The Internet, how does it work? Is it a series of tubes carrying messages everywhere? Is it a dump truck with a capacity? We know, like all things computer, it has two parts; software and hardware. The software are the protocols installed on all our computers (TCP/IP), all of the content of the web, and the software on all the branch points of the web. The hardware being all the miles of cables, the millions of servers, and all of our computers we use to communicate across the network. The two properly maintained and working together give us the communication phenomenon of the Internet.
We’ve heard lots of things in the news about the Internet. Like when Egypt shut down its infrastructure yet preserved through-traffic between Europe and Asia; clearly just a software manipulation, and not an effective one at that. Or when the seventy-five year old Armenian scrap metal collector killed the Internet through the Caucasian mountains with a shovel in the same year. Ironically, that did affect the through-traffic of Armenia, proving the old maid more effective than the Egyptian junta. Or when the most visited websites choose to shut down in protest of legislation which would have actually shut them down. Or when hackers attract the attention of the media for their exploits; sometimes robbing banks and donating it to charity, and other times stealing massive amounts of incriminating documents and giving them to journalists worldwide. It has been a very interesting few years for the world wide web.
Plus there is the face of the machine we consumers are familiar with; the various Internet Service Providers (ISP) that actually maintain the infrastructure. At this point, the Internet is built by many different private companies that work to increase its availability and speed for end users, because the end users pay for the services. In cities where the bones of these networks link up, these various companies do something interesting that seems counter-intuitive for competing players. Through a process known as ‘peering’, companies let each other use their networks free of charge and for mutual benefit; the Internet becomes more robust and users get access to more content. This growth is shocking the world and is frequently referred to as the spectrum deficit in headlines.
Europe is having great strides in extending the availability of service to the far corners and fast moving places of the world. Recently, wireless routers were installed on the high speed trains criss-crossing the continent that connect to satellites in orbit, providing high speed, wireless Internet while moving at three hundred kilometers an hour. This accomplishment highlights a spirit of cooperation between IT and transportation sectors of the economy. Across the pond, European nations lead America in broadband subscriptions per capita thanks to the Digital Agenda of the European Commission’s Information Society. They appreciate their Internet and are currently leading the show in innovation for network technology.
America has a few aces up it’s sleeve, though. Google, Kansas, formerly known as Kansas City, is the site of a small scale experiment in fiber optic network infrastructure at the neighborhood home scale. At a cost of up to eight thousand dollars per home, Google will provide 1 Gbps speed at competitive rates to residents. Thats over one hundred times faster than the average American’s service, and sets the stage for the next generation of the Internet, brought to you by the Internet2 consortium. Over three hundred institutions operate a backbone providing a minimum of 100 Gbps, and recent business dealings with Level 3 Communications based out of Europe. At this rate, we should see a commercialized form of fiber-optic Internet services with global connectivity; a reinvention of the web.
The bottom line is that the Internet is a dynamic thing, part private industry and part higher education pet project. As we stress the system and drag it through growth phases, we can expect better and better things from it.