I knew people who would sit at Perkins for hours nursing a cup of coffee and studying for their exams. I always thought it was kind of stupid. The waitresses would snarl at you for monopolizing the table (even if it was two a.m.), and inevitably you'd need something you'd left at home.

Then there was the Great Laptop Conundrum, which always kept me from enjoying my excursions alone to public places with my laptop. Say you take your laptop to Starbucks. You sign up for the two hours worth of...