Has anyone mentioned...

casm

...to the powers-that-be that one of the best reasons for the widespread rollout of broadband access is employment?

Not just in the telco sector, but across the technology sector as a whole. I've been living in the States for the last three years primarily because - believe it or not - I couldn't get broadband access in Wicklow.

I'm a *nix system administrator, primarily dealing with Linux, FreeBSD, and AIX. When I was still at home, it was damn near impossible for me to get ahold of Linux media, particularly ISO images, over the creaky quasi-56K dialup IOL was providing. Good documentation was also difficult to come by, or pretty much useless once I got it as I didn't have the OS it was relevant to. This meant that the only way I could really keep up-to-date with what was going on was when relatives went to or came from the States and could bring the software I needed. Not a good arrangement at all.

How can we claim to be the technology showcase of Europe when you're lucky if you can get a dialup that stays up? How are people supposed to have reliable, expeditious access to the information and software they need to be able to learn without broadband access?

Plus ca change, plus ca meme.

Bard

During the Q&A session in the seminar, I actually had a point to make and a question to ask - a point and a question which basically insinuated that part of the downturn in our IT sector and the huge job losses of late are down to the ISP's incompetence in providing decent affordable Internet access.

I was going to ask a double-barrelled question to Esat and Eircom - to Derek Kickham as to whether he believed that the introduction of competition in the unmetered market (i.e.: Eircom or someone else releasing a product to compete with SNL) would have helped to keep it alive... and to eircom as to why the hell they didn't do that... - although I'm sure the answers would have hinged on the crutch of "commercial viability", I'd say they'd have made for interesting responses all the same.

My point would have been, and I believe it well, that recent events in the ISP industry, the way certain companies have been treating their customers, the lack of broadband and affordable flat-rate access, despite numerous promises over the years, are all LARGE contributors to the current crisis we have in the IT market, and major contributory factors and reasons for the loss of MANY jobs (including my own).

I didn't make my point and ask my question at the seminar however - even though I was one of the guys with the 'roving' radio microphone... I left the comment making and question asking to the audience and held back from stealing into their time.

Still... would be interesting to hear eircom/Esat's responses... to both the questions - and my accusations of their attitudes and BAD business decisions being instrumental in the downturn in the IT/Internet industry here and my own personal lack of full time employment.

(Rant ends...!)

b20uvkft6m5xwg

Oui, La situation- C'est Choquont:(

I agree totally & thats why I believe (and I've said it on previous threads) the only way areas outside Dublin will ever get braodband is if there is DIRECT GOVT. INTERVENTION and or subsidies to the Telcos. Its whats happenned in France for instance. Obviously ppl like yourself would the be able to work @ home and reduce the need for you to move nearer to areas where "proper" internet access prevails!


And what about the mantra of Govts. in Ireland since the Year dot....

"STOP RURAL DEPOPULATION"
Yeh we've all heard about it before but whats really causing ppl to migrate to cities.....LACK OF SERVICES-ie broadband. The trends still show the cities are constantly growing whereas there are ever-increasing areas of Ireland which are unihabitable due to the lack of services.
If the Govt. subsidised a 1mb line in Connemara, even I'd consider moving there:p