Courtesy of google.com
I know so little about today’s blog topic, I should blush with shame. I’m so ignorant about technology, I’m not certain where my Wi-Fi lives. Remember me? I’m the woman who secretly believes the algorithms installed on my computer do more harm than good. (Blog, 5/17/2017) Yet, here I am about to say something nice about technology and Wi-Fi, in particular.
First, let me explain. What I know about Wi-Fi comes from the many times I’ve stood watching it break down. Yesterday, it took off for the local coffee shop with my router, I suspect. I was typing, “And the murderer is…” Then the screen went blank and for the next half hour, instead of unraveling my plot, I mucked around with my computer gizmo — that blinking black box that controls bits and byte traffic.
One Swedish network-equipment maker estimates, “there are about 16 billion devices on earth” that depend upon the current system interconnections and the number will grow to an estimated 29 billion by 2022. (“The End of Terrible Wi-Fi May Be Near,” Bloomberg Businessweek, 2/6-2/12, 2017, pg. 27.) Figures like that fill me with horror — unless they reflect my bank balance.
Thank heavens techies are thinking about the growing internet traffic jam. Their latest plan converts the electronic superhighway into a super cube. Instead jamming signals through a single gateway, the cube provides alternate routes, allowing all those bits and bytes to flow faster. (Ibid pg. 27.) The new router will cost more, of course. Add about $10 a month to upgrade older machines. (Ibid, pg. 27.)
Full spectrum service gets pricier, particularly if you want your refrigerator to tell your smart phone you need milk while, at the same time, you upload family photos to a friend. That greater capacity could cost as much as $350.
As I’ve said, I don’t understand this new reality. Why would I want my refrigerator to talk to my smart phone… which I don’t own. All I can do is warn my readers that life on the internet is about to get faster and will cost more.
