21% of Americans Aren't Using the Internet

[blurr91]

[citation][nom]simple11[/nom]Buddy of mine doesn't have Internet cause he can't afford. Should be a city government issue to provide free wifi to the city[/citation]

Why don't you pay for him? He's your buddy, right?

 

[Trueno07]

Pew pew... Pew pew pew..

 

[Guest]

I can't imagine my 90 years old grandma with a laptop on her legs!

 

[dragonsqrrl]

Any chance any of these people desperately want to play StarCraft 2?

 

[nsquid]

i asked 20 of my friends if they have an iphone, 18 said yes. therefore i can say that 90 percent of america has an iphone.

 

[kikireeki]

How about: 79% of Americans are using the internet.

 

[nforce4max]

[citation][nom]tpho2500[/nom]The 21% of americans view technology as witchcraft and voodoo.[/citation]

About 1 in 3 actually do practice witchcraft and voodoo in secret and in public. When ask many deny it. The New Age movement is nothing more than an offshoot of the occult that has been watered down and sugar coated.

 

[dragonsqrrl]

[citation][nom]blurr91[/nom]Expanding high speed internet service is a priority for the federal government? Are they stupid?[/citation]
http/www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/15/AR2010031503785.html

ummm, no not really... are you? Improving the country's aging and largely outdated telecommunications infrastructure really should be amongst the federal governments four top long term priorities right now, along with healthcare, education, and energy. And in fact the Obama administration has made it a priority, although it has taken a backseat lately to more immediate issues like the BP oil spill and immigration. Something has to be done soon to jump start the stagnant and overpriced state of the US ISP industry.

Part of the problem is that many Americans are completely unaware of this issue. The US ranks around 17th in the world in terms of broadband availability, bandwidth, and price per Mbps. I think that places pretty much every other developed nation in the world ahead of us, except for maybe Australia... lol.

I remember reading an article around three years ago that listed average nation wide bandwidth for certain countries and being struck by just how low the US was. At the time it was around 1.3 Mbps, being lead by practically all of Europe and with South Korea and Japan on top. Japan was around 60 Mbps. While at the same time the US GDP is over twice that of Japan, the second largest economy in the world. I think we can do a little better, and again something has to be done soon to salvage the situation.

 

[10tacle]

[citation][nom]simple11[/nom]Buddy of mine doesn't have Internet cause he can't afford. Should be a city government issue to provide free wifi to the city[/citation]

Why? Says who? Why should city taxpayers pay for internet access? Are you one of those mindless government tit lovers who think government should just pay for everything anyone ever wants? Yes - the internet is a WANT, not a NEED.

 

[dragonsqrrl]

[citation][nom]vitor[/nom]2252 people? Isn't this sample way too small?[/citation]
[citation][nom]nsquid[/nom]i asked 20 of my friends if they have an iphone, 18 said yes. therefore i can say that 90 percent of america has an iphone.[/citation]
... it's a very sufficient sample size, and considering the source this survey is probably pretty legit. Have either of you ever taken a stats class?

 

[nexus9113]

The big issue we face here in the US versus other countries is the fact that other countries had NO infrastructure in place until the past decade, decade and a half, so they got to build from scratch without any existing users to worry about when it came to things like downtime on the networks for upgrades. The US is so far behind because we have lines that are many many years old (Cable systems have been around since the 60's), and it is very costly and time consuming to dig up and replace old lines in regard to cost to the consumer base and time for permits to be set in place. Keep in mind the ISP industry still has to make money in order to continue existing, so upgrades will come as it is cost effecient to both provider and consumer.

Fun fact, the company with the most fiber laid out right now, Sprint, is at that point because of the government. Sprint is actually an acronym for Southern Pacific Railroad INTernational, and back in the mid 1800's when the government was giving away land for dirt cheap, it was giving it away free to railroad companies with the condition that they build rails on it. So every RR Co laid track in every place they could, so Sprint actually owned the vast majority of the land that they've laid fiber in keeping them out of the grueling process of obtaining permits, and they've been laying it since the late 80's early 90's when the tech became available.

The ultimate goal of "Big Cable" is to deliver "Fiber to the user" as right now they are fiber to the node, but getting fiber past the node not only requires reengineering the plant, but actually doing reconstruction at consumer housing, which all takes time and money.

And as far as having free service to people, I'll just say you get what you pay for and people will start complaining how something that's free doesn't work as well as what someone who pays a premium gets. And if there was free broadband it would probably perform as well as Centurylink DSL, which is the worst rated ISP in terms of average speed in every region it's available. I for one am in favor of subsidized internet in high population areas due to other higher costs of living, like what some major cities have done with other utilities like water, electric, and gas, leaving users in those areas with low bills in the $5-15 range, and continuing tiered LOS for those who want more speed.

I am totally against WiMax and other wireless net services as they are completely gimmicky and unreliable, I've had Clear in two states, HI because I was in the Navy and going out to sea constantly and it was more convenient to have a service I could suspend without getting a tech out, and Las Vegas because I carried it over with me, and realized for the price of a 6mb clear connection I could get the 10mb cable connection that would be stable, my Clear connection hit 6mb on speedtests once in a blue moon, otherwise I was averaging 1.5 mbps. You never get your advertised speeds unless conditions are perfect, and God forbid the weather should get fussy because you'll suffer then too. So offering a city-wide WiFi service would not only be poor quality, but it would also be highly unsecure. I honestly don't see the wireless internet lasting much longer, because the only people who actually need it are those who are travelling by public transport and need to do work on the go, or possibly students who don't want to access school networks. Otherwise a dedicated landline will provide faster, more stable, and more secure internet.

