starbucks, Wild Rose Bistro, Panera Bread and The House Café.

First, we spoke with Greg Strez, manager of the Wild Rose Bistro, 850 Pappas Drive.

Strez said they have been hooked up with wireless from Comcast for about the last year and a half and have about 10 customers a day who use their service.

He said some classes and study groups meet at the bistro to use the free wireless Internet and relax with a cold beer or deli sandwiches.

“I sometimes use it myself for both business or personal-related work,” Strez said.

My Net searching partner, Mike Hionis, a senior theater major, lives in University Heights across from the bistro and said the bistro’s wireless connection was strong enough for him to use in his apartment while he waited for his own Internet hookup at the beginning of the school year.

With a strong connection and no sign of faulty service, we packed up and moved on. Then we found a huge wireless hot spot near the Sycamore Road shopping centers.

We picked up four signals in front of Target, 2555 Sycamore Road, one of them coming from Borders, 2520 Sycamore Road, just across the street.

At Borders, we spoke to an employee, Peter Johnson, who said they’ve had their connection for the past two years and it seems to only help the business.

There are usually a few people in the cafe area, mostly regulars. However, it picks up much more around finals when five or more can be seen either studying or using the Internet.

Barnes & Noble, 2439 Sycamore Road, seemed to have a slightly larger population of internet-surfers, possibly because of the price.

Both bookstores charge for their connection. Borders runs at $6 for 60 minutes or $9.99 for 24 hours, whereas Barnes & Noble runs at $3.95 for two hours or $19.95 for a whole month.

Starbucks is another store that charges for the use of its internet connection. However, our local one isn’t wireless equipped.

After speaking to Dan Donzelli, manager of Starbucks, 2577 Sycamore Road, I found the store was told by upper management they would receive wireless Internet when they opened in June.

It would be nice to be competitive with the other wireless providers, but Starbucks customers are loyal and won’t go somewhere else simply because of internet connection, Donzelli said.

Plus, they’ve discovered they can pick up other surrounding connections. By sitting next to the window, customers can pick up wireless Internet from across the street at Panera Bread, he said.

My partner and I left Starbucks and hopped the small drainage ditch alongside Sycamore Road on the way to Panera, 2476 Sycamore Road, laptop in one hand, questions in the other.

I asked Manager Kim Quillin if she knew about the Internet parasites across the street and she said she didn’t mind.

The same attitude seems to stem from higher up the Panera ladder.

Gordon Hahn, president of Panera Franchisee Chicago Bread LLC, said the wireless hook-up won’t make or break their customers but it is a nice reward for their loyalty.