Time-lapse map shows internet outages as Hurricane Sandy makes landfall (video)

Time-lapse map shows internet outages as Hurricane Sandy makes landfall (video)

It's no secret that Hurricane Sandy has worked a number on communications infrastructure, but now a time-lapse video created by Renesys gives us a clearer picture of when and where internet outages occurred as the storm made landfall. Green squares on the map above indicate that 99.95 percent of networks in the area are reachable, while red squares denote that more than five percent of networks are down. In Manhattan's case, Renesys estimates that there was only a ten percent failure, which it considers impressive since power was cut to much of the island. Ten percent may not sound like a huge outage, but the firm points out that population density makes it equivalent to taking a country the size of Austria off the grid. As for the 90 percent of networks in the borough that stayed online, they survived thanks to generator power. If you'd like to witness the playback of outages between October 29th and 30th, head past the jump for the video.

Continue reading Time-lapse map shows internet outages as Hurricane Sandy makes landfall (video)

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Time-lapse map shows internet outages as Hurricane Sandy makes landfall (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Nov 2012 16:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers propose à la carte internet services, overhaul for web infrastructure

Researchers propose à la carte internet services, overhaul for web infrastructure

A quintet of researchers funded by the National Science Foundation have envisioned a new internet architecture, one where features could be purchased à la carte. The proposed framework would allow users to fine tune their experience by choosing from a variety of connection services. Let's say, for example, that a customer's connection is fine for browsing the web, but it doesn't pass muster for streaming content -- a service dedicated to video delivery could be added to close the gap. "Ultimately, this should make the internet more flexible and efficient, and will drive innovation among service providers to cater to user needs," report co-author Rudra Dutta told The Abstract. A piecemeal next-gen web is no easy feat, however, as it would require revamping the web's infrastructure with new protocols for choosing particular features, completing payments and monitoring network performance. The group's rough blueprint will be presented at a conference next week, but you can thumb through their short paper at the source.

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Researchers propose à la carte internet services, overhaul for web infrastructure originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Aug 2012 07:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Abstract, North Carolina State University  |  sourceSIGCOMM (PDF)  | Email this | Comments

Myanmar plans to open doors to foreign telcos for affordable cellular, internet service

Myanmar plans to open doors to foreign telcos for affordable cellular, internet service

Hefty price tags haven't exactly made cellphones ubiquitous in cash-strapped Myanmar. According to AFP, an estimated 96 percent of the nation's 60 million inhabitants don't own a mobile handset, but that might soon be changing. A new reform plan announced by Myanmar's Post and Telecommunication Minister, Thein Tun, lays out a strategy that could finally give said folks a crack at affordable cellular and internet services. If successful, the initiative will start a bidding process for international telcos to set up shop in the country, allowing the companies to partner with the state-owned telephone provider and the ISP Yatanarpon Teleport. There's no word on when the partnerships may coalesce, but here's to hoping that $200 SIM card registration fees in Myanmar soon become a thing of the past. Full details at the source link below.

[Image credit: Shutterstock]

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Myanmar plans to open doors to foreign telcos for affordable cellular, internet service originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Jul 2012 23:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceAFP / Yahoo! News  | Email this | Comments