Bringing The Internet To Borneo -- By Sea 84
dcigary writes: "CNN has an interesting story about the attempts to bring Maylasian citizens into the Internet Age. Now, they just have to wait until the infrastructure in the country catches up." Actually, this wouldn't be a bad idea of parts of the U.S. (and elsewhere), either.
Re:Hahahaha (Score:1)
We should concentrate on existing infrastructure (Score:1)
Grammar (Score:1)
dcigary writes: "CNN has an interesting story about the attempts to bring Maylasian citizens into the Internet Age. Now, they just have to wait until the infrastructure in the country catches up." Actually, this wouldn't be a bad idea of parts of the U.S. (and elsewhere), either.
Does this sound right? "Actually, this wouldn't be a bad idea of parts of the U.S. (and elsewhere), either", Arrgh, me grammar ungood!
-Drew
Re:Hahahaha (Score:1)
although, it is stated that tewwetruggur is four people, and two of them are not here right now, but for god's sake, you'd think if we were dumb enough to anonymously post to our own comment, we'd either have the sense not to sign it, use our real name, or SPELL TEWWETRUGGUR CORRECTLY.
duh.
Re:Same thing happened on land ... (Score:1)
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spending priorities (Score:1)
Everyone, up to and including the UN Development Programme, is telling them that the quickest way to catch up with developed nations is to get wired into the Net. (See link [itu.int].So they have more useful applications in mind than swapping MP3s.
I'd love to see those buffalo-based mobile PCs though. (^_^)
Upstaged (Score:2)
Seriously though, what are the possibilities for other developments like this? I'm not thinking of access per se as much as hosting, ala Sealand. Sail a converted container ship in international waters, and load that ship up with servers, etc. (One could even have modular data suites fitted into standard sized containers...) I know rough seas would be a problem, but there's surely ways to dampen the shock. Unless the ship is kept in one spot for most of its life, fiber connections would be out meaning all connectivity would be satellite based---big time latency. But that wouldn't be a problem for storage of sensitive data.
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Counter Strike in Borneo! NO! (Score:1)
Seriously, actualy FYI, the village kids else where in non-Borneo part of Malaysia are all addicted to the above mentioned game. Good enough indication of how wired they are?
IAAM (I am a Malaysian), speaking from the most recent cyber-cafe-in-the-village experience.
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:1)
z
Re:I wanna know more! (Score:1)
Oh, I thought that was the firewall...
Going on means going far
Going far means returning
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:4)
BTW, Malaysia could also do with a Prime Minister who isn't so racist, anti-Western (he did his doctorate in Australia and he's hated us ever since), and inclined to throw his political opponents in prison on trumped-up charges, if it wants to convince the world it's a modern democracy.
Re:Article says... (Score:2)
how about dr m's own words? (Score:1)
Re:Same thing happened on land ... (Score:1)
(No, not small name Telcos either). Anyhow, enjoy your internet service, brought to you by canadians, paid for by americans.
Reminds me a lot of NASA actually...
Languages (Score:1)
Article says... (Score:2)
Re:Hahahaha (Score:1)
moron.
Re:Concern over socialist leanings (Score:1)
Tell me about the median, as opposed to the mean wealth in those countries. Bet that tells a slightly different story.
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Re:803.11b (Score:1)
Re:This title... (Score:1)
2.]If the boat sinks, that means the connection's down.
3.]Teach them the future of computing (X). Not Windows.
Flame me for this post. It's pretty dumb. I never said I was funny.
sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:2)
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Santa Claus: "Ho ho ho!"
Re:cunt (Score:1)
Re:Concern over socialist leanings (Score:1)
1)The more capitalist a country, the lower its unemployment levels? eg France 12%, UK 7%, USA 4%, Hong Kong 2%
2)The more capitalist a country, the wealthier the average citizen? eg. France $17000, UK $18000, US $21000, Hong Kong $22000
3)The more capitalist a country, the higher its Life Expectancy? eg France 73, UK 73, USA 75, Hong Kong 78
I'm afraid your talking drivel, my man. The only reason the UK isn't collapsing even now is because Thatcher saved it, with good capitalist policies. Vote Tory, and finish the counter-revolution.
Re:Same thing happened on land ... (Score:2)
Come my friends...let us start the Christian Children's Internet Fund...for only $40 a month you can adopt a child and give them DSL access...
Your adopted child will sent you email correspondence and naked pictures of Sally Struthers....
Re:Availablity abroad and at home (Score:2)
The "world" system breakdown:
1st world - Capitalist/free market, advanced
2nd world - Communist/socialist, advanced
3rd world - Not-advanced
4th world - Primitive
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Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:1)
Don't get me wrong - I understand your perspective too - the West *doesn't* have all the answers, and the west does have a tendancy to assume that its solutions are the only ones worth considering, even when we manifestly have our own problems to solve. However, it doesn't change my belief that Malaysia's international image would improve immensely if Dr Mahathir started preparing for a transition to real democracy gracefully rather than repeating what has happened in Indonesia over the past couple of years.
