Laying cable...

So there's been no blogging of late, basically because I'm lazy. Still, I've had a few things mulling around in my head for a while, especially to do with the National Broadband Network.

Now this is one of those things that people seem to be very "for" without having any qualifications whatsover.

"Broadband good, Liberal bad, Broadband good, Liberal badddddddd....." said the sheep as they trotted one by one down the race. Having an opinion doesn't automatically mean that you hate the internet (a topic for another post), just that maybe you think you're smarter than Julia Gillard (and let's face it, who of us doesn't think that occasionally?).

Anyway, reading the print edition of the Australian today I came across a couple of stories that galvanised me to put some thoughts down onto paper, or rather, onto the interwebs, so here they are.

Point One.

I think it's a bit ridiculous that the Government wants to tear up the existing copper cables that currently connect our country, so that anyone who wants a home phone will be forced to go through the National Broadband Network. Surely the point of the privatisation of Telstra was that people were sick of a Government owned monopoly in the telecommunications sector trying to control how people did things while offering expensive and mediocre service? We're going to be paying a lot of money to provide a Universal Service Obligation (currently provided by Telstra and paid for by the Government) along a fibre connection. This fibre connection will be expensive to connect to the household (whether paid for by the householder or the taxpayer, in the end someone pays) and not only that, it will require an ongoing provision and maintenance of a battery in the home, since fibre won't work without power at each end (with a copper cable the power can be sent from one end to enable the system to work). In addition, those people who simply want a cheap, low cost internet connection will be forced into the NBN's high speed service even though it's probably not appropriate for what they really want.

Why not leave the existing copper in place and allow the private telcos to continue to compete with the NBN? This will keep prices down and service up and enable real competition.

(The answer is of course that the NBN is such a dodgy proposition that it can't possibly pay for itself unless all internet users are forced to use it and nothing else and even then it probably won't pay)

Point Two.

Apparently 30% of Australian households are currently already serviced with a cable (I believe Foxtel or Optus, can't remember right now) that will provide them with internet at a speed of approximately 100Mbps (the speed which is being advertised as the big selling point of the NBN). Not only are very few customers actually utilising this opportunity for very fast broadband, but the Government is actually going to pay a great deal of money to prevent them from being able to and forcing them to use the new NBN.

Why not leave the existing cable in place and if users want superfast broadband let them use that? In the meantime, effort could be spent improving access to those non-metropolitan areas that might actually have service delivery issues.

(The answer is of course that the NBN is such a dodgy proposition that it can't possibly pay for itself unless all internet users are forced to use it and nothing else and even then it probably won't pay)

Point Three.

Points of connection. Noone actually cares about these, they don't actually mean anything. Except that the NBN wants as few as possible (I think 14) and all the other companies who have existing fibre in the ground are suddenly not happy because this will mean even less competition.

Why not let other companies use their own pipes to carry data?

(The answer is of course that the NBN is such a dodgy proposition that it can't possibly pay for itself unless all internet users are forced to use it and nothing else and even then it probably won't pay)

My big problem with the NBN is this. If it's such a great idea (and who doesn't like the idea of a Government communications monopoly) than let's have one. It'll be so good that it should be able to beat off it's competitors using copper and wireless. It should just about write it's own cost-benefit analysis. It's business plan should be so awesome it's picks up chicks in a night club just by saying "Hey! How you doin?"

When the Government is doing tricky or sneaky things such as forcing households to sign up, or paying vast amounts to remove competitive providers than there must be something wrong.

Not only that, but how many houses actually want 100Mbps download speed? Not very many at the current prices.

How about this? Why not install cable into business districts and schools and hospitals? Why not put in fibre to every single exchange in the country and add a few more? After that, let's start thinking about fibre to the household, but fibre to every exchange will speed up things dramatically.

And the reason for this big essay?

The two articles in the Oz.

The first was about how it's now possible to deliver speeds of 100Mbps over a copper cable up to 1km from an exchange. It'll do 300Mpbs 400 metres from the exchange! While this doesn't seem realistic for much of Australia, it would probably be appropriate for 10% of the country. Not only that, but it shows once again that technology doesn't stand still, while the Government is betting all its chips on the one bet.

The second is about trialling new mobile technologies in Sydney that should deliver download speeds of 100Mbps.

Notice the magic number here? Both of them are looking at the same speeds that will be offered by the NBN, but without the vast expense.

I also remember a recent article talking about how an Australian company was trialling technologies that would enable internet access via satellite in excess of 50Mbps (I don't have a link and don't remember the exact speed, but it was fast).

Basically, there's more options out there than just fibre and for the Government to deny that and actively remove other options is practically criminal (in my opinion).

That's my two cents anyway

cheers

Dr Harry

Edit: Further news to hand. CSIRO are trialling technologies using the analogue TV bandwidth that will deliver similar speeds. Now it will only work in areas with low population, but that's not the point. The point is that the Government has all it's eggs in the fibre to the home basket, while technology is developing rapidly. It's like we're living in the future!

Let's roll out fibre, but lets not make it the be all and end all. Lets encourage other options as well. In other words, lets be smart about it.

