I?m getting ready to retire, I?m ready to try something on my own ?
open a small cyber-diner in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.   Provide
good sandwiches / drinks and 10 internet access stations (probably
emachines), some better computers and software with Office, Photoshop,
Quickbooks, etc.., and 4 or 8 Xbox or PS2 stations. Myrtle Beach gets
13 million visitors a year. Lots of retired people live there now.
Just from reading past posts, most cyber-cafes seem to go out of
business ? but, I think with the right atmosphere, marketing, and a
friendly and helpful computer staff, I can pull it off. There?s a
college and tech school that I can use for tech employees once it?s
open. I want a place people feel comfortable asking lots of computer
questions. Like me. : )

My questions:  

1) What recommendations do you have for setting up the computers for
access? Please be as detailed as possible. I?m pretty sure I can get
Road Runner lines (Time Warner Cable), but probably not DSL,  I would
want Wi-Fi for customers with laptops.

2) What would be the best solution to discourage people from going to porn sites? 

3)  What?s the best way to reduce users from corrupting systems, and
what?s the best way to backup and replace hard drive systems that have
been corrupted?

4) Can I connect 10 systems off a few electrical outlets?  

5) What security issues do you see?

6) I've checked on some cyber management software and found a company
called cafesuite. http://cafesuite.net/ Does anyone have experience
with this? On the surface, it looks great.

(If you were going to do this, what would you do) 

Thanks very much. All input will be greatly appreciated.

Hello Will1984,

Let me point you first to a similar answer I prepared over a year ago at
  http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=149689
It turns out that almost all the links I provided then are still valid
now. So the three companies I provided as examples of different kinds
of Internet Cafes are still in business.

For #1 - computer set up, the previous answer appears to cover the
spectrum of solutions. The Apunix site has reorganized slightly - try
  http://www.apunix.com/kiosk_products/index.html
and
  http://www.apunix.com/kiosk_products/appliances.html
for the replacement for their "thin client" they described last year.

For #2 - blocking Porn sites can be done in a straight forward manner
using a firewall / browser proxy. The link I provided last year on the
firewall architecture has moved as well - try
  http://www.nextep.com.au/upload/Firewall_Architecture.pdf
instead. This link can help answer #1 as well.

Once the firewall / web proxy is in place - there are several possible
solutions. What some large companies do is to redirect requests to
sites (e.g., www.playboy.com) with a copy of the company policy
forbidding such access. There are also "black hole" services you can
subscribe to as well to help limit inappropriate access. A quick
search using
  network block pornography
will provide several vendors that would be glad to set something up for you.

#3 - your solution to this (reduce corruption / recovery) may depend
on the operating system or can be handled by some automatic software.
The DNA Lounge page:
  http://www.dnalounge.com/backstage/src/kiosk/
goes into a lot of detail on how they handled the set up / security on
their diskless Linux systems.

For Windows - you should start with Windows 2000 or later; something
where security is a little more robust. I am not quite as familiar
with the set up / products - let me know if you want this pursued in
more detail.

There are also hardware / software solutions to disk cloning. For example:
  http://www.systemimager.org/
describes "System Imager", a product I have used to keep a number of
Linux systems (>100) in sync with a master image of the disk. Similar
products exist for Windows - let me know if you want me to find one
for your.

A hardware solution to disk cloning is a disk duplicator - search for
  disk duplicator equipment
to get several vendors with products.

For #4 - I would be more concerned about the power rating of the
circuit breakers / wiring than the number of outlets. You can
certainly use powerstrips with extension cords (not chained!) to get
enough outlets - but the total load may be too much.

For #5 - for security issues - the firewall article describes some of
the approaches you can use to mitigate problems. However, the yield
management links I provided in the previous answer will point you to
solutions to problems you have not addressed. For example, how do you
do billing / charging for use?

For #6 - I did not find cafesuite in my previous search. I did do a
quick search using phrases such as
  cafesuite complaints
  cafesuite problems
  cafesuite [insert favorite swear word here]
and did not find much negative feedback from customers - mostly
illegal / cracked copies of cafesuite. I checked both Google Groups as
well as the normal search - this is a pretty good sign.

The best site I found before with several products listed was at
  http://www.quicknet.net/reseller/unqualified.htm
which has some good suggestions.

I also suggest:
 - contacting one or more of the existing Internet Cafe's / cyber
diner / etc. to find out what works and what does not.
 - find a competent technical person to set up / manage your systems.
Good luck with your new business.

If some part of the answer is unclear / incomplete, don't hesitate to
ask for a clarification.

  --Maniac

---

Request for Answer Clarification by will1984-ga on 13 Apr 2004 18:26 PDT

opps, relevant. : )

---

Clarification of Answer by maniac-ga on 14 Apr 2004 05:00 PDT

Hello will1984,

Glad to help and thanks for the kind words and tip.

  --Maniac

Thanks for the quick response. Everything appears relavant to my
question and helps me get a good start on research.  This is a
terrific service and you guys do a great job.

I think some of the comments above are excellent.  I will add to what
has already been said.  Unfortunately, some of these answers may
create more questions.  Before you rush into doing your cyber cafe, I
would get answers for many of these questions.  Doing a business plan
with your local SCORE office may help you answer all of the necessary
questions.

>1) What recommendations do you have for setting up the computers for
access? Please be as detailed as possible. I?m pretty sure I can get
Road Runner lines (Time Warner Cable), but probably not DSL,  

For getting Internet service to your cyber coffee shop, there are
several solutions: 1) DSL  2) Cable  3) Satellite  4) T1  5) Frame
Relay  6) Wireless (licensed and unlicensed)

You need to take a careful look at the Terms of Service.  Many times,
DSL, Cable and Satellite services won't let you resell the Internet
service.