Re:I wanna know more! (Score:2)
Re:This title... (Score:1)
We should meet up at NDSU. We could get the farmer-frat to borrow us some pitchforks, and then we could go throw some cows over the fence some hay.
Regional humor. Nothing for the outsiders to see here.
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Brief exposure to computers (Score:5)
PATRICK
PATRICK
PATRICK
PATRICK
PATRICK
DRAPER
DRAPER
DRAPER
DRAPER
DRAPER
(etc.)
The useful thing that I learned in that 5 minutes was that I *really* needed to get one of those things.
Buffalo-Net (Score:1)
If sea levels continue to rise ... (Score:1)
Even in the US... (Score:2)
so yes, even parts of the US might find a similar idea attractive.
As to its efficacy, I'm not so certain. It seems like it won't exactly be doing much for these people. We're not talking about the US, where 'puters are cheap and money is relatively easy to come by. I daresay that a lot of the third world has more important things on its mind than running networks between villages. But perhaps I'm wrong.
Re:Brief exposure to computers (Score:2)
Re:cryptonomicon - moderation (Score:2)
Maylasia has some rather draconian laws (Score:1)
The point being, why bother with this if nobody's allowed to do anything on the net anyways?
And don't even get me started about 'muslims only being allowed to vote' there.
Cyano
Availablity abroad and at home (Score:1)
While the country catches up (Score:1)
yeah but.... (Score:4)
It may be better for countries to invest in putting permanent centers in every town, even if they are old computers and no internet access. Internet access could come with time, and in the meantime the catch-up could begin.
Kabeeb
the possibilities... (Score:3)
Over-enthusiastic subediting(was Re:This title...) (Score:2)
>
>Bringing the Internet to Borneo -- By Sea
>
>So, what does that mean?
Ahhh - it got lost in the subediting - heres the original second para, before the sub decided he needed to cut another 13 words to fit the article between the ads...
"The vessel will cruise the jungle-fringed Rajang River in the state of Sarawak, towing a high bandwidth cable recently liberated from the seabed just off Singapore, docking at villages every few hours..."
I wanna know more! (Score:1)
I will never live out my dream of having a live-on boat until there is at least DSL comparable, afordable, wireless networking available worldwide.
Going on means going far
Going far means returning
internet good (Score:1)
Seems that /. is filled with clueless surfers (Score:1)
I'm surprised by the amount of idiotic and clueless postings in /. and these people, I presume are at least educated at some level.
I suggest that before you make a remark that'd make a complete fool of yourself, read and study the subject.
Not denying that some things are crappy in Malaysia, like the polical situations - it is being a non-perfect country, but hey - even US is crappy in many things including the political situations.
For reference, Borneo is a large island divided into three - Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. The Malaysian part is scarcely populated and mostly jungle. In the cities even in some remote towns, ISDN lines are available and during the last Eco-Challenge in Sabah, they're using fiber-optic network provided by the national Telekom company.
Boats had to be used and the design of the boat differs because the the rainforest rivers in Borneo are different.
Borneo? (Score:1)
" Unfortunately the graphic doesn't appear to be on McCloud's web site. Oh well.
This title... (Score:3)
Bringing the Internet to Borneo -- By Sea
So, what does that mean? You put a request in at your local seaport to have them "download" to you www.yahoo.com, then wait two weeks for the shipment to come?
Man, I'd hate to figure out what it'd be like to download games!
Re:wilds of borneo (Score:1)
I believe the boats supposed to bring the computers to one village and another, giving them chances to learn about computers and connect to the outside world.
This is much faster than laying the cables to remote areas and islands where population is not enough to generate revenue for the Telco companies. No comapny would do that if there's no revenue in it... so I guess someone have to do something quickly that these people get connected.
Education is very important to developing country.
Re:the possibilities... (Score:1)
Now's you mention it, I do see a lot of toilet bowls bearing a little sticker that says "Designed for use with Windows98". I always thought the Unix support staff stuck them there for a rude joke, but maybe I was wrong.
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Why was PD's comment moderated funny? (Score:5)
My very first exposure to a computer was in 1986 when I saw a friend's dad use Printshop on his PC to print out a birthday card. That totally blew me away! From that day on, I longed for the day when I could afford my own PC to do exactly the same thing.
My friends dad had only demonstrated the PC for 5 minutes, but that was enough to set me on my career path of IT. So while I can understand how people may think that PD is being funny, his comment actually is insightful and it is five minute exposures like the one PD described that do launch a lot of people's careers!
