OT MikeM54321 is absent form the Thread due to visit to Elmatador in Prague.
elmatador and Thread- Yes I was. Thanks elmatador for the hospitality you showed me in our visit to Prague. elmatador took me up to the highest hill in Prague, up the highest former communist block housing project, up on the roof, to see for myself the sea of wireless antenna located at the very highest point in Prague. I think I could almost see every rooftop in all of Prague.
Albeit, everything up there appeared to be mobile wireless related, but from that vantage point one begins to understand how fixed wireless(MMDS, LMDS, and even fiberless) could possibly be an exciting solution to the last mile.
In response to Jim's comments upstream, "But it's now five years, roughly, since the Internet went mainstream, and there's a half-generation of kids who have been brought up, and educated, to 'get it'. Another generation is starting soon." A note of interest in my travels through four European countries- The great number of Internet cafes and the number of times I heard, "E-mail..." or "Internet….," casually mentioned while strolling through sites of interest (Similar to my experiences in Thailand last year).
An example of how prevalent use of the Internet is becoming. In Germany there is a new company called, "EasyEverything." It's the Walmart of Internet cafes. While checking my E-mail in Amsterdam, I estimated the number of terminals available for use in this one cafe-- 300! In Munich, I believe there may be about the same amount. Now the 300 terminals figure isn't so much interesting as how many were in use. I would say in both cases, randomly stopping in to check my E-mail at different days and different times(both operate 24x7), about 90% of the terminals were being used!
In another informal survey, I walked around both cafes snooping to see what in the world so many sit there for hours on end doing(mind you, most users were in the under 30 camp). I would estimate 45% were chatting, 45% were reading E-mail, and another 10% were doing research type surfing. The chatting part took me quite by surprise. The Internet is clearly becoming an accepted social medium for a large number of young people.
The only exception to the phenomenal growth and how pervasive the Internet has become in the last five years of my personal travels is unfortunately in France. As of last year, it’s still quite difficult to even find a computer hooked up to the Internet. Pretty much the same as it was three or four years ago.
To think, just a few short years ago, I would walk into Tourist Information offices and ask, "Where is the nearest Internet café?" And I would always get a blank stare in return. Now more often than not, the reply is instantly, "Just a few doors down there is one."
I bring this all up, just to reassure myself that no matter what technology or company wins, IMHO the demand is clearly there for a connected world. And that demand gets stronger and stronger each and everyday. So I hope it follows, that this crushing blow to the telecommunications infrastructure companies in the last 3 months, will soon be an almost negligible blip on their chart pattern. -MikeM(From Florida) |
