"if they really want to", thats just it Chris they may not want to USE the internet, its personal preference.
As for people at the local casino getting in as an alternate, they have every right to become a member of APAT just like you and I did, and if there is a space available via an alternate on the day then I see no reason why that person can"t play, after all we all have to start as an APAT member somewhere.
It shouldn"t matter how or where you become an APAT member.
My belief to becoming a member is either by registering via APAT website, playing an online game gets you an auto membership, so therefore, playing a live game would make you an auto member also, even if it is the next day you sign up for the forum.
Many people travel down to the events in the hope of still getting into the tournament as an alternate, I"m talking regular APAT members who play, and a lot of them are successful but when the alternate list is opened and people put their name down, having a new local individual sign up can only be good for APAT overall as they hopefully will become a regular player, join in with the forum and be welcomed like everyone else to the APAT community.
As for the speciality series, I would imagine APAT will have an APAT members register first policy, but I can"t confirm that as I do not know.