Freudian or what? (Score:1)
Read that headline and had a vision of chartered merchant shipping delivering packets by the container-load.
ping http://slashdot.org
ping reply: 4-6 weeks, depending on weather
Must... get... head sorted
Ben^3 (Hey, at least it's not by Virgin Trains)Re:Availablity abroad and at home (Score:4)
Possibly Malaysia, which is I suppose a 'second world' country, will be able to use the lessons of the West to its advantage.
Possibly, as it does not have much of an infrastructure at the moment, when it does get one it will be modern and designed for the internet specifically, in the same way that London's street plan is 'designed' for Victorian times, and consequently Victorian levels of traffic, wheras Los Angeles was designed in the age of the car, and so is a much more pleasant place to drive a car in.
KTB:Lover, Poet, Artiste, Aesthete, Programmer.
oh, this is perfect (Score:3)
a three hour tour, a three hour tour.
This just in......... US authorities reported sometime after midnight on June 28th, a highly distructive virus was unleashed on the world. These same people believe the virus dubbed 'the love boat' originated somewhere within the state of Sarawak, possibly near the Rajang River
"We can't get an excact position of the transmissions, it almost appears to be moving away from us.", explains chief investigator Ronald Chatten, "We're optimistic that the perpetrators will eventually slip up, and when they do we'll sink they're ship, metophorically speaking of course".
Re:Borneo? (OT) (Score:1)
Re:Same thing happened on land ... (Score:2)
I'm all for U.S. bashing in it's necessary situations...but I am curious as to what you are talking about. The U.S.'s two biggest neighbors, Canada and Mexico, are as high tech as the U.S. is, although there is less money in Mexico so a smaller percentage of people get to use the internet. Actually though, from talking with people in Canada, they seem to have a better environment for internet related business than the U.S. does. And as far as Mexico, I know a lot of stuff going on there that I have not seen in the U.S. yet. They have had cable modems for many years in Guadalajara through companies like MegaRed [megared.com.mx], and they had prepaid pagers and cellphones before I even heard about anything like that in the U.S. The latest thing that I think is starting to come out in the U.S. is some sort of wireless phone connection to your house. I'm not sure how it works but I know my girlfriend's parents have it at their house. They have an antenna or something on their roof, and that connects to their phone and it's cheaper than a landline via the phone monopoly Telmex.
I think that what should be done is to help people in the U.S. such as politicians. They have obviously never used computers, otherwise they wouldn't continue to try to pass such stupid laws. I saw we donate our old equipment to them and set up free ISP accounts so we can try to show them exactly what the internet is and how we use it. Then, even though they are being bought by big business, they could at least cut down on some of the stupid laws because it would possibly affect them.
I dream of a world where Jesse Helms has a deCSS mirror, and Bob Dole is downloading the new N'Sync album from Napster. Hmmmm...nevermind, that just sounds scary.
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:1)
In most cases, it is very much exaggerated. For some reason Australian media tend to hit the Malaysian government very hard.
"than repeating what has happened in Indonesia over the past couple of years."
Ok,let me get this straight... Malaysia is NOT Indonesia. Just because we speak more or less the same language and the natives are of the same race, it doesn't make us an identical country. If I were to be more naive, I would say Australia and New Zealand is same (is it?).
Recently, I attended this lecture which groups Malaysia with Indonesia as countries who burn their forest for agriculture... oh please! The last thing we need is to add to the smog created by forest fire in Indonesia. Trust me, we are cursing left and right of the air pollution thanks go Indonesia and we don't intend to contribute more.
Gary
Re:LA is *pleasant* to drive in? (Score:1)
---GEEK CODE---
Ver: 3.12
GCS/S d- s++: a-- C++++ UBCL+++ P+ L++
W+++ PS+ Y+ R+ b+++ h+(++) r++ y+
Singapore is not a valid comparison (Score:1)
sally struthers (Score:2)
dust. Many places in the US don't have access to DSL, ISDN, Cable, etc
Re: (Score:1)
803.11b (Score:3)
Malaysia (Score:1)
Re:Brief exposure to computers (Score:1)
Now *that* was insightful. I'm serious. That one five minute 'lesson' has lead to what? A rewarding well paid career! I remember the same kind of thing happening to me.
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:1)
No, I never said you were, and I didn't mean to imply that. However, as you yourself pointed out, you do share similar languages, culture, religion, and history - actually, just like Australia and New Zealand share those things. You also have the situation of a one dominant political party in power for many years held together by a charismatic, but aging, leader, and corruption fraying its edges, and ethnic and religious minorities who sometimes aren't all that happy with rule from the capital. That's the parallel I was drawing.
