A
Short History of Broadband
Updated
January 2008
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A Vital Ingredient?
It is as well to reflect that just over 100 years ago the discovery of the electron, would eventually lead to the start of Radio Broadcasting in the 1920’s. This was followed by Television in the 1930’s and to the development of Radar in the mid 30’s, followed by the first programmable computer in 1943. It was to be nearly 40 years later, as a result of the invention and development of the transistor, that the very first personal computer, an IBM, was produced.
In the history of mankind, the speed of change taking place in the western world has never been faster or had such a profound effect upon normal family life. Electronics have revolutionised virtually everything we touch or do in our daily lives. The introduction of the World Wide Web, for instance, has resulted in reliable, affordable and accurate communications between people everywhere becoming possible. Before the Internet was devised, the only methods of sending documents, pictures or diagrams over long distances, apart from a personal delivery system, was via the use of letters, telegrams, fax machines or radio. Some of these methods are slow, and some, not as accurate as they should have been.
For many people and businesses the use of computers made most of these conventional methods redundant and as new ideas developed, where vast amounts of data were being sent over the internet, the inherent speed and accuracy of delivery became ever more critical for economic success.
Though
electronic mail is considered by many to be a cheaper alternative to conventional
communications methods, it may yet prove to be more expensive. To enable
ever-larger amounts of data to flow at high speed, telephone companies in urban
areas are introducing a system known as Broadband. Very similar in concept
to a pipe, where greater quantities of water are able to flow as the size and
pressure is increased. Unfortunately, many telephone exchanges, especially
those in rural areas, do not have the necessary equipment installed to enable
Broadband connections. Another critical factor in the implementation of
high-speed information flow is the distance between exchange and client.
Although telephone lines are able to support conventional fax and voice communications
over many miles, this is not the case with data. A good high-speed broadband
connection is unlikely to be achieved by anyone living or working more than
3.5 miles or so from an exchange.
Various other options are available however, including the
use of Satellites or Wireless. One method, where trials are taking place
at present, is via the domestic electricity supply cables. Called Power
Line Telecommunications (PLT) it has great potential but has run into technical
difficulties and though a great deal of money has been invested worldwide over
the last ten years or so, most of the experiments have eventually been discontinued.
Another reliable method is with the use of Satellites to carry the data but
this is expensive to install and ongoing operating costs for private individuals
and small businesses in most cases are not viable.
That leaves Wireless Broadband. As part of the wireless
scheme, where our Government’s policy objective is to make the UK the
most extensive and competitive broadband market by 2005, the regional development
agency, Advantage West Midlands, has poured 13 million pounds into a project
that should provide broadband access to 100% of businesses, where some, if not
all, of the initial costs are recoverable, and to 97% of households by the end
of 2004.
The BT Wichenford exchange was enabled for Broadband in Martley and Wichenford on 8th September 2004. Knightwick exchange following shortly after. Experience has shown that there are problems associated with reliable high bandwidth connections, especially to properties already using the exchange for telephone/fax which lie some distance from the exchange. eg: lines over 3.5 miles from the exchange, where the lines are constructed of aluminium, and where noisy lines, shared lines and lines with multiple connections are involved. Many potential subscribers, both commercial and private have found that they live outside the primary exchange service area and are unable to get the quality of service they were expecting.
Towards the end of 2004 AND IN VIEW OF THE ABOVE PROBLEMS, the Martley Website Team explored the possibility of providing a local community based but reliable and economical, HIGH-SPEED INTERNET ACCESS FACILITY which uses wireless as the primary carrier. After successful trials lasting some months a cooperative company was been formed (Martley Web Mesh) with the sole object of providing local Martley and district residents with cost effective, Internet connections. To find out more and to participate in this exciting new scheme and to discover how you can benefit please click HERE.
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JFL