I needed to file a story quickly. Too bad I wasn't yet equipped with wireless capability on my PDA; it would've eliminated a lot of scampering around the airport to find a phone line to "jack in" and e-mail my story.

For according to a new survey, BWI ranked fifth among the nation's airports when it comes to wireless Internet access.

Surprisingly, Cincinnati/Northern International Airport ranked 17th out of the 25 listed, beating out bigger airports such as Logan International in Boston, Kennedy in New York and Reagan National in Washington, D.C.

In a separate survey conducted by the same people, Greater Cincinnati as a whole ranked 52nd, up from 57th last year, with restaurants such as Buffalo Wild Wings in Delhi Township using wireless Internet access to attract customers and the area boasting 35-plus "hot spots," or places with wireless capability.

I've seen wireless routers sprouting up at restaurants all over town, although many of the city's Starbucks aren't yet equipped as they are in other places.

Top 10 wireless airports

The nation's airports with the most wireless Internet . Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International ranked 17th of 25. 1. Dallas-Fort Worth International 2. LaGuardia International (New York) 3. Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International 4. O'Hare International (Chicago) 5. Baltimore/Washington International 6. Minneapolis/St. Paul International 7. Seattle-Tacoma International 8. San Francisco International 9. Los Angeles International 10. Denver International Source: Intel, Sperling's BestPlaces

One restaurant owner told me that he allows customers to use the wireless network for free but that he doesn't advertise the fact because he doesn't want it to turn into a cyber cafe - customer turnover is king for many lunch spots.

As for airport wireless access, a key to an increasingly large segment of the business travel community, it's about to get a lot better locally.

That's according to airport officials and Delta Air Lines. Delta controls the busiest part of the airport, which has five known "hot spots." Such wireless access points allow someone with a specially equipped laptop or PDA to access the Web without needing a phone line.

All are in Delta's Terminal 3. Comair's Concourse C in that terminal has full coverage through an arrangement set up by the airport authority, since it controls that facility. That set-up is through Cincinnati Bell, with costs ranging from $4.95 an hour to $9.95 a day.

The only places in Concourses A and B where so-called "wi-fi" is available is at Delta's Crown Room lounges for its elite frequent fliers, because Delta controls the airspace there.

The Delta official in charge of the program, however, says full coverage could be available to all of the concourses this year, even by the end of the summer, meaning that schleps like us who fly coach can check e-mail at the gate before boarding.

"We really want to get it throughout the airport," says Tom Fulton, Delta's general manager of online sales and service. "We just need to get the design work and installation done and get the concession agreement in place."

One possible reason for the haste is that it is a potential revenue source for the struggling airline. As in its Crown Rooms, users would pay to use the service through T-Mobile, with Delta getting a share of the action. Prices range from less than $10 for an hour to $10 or so for a day up to a subscription service.

T-Mobile spots are nationwide for frequent users, with that company setting up an agreement with Starbucks nationally.

The survey was conducted by Bert Sperling and his staff at Portland, Ore.-based Sperling's BestPlaces Inc. (www.bestplaces.net). That firm, which also does the "Best Places To Live" survey for Money magazine, did it on behalf of computer processing chip maker Intel by surveying known access points in airports and cities as of two months ago, through sources such as online reference guides, phone calls and the like.

Sperling says the only airport to offer free wireless access is Long Beach, Calif.

He also says one hitch to wider airport access nationally could be a potential rift between airlines/airports and concessionaires such as coffee shops, restaurants and bars.

The group representing the concessionaires has filed a brief with the Federal Communications Commission, arguing that they should be able to set up their own "hot spots" and generate their own revenue inside their stores, and not allow all those users and potential income go to the airport or controlling airline.

"It points out that the spread of this is going to be inevitable," Sperling says. "It could delay further coverage, but as this gets bigger, surveys like this will become superfluous because it will be everywhere."

That'll be great. Now I just need to get "unwired" and maybe I'll make deadline.

Album recording followup: Thanks to all who wrote and called after my last column on recording vinyl records into your computer.

An addendum: A rep from MusicMatch called to say that the upgraded version should be the only one that has recording capability, although give it a try after getting the free version at www.musicmatch.com. The free version worked for me.

And it can sense the pauses between tracks automatically if set up properly, and create new files for each new song. Still, that doesn't help if you're recording a disc like Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, which runs continuously.

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E-mail jpilcher@enquirer.com