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a high resolution computer display that has 200 pixels per inch and more than 9
million pixels in total on a 22-inch screen. The new display is as clear as an
original photograph and 4.5-times sharper than top-of-the-line high-definition
television screens and it will make the viewing of video and digital photos a
completely new kind of experience. It will also significantly reduce eyestrain and
the need for printing hard copies as we all often do.
Displays of this type will make it possible to replace conventional film X-rays.
Physicians will be able to view digitally photographed X-rays immediately on the
display. The X-ray images could also be sent online to specialists around the
world for instant feedback and counsel. Large printed satellite maps and
photographs will be replaced with photo-quality digital images, allowing
meteorologists to quickly interpret weather patterns and instantly share them with
colleagues around the world. Such applications as these will require bandwidth to
be able to deliver all the bits that will be needed to light up all those millions of
pixels on a nearly instant basis. So it is not speed for speed’s sake but rather
speed to enhance our Internet experience and enable us to interact with high
quality media. The Fast Internet represents the evolution of not a new medium
but the new medium. It presents a tremendous opportunity like nothing we've
seen in many decades, maybe ever. It will have a profound impact on our
business and personal lives.
Always on
The second characteristic of the Next Generation of the Internet is that it will be
Always On. Today, for most people, the Internet is not always on. When we are
ready to use the Internet we go to our PC. We “boot” it up if it is not already
running and then we startup a program called a “dialer” which is used to “log on”
to our Internet Service Provider who in turn establishes a connection for us to the
Internet.
The dialer is a program we have all come to love at times and hate at others.
When we click on the “connect” button the dialer places a call to the ISP. There is
a pause and then, unless we have selected the mute option, we hear this
cacophony of screeching, whirring, and then hissing sounds of our modem
“talking” to the ISP’s modem. Sometimes in a matter of fifteen seconds or so we
get some indication that the connection has been established. The modems,
screeching at each other, were music to our ears. We are now ready to get our
email, engage in some Instant Messaging, or surf the web. On other occasions
the process takes a minute or more. The connection is made and then in a
matter of seconds it disconnects and we start over again. Sometimes it doesn’t
connect on the first attempt at all. Sometimes it takes many attempts. Sometimes
we give up.
If you visit an Admiral’s Club or Crown Room at an airport you can go to the
“workstation” area where you will see businessmen and businesswomen dialing,
re-dialing and sometimes cursing. These are men and women who are
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