National Broadband Network

[Jovial Monk]

Hebe, do you have this yet? It is being rolled out in Tassie

[Jovial Monk]

By the time the whole NBN is rolled out its speed is likely to be 2GHz. Websites will open as fast as if they were on your hard disk! Movies download in seconds. I can't wait!

[Jovial Monk]

An industry veteran has been appointed to head the NBN. . .poor old Tip misses out yet again

Tassie rollout proceeding: Rudd got stick for rolling it out in 2 marginal seats. Not mentioned is that four Coalition state seats are also having the NBN rolled out at the same time. What an excuse for a decent press we have

[Jovial Monk]

I'm in a bind. I can't work out whether Senator Nick Minchin is plain mad, or there is method to his madness.

I'm leaning to the former, though, because of the shadow communication minister's actions since the Federal Government announced its plans to force the structural separation of Telstra. Put simply, they have been nothing more than reckless political opportunism.

Minchin has not only positioned himself against the wishes of the vast majority of the industry with whom he would have to work if his party wins office, he has also failed to articulate a long-term ICT position for the benefit of all of Australia.

Instead he has sided with Telstra and placed his trust in the 1.4 million or so of the telco's shareholders. Why? Simply to oppose Conroy and the Rudd administration? To win the votes of a minority group in the public, i.e. Tesltra shareholders?

He can't seriously think the ICT industry would give him credit for taking this stand, can he?

Minchin recently told one of my colleagues he didn't need to have a policy on the National Broadband Network (NBN), which is at the heart of the Telstra separation issue, and wouldn't provide an alternative to the fibre-to-the-premises (FttP) network. Instead, he consistently claims we don't need an NBN.

http://www.computerworld.com.au/article ... 304&fpid=1

And yet, as a reform bill heads into the Senate next week, they have already announced they will squib. After years of being underwhelmed by what Nick Minchin had to offer as Finance Minister in horse trading over the Telstra sales – and then finally being presented with a bill that effectively ticks off the party's wish-list – the Nationals will not only squib, but will do it on the say so of Senator Minchin.

Clearly some Senate Nationals are uncomfortable about delaying the passage of the bill, and with good reason. They will wear it through every campaign stop in the run-up to next year's election.

Labor will shout delay from the rooftops of every regional centre they travel through digging trenches for the fibre roll-out over the next year as the part of the Regional Backhaul Blackspots program. They might mention jobs too.

There may be some movement. Nothing is done until it's done.

But consider this. The numbers look like getting down to Steve Fielding. What's it going to look like if Government gets the legislation passed and the Nationals haven’t been at the negotiating table? Because they simply opposed the whole thing? And Steve Fielding gets final sign-off on the biggest infrastructure project in the history of the country?

Are the Nationals seriously considering delaying the passage of a bill they plan to support in three months?

http://www.itwire.com/content/view/28762/1250/1/2/

[Lefteee]

Tassie rollout proceeding: Rudd got stick for rolling it out in 2 marginal seats. Not mentioned is that four Coalition state seats are also having the NBN rolled out at the same time. What an excuse for a decent press we have

The wouldn't have been the opposition orifice now would it?

[Jovial Monk]

Possum has an interesting blog on the NBN and education, the use of the net by school kids etc. Full of data, chockfull of graphs as usual

[Jovial Monk]

With the NBN PCs won't need to have hard disk drives!

2Gbit speeds are faster than most LANs. Boot off the NBN, go to your area where your applications and files are and ready to do work. That has big implications for Apple & esp for Msux.

Video shops will disappear, as will DVDs.

Computer network games will fly like never before. High definition, real-time

Video telephones will be reality. For work you can conference call, seeing people at medium resolution, click on whatever head is talking and that will take over half the screen in high def, lip movements 100% in sync. For business, a document being worked on could be on a second screen, whoever is on the conference can mark up suggested changes that will be incorporated on approval. This stuff exists now, becomes useful on a high broadband network like the NBN.

With all that video conferencing, document collaboration more people can work from home, esp with introduction of road congestion charges in cities.

Education, as in Possum's article, will benefit. The ABC could have a role in this, providing content.

Then there is all the stuff that will happen, the new applications, new content. View TV on-line, freeze the action to visit the 'loo, make a dagwood sandwich, then continue watching. Can do that with DVDs etc. Now you can do it with the 7.00 news.

Smart meters. No more meter readers, beep bleep and the smart meter is read over the 'net.

[JWFrogen]

My porn is not downloading quick enough, the Nation must ACT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jovial Monk]

Geesus, with the NBN you could have 3D porn!

[Lefteee]

IQ will love his virtual sheep