Keith Watanabe * NET 2.0

As applications explode become free, hardware performance increases with better CPUs, memory and storage, optimization continues for systems and techniques for scalability improves, the one thing I've seen as a constant is how bad networks are.  Certainly, wireless and the penetration of broadband have helped move the internet along, I cannot help but feel that network bandwidth and constraints are really holding back computing to the next few degrees.  This notion came to me from the following observations:

• A problem recently at work where displaying a 1MB PDF file took around 40-50 seconds with the servers being hosted in the states.
• The cost of fiber optic cable between servers to an EMC and the fact that this cost was to be partly mitigated through another internal group's rental for the lines/service.
• The problem of ISPs especially the cable companies of throttling users for "excessive usage".
• The high cost of networking for bandwidth usage that hosting services and the like charge to businesses.
• The various limits imposed by FCC in terms of how wireless is handled.
• An entry in Wikipedia describing Web 3.0 as being 1 GB of networking compared with 10-100 mb.
• Too many outtages on things like mobiles and connectivity as a result of bad networks.
• Someone once telling me in my former securities company how network people were basically the last in line in terms of blame for problems in the application; that is, they had no one else to blame since there were no lower levels that could cause an issue.

If these observations hold true, then I think that there needs to be a renewed interest in pushing the limits of the network.  In other words, we need to improve networks in terms of redundancy, cost, speed, security, and flexibility.  At the same time, phone companies, ISPs, the cable companies (or few remaining) and mobile servies must find ways to reduce the cost and improve their service, rather than overcharging users for crappy services.  I feel that there are too many unnecessary constraints on networks that limit another explosion of technical advances.

More than that, I feel that consumers are simply held hostage by these bottlenecks for no good reason.  Obviously, we had past cases like Bell Labs which needed to be broken up at one point.  Now, we're facing the same crisis with limited selection of providers (at least in the states) and far too many restrictions (not just on policies for usage).  Heck, ironically when I posted this blog, my ADSL device shut down.  So I think I'm onto something....