As for dialup, I'm just waiting for those old to die. Honestly, those are the types of people who give no rhyme or reason to stay dialup, even when presented with the fact that a lot of companies actually have a basic 1-1.5mbps connection for like 10-15 bucks. Those people are the kind of bastards that hold us back from progress because they would probably get the FCC in on it if ISP's pulled all dial up support claiming discrimination, like they did for people who refuse to get set top boxes for their cable service and want HBO or some other premium, forcing cable companies to provide those boxes for free, just stripped down of all guide info and all OD services and only allowing access to those specific channels over 100. That's 500 bucks the companies have to eat, with absolutely no rental fee to buffer it.

 

[g-thor]

Pew states: Americans were asked: “Do you think etc. The majority chose the last two options:
26% expansion should not be attempted by government.
27% “not too important” a priority
30% an important priority.
11% should be a top priority.

I'm not a statistician, and I do understand lumping the last two options together, but the real majority chose the teo middle answers - 57% against 52%. The single highest group was the 30% saying it's an important priority - that's 30% of the 21% who don't use the internet. They perceive that it is important.

Is anyone listening (besides all us technogeek Tom's readers)?

 

[Anaxamenes]

I wonder how many of them are tea party members. hmmmm

 

[amoghthegamer]

[citation][nom]dragonsqrrl[/nom]http/www.washingtonpost.com/wp-d [...] 03785.htmlummm, no not really... are you? Improving the country's aging and largely outdated telecommunications infrastructure really should be amongst the federal governments four top long term priorities right now, along with healthcare, education, and energy. And in fact the Obama administration has made it a priority, although it has taken a backseat lately to more immediate issues like the BP oil spill and immigration. Something has to be done soon to jump start the stagnant and overpriced state of the US ISP industry. Part of the problem is that many Americans are completely unaware of this issue. The US ranks around 17th in the world in terms of broadband availability, bandwidth, and price per Mbps. I think that places pretty much every other developed nation in the world ahead of us, except for maybe Australia... lol. I remember reading an article around three years ago that listed average nation wide bandwidth for certain countries and being struck by just how low the US was. At the time it was around 1.3 Mbps, being lead by practically all of Europe and with South Korea and Japan on top. Japan was around 60 Mbps. While at the same time the US GDP is over twice that of Japan, the second largest economy in the world. I think we can do a little better, and again something has to be done soon to salvage the situation.[/citation]

dude, nobody gives a **** about Japan and I honestly dont care what the average is! Japan is around the size of TEXAS! We have a lot more ground to cover.... My city Omaha, NE, its the smack in the middle of the USA and I get 40MB Down, 5 Up.... it may not be fast but Iam only spending $55 on Internet, there are people that have 80MB Down for $99.95.

 

[baterz_up]

[citation][nom]nforce4max[/nom]About 1 in 3 actually do practice witchcraft and voodoo in secret and in public. When ask many deny it. The New Age movement is nothing more than an offshoot of the occult that has been watered down and sugar coated.[/citation]

But, that's why we drink fluoride =D

 

[nforce4max]

[citation][nom]anaxamenes[/nom]I wonder how many of them are tea party members. hmmmm[/citation]

I don't see how people being "Tea Party" members being part of this but more or less you are a troll trying to antagonize people against a third party option rather than voting for the "home hogs" that are the establishment parties which in their own right are the same. They offer nothing and expect every thing. They have more in common with any various forms of Marxism than a true and free "Republic". Republicans are like Democrats both are like Nazism and communism since both are the same but only different propaganda.

 

[nforce4max]

[citation][nom]baterz_up[/nom]But, that's why we drink fluoride =D[/citation]


Don't forget Lithium and lucky day medication swaps. Jokes aside they put Floride in almost every thing. Those in Europe and Asia are lucky, at least they aren't lobotomized unlike most in parts of the US. To any who are in other parts of the world who wonder daily how Americans can be so ummm "gullible" that is why.

GMO - genetically altered food for kids .... yum yum

http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_tiP-pNdTE

Climbing For Dollars

http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCznILn2qts

 

[Anaxamenes]

I don't see how people being "Tea Party" members being part of this but more or less you are a troll trying to antagonize people against a third party option rather than voting for the "home hogs" that are the establishment parties which in their own right are the same. They offer nothing and expect every thing. They have more in common with any various forms of Marxism than a true and free "Republic". Republicans are like Democrats both are like Nazism and communism since both are the same but only different propaganda.

I think it's a valid question. You have a lot of tea party members that seem very disinterested in how things work. I would wonder if having easier access to the internet and more information might help them be a bit more excited to gather factual information before forming their opinions.

I'm sorry, I just feel that many of them don't understand how the government was designed to operate by the founding fathers and it is frustrating to them when it doesn't work the way they think it should.

 

[duk3]

In recent news, 21% of Americans are over the age of 65.

 

[megamanx00]

[citation][nom]vitor[/nom]2252 people? Isn't this sample way too small?[/citation]

Not really, but only if the sample was truly random.