DSL service is often limited by the distance to the CO.  In many
locations, cable Internet is not available to businesses because
residential areas are the prime target of cable companies.

With a point-to-point link such as a T1, Frame Relay or Wireless
connection, you can buy Internet in bulk at your local ISP and connect
your coffee shop to the Internet and provide some of the services
yourself.

So for example, you could bring in a T1 or Frame Relay connection from
the ISP to an NIU (which is the network termination).  You would
extend the T1 from that NIU to a router with a T1 card.  The router
will convert T1 to ethernet within your shop.  I would highly
recommend a harware firewall between the router and the switch.  From
there, distribute the internet connection to your computers using a 12
or 24 port switch over 10/100BaseT ethernet.  Cisco makes very nice
routers and switches that can be managed to support your security
policies.  You can find a tech with A+ Net+ and CCNA certifications or
even a recent graduate needing the experience to help you with this
project.  Get the hardware off of e-bay.

A single T1 can easily provide the capacity for 20 simultaneous users.
 If you find you need more capacity, you can always buy a second
circuit and bind the two together using multi-link PPP.  T1s have
1.5/1.5 Mbps service and are usually much more reliable than cable or
DSL.

A local ISP may be interested in offsetting his cost of his Internet
service by reselling a portion of their connection to you.

If your local ISP is within line of sight, consider a point to point
IP link to provide you with Internet wirelessly.  Wireless bridges are
relatively inexpensive these days.

Satellite service is still relatively very expensive.  But if your
Cyber Cafe were to be in an exotic location, an e-mail back to family
might just be the reason to stop in and grab a cup of java at your
place.

>I would want Wi-Fi for customers with laptops.

Adding Wireless service to your shop would require an additional piece
of hardware called a captive portal.  NoCat is an example of one that
runs in a PC that "Free" networks use.  There are probably commercial
versions available for cyber cafes.

I would separate this idea from your initial venture and schedule it
for a later phase; it only complicates things.  I just don't see
vacationers bringing their laptops to the beach - the sun is just too
bright and you really don't want sand in your keyboard.

2) What would be the best solution to discourage people from going to porn sites? 

I would depend on public embarassment.  You want your workstations to
be visible to the public so that customers will get drawn into your
store (and to prevent vadalism or theft)  My local bar, library and
cofee shops do NOT do content filtering.

However, if you insist, this is where your hardware firewall comes in.
 SonicWall makes a nice hardware firewall that can do
subscription-based content filtering.  It can take care of
inappropriate Web content such as porn, hate, violence and others and
the filters are updated regularly.  See
http://www.tribecaexpress.com/sonicwall_content_filtering.htm

I would seek legal advice with an attorney on this question.  There
may be liability, copyright and free speech
issues/advantages/disadvantages in doing/not doing content filtering.

3)  What?s the best way to reduce users from corrupting systems, and
what?s the best way to backup and replace hard drive systems that have
been corrupted?

Schools use computers in classroooms.  As the computers get used, the
hard disks get corrupted and need to be re-built in a similar manner. 
What I have seen done is the computers are re-loaded with a fresh
image over the local LAN on a regular basis.   I would talk to IT
folks at several local school districts and see how they solve this
problem.

4) Can I connect 10 systems off a few electrical outlets? 

(Amps * volts = watts) Build-in an 80% safety factor. If an electrical
circuit is 15 amps, then you can safely run four 300 watt loads (not
five).   The last thing you need is a tripping breaker or a fire.  I
would get the advice of an electrician to help you get the needed
electrical service.

5) What security issues do you see?

(I'm sure there are more)

Inside:
a) Spamming
b) Software Piracy
c) Computer Virusses
d) Denial of Service
e) Theft of credit card information

Outside:
a) Hacking 
b) Trojan Horse
c) Denial of Service

The Cyber Cafe software package should address at least some of these
issues.  The firewall should address most of the rest. I would use a
computer tech that has a CISSP certification for help with
constructing a security policy and ways to enforce it with the right
combination of hardware and software.  I would also use your attorney
to verify that your user terms of service give your security policy
the needed "teeth".

6) I've checked on some cyber management software and found a company
called cafesuite. http://cafesuite.net/ Does anyone have experience
with this? On the surface, it looks great.

In short, does it do what you need it to do?

It's most important that your business plan meshes with the cyber cafe
software.  For example, are you selling coffee and pastry with
Internet or are you selling Internet connectivity with coffee and
pastry?  I have seen both models work.

A nice one I have seen in Montreal focused on letting people try out
multiple user gaming software by the hour.  It was so much fun!!!
(This is something you can never do at the box stores.)  They provided
headphones for gamers to limit the noise, and had joy sticks, flight
controls, steering wheels... as an extra rent.  You could also play
multi-user software on the Internet and on a large plasma screen. 
They would sell the software, compter accessories, Internet access,
some music CDs, T-shirts, coffee and croissants all on the side. 
Knowing Myrtle Beach, this  would certainly meet the demographic.

I have seen other places where the coffee and pastries were the main
idea and Internet access comes as an add-on.  In Starbuck's case, the
cyber cafe is there, they sell the coffee, you bring your laptop.

I would get references from existing cyber cafe owners in Myrtle Beach
and other towns.  Usually they have already learned the high dollar
lessons on this one.  I would at least talk to the guys at Web on the
Run, Myrtle Beach and Beatniks in Hilton Head.  I would find out how
things work in other resort towns.