The Australian media tend to be *much* harder on their own government. We have a tradition of our media being extremely forthright. They don't pick on Malaysia specifically.Yeah, I'd be angry with them too, and it is annoying when people misunderstand the differences between neighbouring countries - as you have undoubtedly found out if you call a New Zealander "Australian" or a Canadian "American".
And, finally, don't confuse the fact that I'm not impressed with your Prime Minister with that I hate Malaysia or Malaysians. I don't. There are many admirable things about your country. And feel perfectly free to say what you like about Australia and its politicians. If you think that our prime minister is an ignorant little man who isn't fit to lead a primary school, go ahead and say it. About 50% of the Australian population says so regularly :)
Re:Availablity abroad and at home (Score:1)
That sounds like a plan! (Score:1)
USD0.25M *is* a lot of money in Malaysia (Score:1)
If they are so concerned with providing basic internet education and getting people "on board" (sorry for the pun), then they will are much more likely to succeed by focusing on leveraging the infrastructure they DO have (schools, libraries, other public buildings) in the semi-rural areas, and working outward.
This boat idea is just for show ("showboat"?). How many country hicks do you think will "get it" in a couple of hours? You might as well be showing them movies or letting them play video games for all the education they'll be getting.
(Then again, touring around the backcountry, teasing the natives with technology they won't be able to afford for a generation, and raking in the loot sounds like a pretty good gig to me...)
Is This Really Useful? (Score:2)
www.neotope.com [neotope.com]
>neotope
Great (Score:1)
Re:WTH? (Score:1)
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:2)
In terms of infrastructure, schools and the like, Malaysia isn't all that far behind even places like the US. Just about everyone has access to education up to the secondary (high school) level. Granted, some areas may not have the best teachers, but there are places like that in the rural US too. The amenities expected in the US such as roads, telephones, internet, etc, all exist in M'sia and I don't feel their loss when I spend time there. Some things are even better than the US, like the bleeping wireless phone network. 10 miles out of Boston and I can't get reception on my phone?
What most foreigners don't know is that M'sia is doing its best to push forward into the information age, the same way the Japanese pushed themselves into heavy industry a while back. The Multimedia Super Corridor mentioned in the CNN article is an ongoing effort with the full weight of the government behind it to build a Silicon Valley in that region of the world. Hundreds of millions of dollars are being poured into that area and there are quite a few companies already operating out of that area. With that much emphasis on IT and that much money pouring in, it's not unexpected that there would be some change to try to bring the not so fortunate parts of the country up to speed.
Having said my piece, yeah, that article looks like buzzword compliance. Notice this line from the article:
Khairuddin said Unimas would apply to the government's IT council for the 1.5 million ringgit it needed for the Internet boat project.
They don't even have funding yet. I'll bet it's some ambitious dean out to get a little publicity for himself. We get those types in Malaysia too
Internet Economy (Score:2)
Re:While the country catches up (Score:1)
I pity those those of you who know for certain that their next and future meals are coming from some pizza takeaway.
:)
Link.
Re:We should concentrate on existing infrastructur (Score:1)
Now I can fufill my dream.. (Score:2)
Re:We should concentrate on existing infrastructur (Score:1)
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:1)
Re:sounds like buzzword compliance to me (Score:1)
Re:USD0.25M *is* a lot of money in Malaysia (Score:1)
Re:Singapore is not a valid comparison (Score:1)
holy chip... (Score:1)
Firstly, mainland Malaysia has some of the best connections in the region. I fact the system is that good, that Thailand and Vietnam are routing most Internet traffic through leased lines in Malaysia.
Next, as Malaysia produces about 45% of the middle and lower end computer components of the world market, you should maybe refrain from making funny remarks about the tech know-how of the country. Chances are, without Made-in-Malaysia components your boxes wouldn't work - or would have cost about 20% more.
Also, Malaysia was the first country to start major government initiatives to make the country into an IT hub - and had the first cyberlaws, long before the US got their task force reports that told them to do something.
Finally, if things work as planned, the Malaysia and Expats living in Malaysia will give the next generation of Yank-geeks a run for their money.
So, next time when you see fancy photos of jungles and touristy performances by savages, think a while, get a map, browse for backgound info and then make up your mind.
Outside 'The Valley' and a few other 'Tech Focus' areas, the U.S. is as much an IT backwater as most other countries are. Having DSL, doesn't meen tha Joe Average would know how on Earth to get out of the AOL site and find his way around on the net.
Just an informed opinion and a few facts...
Re:Concern over socialist leanings (Score:1)
2 cents (sen?) from a Malaysian (Score:2)
Think masses and masses of AOL lusers. Problem is we (the rest of the clueful) don't have a big enough LART.
Re: (Score:1)
My service. (Score:5)
This really makes for slow downloads, which means I hardly ever get that coveted f1r57 p057.
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Same thing happened on land ... (Score:2)
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