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Duncan Frissell
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2 years ago
in Watching the “Lack of Competition” Meme on The Technology Liberation Front
In assessing competition, you have to keep in mind that DSL can be offered by dozens of suppliers beyond the local telco.
Also, I currently use EVDO for my home broadband (circa 1 meg) because I'm far from the CO and use it for travelling.
Also, I currently use EVDO for my home broadband (circa 1 meg) because I'm far from the CO and use it for travelling.
3 years ago
in Roadblocks to the “Fast Lane” on The Technology Liberation Front
I still haven't figured out how if I can get net connectivity from: my RBOC, AT&T; (Covad), other DSL packagers, my local cable monopoly, any of the wireless phone companies (some of which aren't RBOCs), satellite, and the power company; net connectivity is anything but highly competitive?
3 years ago
in Surveilance and the Need for Bright Lines on The Technology Liberation Front
"no wiretaps unless you have a warrant issued by a judge."
Interestingly, most of the recent controversies have involved things other than classic wiretaps.
The NASA case was "pen register" data. Who calls who and the SWIFT case is wire transfers outside the US.
Pen Registers aren't wiretaps and wire transfers or other financial record held by third parties aren't wiretaps.
As someone who's been fighting for financial privacy since before the Privacy Act of 1970 (which restricted privacy) I think it's funny that institutions like the New York Times that never had a problem with any program (administrative subpeonas, FINCEN, "money laundering" investigations, regulatory searches, etc.) designed to collect taxes or regulate businesses are complaining about national security uses of the exact same techniques.
Anyone who supports the current investigatory powers of the IRS, is logically estopped from whining about the NSA.
Interestingly, most of the recent controversies have involved things other than classic wiretaps.
The NASA case was "pen register" data. Who calls who and the SWIFT case is wire transfers outside the US.
Pen Registers aren't wiretaps and wire transfers or other financial record held by third parties aren't wiretaps.
As someone who's been fighting for financial privacy since before the Privacy Act of 1970 (which restricted privacy) I think it's funny that institutions like the New York Times that never had a problem with any program (administrative subpeonas, FINCEN, "money laundering" investigations, regulatory searches, etc.) designed to collect taxes or regulate businesses are complaining about national security uses of the exact same techniques.
Anyone who supports the current investigatory powers of the IRS, is logically estopped from whining about the NSA.
3 years ago
in The Technology Liberation Front » Archive » Free Lunches on The Technology Liberation Front
At a Zurich conference in 1997, I had five minutes to answer a question on this very topic posed by Harry Browne. He wondered how e-mail, websites, and other Internet applications could be "free".
I explained that network data transport (particularly network data transport of text) has a marginal cost of "zero".
The underlying hardware is paid for by commercial (and government) communications buyers, subscribers usually pay a modest connection fee, and they supply their own very sophisticated local hardware (a personal computer) that handles their end of the switching process.
Given zero marginal costs, low prices would be expected.
In the case of Craig's List, Wikipedia, or the Gutenberg Project six sigmas of the costs of production (99.9997%) are provided free by users/volunteers. The servers/software core is cheap. Wikipedia is written and managed by users and Craigslist users write and post their own ads.
VOIP entrepreneur Jeff Pulver explained how Free World Dialup could offer free VOIP calls worldwide - Verizon switches phone calls over $9 Billion worth of lines and equipment (plus labor). Free World Dialup works using a SIP (Switching Internet Protocol) server and costs one linux server with high speed net connection and one half-time graduate student.
When the users are supplying most of the labor and hardware, prices are low.
I explained that network data transport (particularly network data transport of text) has a marginal cost of "zero".
The underlying hardware is paid for by commercial (and government) communications buyers, subscribers usually pay a modest connection fee, and they supply their own very sophisticated local hardware (a personal computer) that handles their end of the switching process.
Given zero marginal costs, low prices would be expected.
In the case of Craig's List, Wikipedia, or the Gutenberg Project six sigmas of the costs of production (99.9997%) are provided free by users/volunteers. The servers/software core is cheap. Wikipedia is written and managed by users and Craigslist users write and post their own ads.
VOIP entrepreneur Jeff Pulver explained how Free World Dialup could offer free VOIP calls worldwide - Verizon switches phone calls over $9 Billion worth of lines and equipment (plus labor). Free World Dialup works using a SIP (Switching Internet Protocol) server and costs one linux server with high speed net connection and one half-time graduate student.
When the users are supplying most of the labor and hardware, prices are low.
3 years ago
in Reverse Engineering and Innovation: Some Examples on The Technology Liberation Front
The most famous reverse engineering case in computers has to be Compaqs (and then others) reverse engineering of the IBM BIOS which allowed the cheap clone market to explode in the mid 1980s.
Compaq was immediately innovative since it sold a transportable computer which IBM did not. And then when IBM wandered off into the PS/2 dead end, IBM Clones without IBM preserved the vibrant computer market that remains to this day.
Compaq was immediately innovative since it sold a transportable computer which IBM did not. And then when IBM wandered off into the PS/2 dead end, IBM Clones without IBM preserved the vibrant computer market that remains to this day.
3 years ago
in Initial Thoughts on the FCC’s Revised A La Carte Report on The Technology Liberation Front
How can you defend the current system which is based on local franchise monopolies? Shouldn't those monopolies be broken? Shouldn't you attack the immoral cable monopolists instead of defending them?
The content providers are participating in that immoral system as well and profiting by it.
Verizon just pulled out of an attempt to break the NJ cable monoply legislatively. I assume they thought they'd lose.
Isn't it likely that once we get Sat, Cable, Phone, Power Co, and (multiple) Wireless delivery of content the whole content creation system will go away and we'll have ala carte anyway as we currently have on the net.
The content providers are participating in that immoral system as well and profiting by it.
Verizon just pulled out of an attempt to break the NJ cable monoply legislatively. I assume they thought they'd lose.
Isn't it likely that once we get Sat, Cable, Phone, Power Co, and (multiple) Wireless delivery of content the whole content creation system will go away and we'll have ala carte anyway as we currently have on the net.
4 years ago
in The Technology Liberation Front » Archive » A Killer App for Fixing Harmful Telco Regulations? on The Technology Liberation Front
Indeed, as I said here:
http://technoptimist.blogspot.com/2004_07_04_te...
If the Feds get too uppity, I'll just run my own SIP server and switch my own damn phone calls.
And as for "interfacing with the PSTN", I'll spend the whole $59 + $39 for PCPhoneline's Sip Gateway and Port Converter and connect my own damn VOIP calls to the PSTN.
No taxes and no CALEA problems.
http://technoptimist.blogspot.com/2004_07_04_te...
If the Feds get too uppity, I'll just run my own SIP server and switch my own damn phone calls.
And as for "interfacing with the PSTN", I'll spend the whole $59 + $39 for PCPhoneline's Sip Gateway and Port Converter and connect my own damn VOIP calls to the PSTN.
No taxes and no CALEA problems.