Just for something completely different, here's a photo of Angus's favourite diva!

Spare the rod and spoil the child...

I'm not sure you could find a much more controversial topic than education to talk about. Check out some of the following links to learn more.

That video above is a preview for a new movie about charter schools in New York City. This article has a lot more information about these schools and the role that they play. They are basically private schools that are funded with public money but without the bureacracy and bullshit that public schools are afflicted by. It's a very interesting read and offers lots of things to think about. Speaking of kids and confidence, this book is apparently a very good explanation of many of the problems affecting education in the US. Also, that bit where the kid hits the roof on his mountain bike? Hilarious!

This woman above gave a very interesting speech to the Conservative Party Conference in the UK. There's some very interesting points, including the guilt she talks about experiencing when voting Conservative for the first time. I would suggest that a lot of the issues she talks about would also be experienced here in Tasmania. Read more about it here.

Boy on a Bike wrote a very good blog post about his son's schooling and some of the issues that he has encountered. This is exactly what education is about nowadays.

Too much of today's education is put back onto the students. They need to provide their own motivation, they need to choose what they should do. Unfortunately, the reality is that they're still CHILDREN! The biggest problem in education nowadays?

Students have lost their fear.

That's it, it's that simple. Not only do students lack respect for their teachers, but many parents just don't value education and as such are not willing to back up the teacher when they need to. It only takes a few students doing the wrong thing to drag down the overall level of the school.

Imagine a typical bell curve. On the far left are those students who are always going to be unable to function in a normal classroom (for whatever reason). On the far right are those students who are always going to achieve well, no matter what. In the middle, sitting on the bell, are the vast majority of the student population. Where things are going well, the entire bell curve can be moved further to the right, so that all students achieve to a high standard. When things are going poorly than the entire bell gets dragged to the left. One or two students getting away with doing the wrong thing sets the wrong example for all those students in the middle and allows that drag leftwards to occur. How can we fix this? In all seriousness?

Bring back the cane.

That's it. That's the solution to many of our educational problems right there.

Speaking of which, this woman is talking about how good teachers make more of a difference than anything else in schools and that we need to find ways to identify those good teachers. She's quite right, good teachers have a massive impact on a student's outcome. However, a teacher's impact, while large, isn't the largest influence on a student. What's number one? Parents and home life, by a long way. Remember the old Jesuit idea of show me the boy and I'll show you the man? (I'm paraphrasing here obviously). It holds true to an extent that many people maybe just don't recognise.

Will any of this happen? Not for a good long time. In the interim, standards will continue to slip as kids continue to get away with stuff they wouldn't have dreamt of doing in the past.

Dr Harry

If you disagree with me than you're EVIL!

What a great article, give it a read. This is definitely a phenomenon I've observed myself. I love that line about how for many people the moralistic is now more important than the moral.

cheers

Dr Harry

extreme sports

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/overqualified.png

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/1000_miles_north.png

very inventive...

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/ultimate_game.png

Burn!

And that's all I have to say about that...

Are Men Better Than Women? You decide. This blog is some funny shit, especially if you realise it's quite tongue in cheek. Also, the woman in this clip is funny.



Can I hear a "Child Support?"

Child Support!

Can I hear a "Child Support?"

Child Support!


This gentleman here has apparently fathered 15 kids with 14 different mothers. As the journalist say, talk about heading forward to the past.

Apparently dna records indicate (I don't quite know how) that in prehistoric times, only 40% of men and 80% of women were able to reproduce. This guy is the new caveman. As an aside, I've heard a very similar story from the seaside resort that is East Devonport. Apparently there used to be this one guy there that all the single mothers were desperate to have a kid with, even though he was patently incapable of looking after or supporting any of them, on account of the fact that he had several kids already and no job!



Anyway, the human race is going to hell in a handbasket. Just watch the documentary Idiocracy for proof. Instead of thinking about that, look at the clip above, it's pretty cool and looks real, but who can tell.

More sport.

The AFL Grand Final was a draw and so has been delayed a week. Lots of people have their knickers in a twist about this. Why? It's a Grand Final...... and it's a draw! Talk about the best game of the year. Of course, I only saw the last 5 minutes as I was kayaking and then heard the second half on the radio in my car, but still, talk about a tense game. I'm rather glad I wasn't a supporter of either team.

I think the replay is great. It's historical and that's a good enough reason for me, if no other. On the same basis I'm totally opposed to away strips. If people can't work out if the Kangaroos or the Pies have got the ball, who cares? They managed find for decades and decades, they would have continued to be ok.

Plus, there's an added bonus. You know that the team that wins this week really is the best team. They've mentally and physically recovered from an epic match, dragged themselves to the top of the hill and done battle once again. Talk about a challenge! That's why this game on Saturday is already great, before we even know the outcome.

And lastly, Essendon's favourite son has come home to bring the club back to the promised land. If he can get Bomber Thompson to help him out than things will be perfect. Either way, the only way from here is up for Essendon, things are looking good.

And that'll do for now.

cheers

Dr Harry