Monday, February 28, 2011
One of the things that I have been privileged to speak on many times is starting a business.  More and more in our changing economy, people are itching to get their hands on sound advice for starting their own company, creating their own revenue, and deciding their own fate.  It's a great change, I believe, from the corporate mentality of the 80's and 90's.  Accel Networks itself is a relatively small upstart compared to the typical TCom giants, and both our customers and employees are better served for it.

So, what's the most important thing I can share with a new startup?  Simple: start.  Go.  Sell something.  Take all obstacles to opening your doors out of the way.  You cannot afford to plan and re-plan for months.  You cannot afford to wait on vendors who demand weeks or months of lead-time.  You need to go.

What's this mean for broadband?  If you're a retail store, you cannot start until you can swipe.  And often times, you need even more connectivity than a simple modem, you may need catalogue access or online POS.  But wire-line broadband services such as DSL or Cable can take over a week to get installed, or months in new construction.  Accel Networks, on the other hand, can have you online and swiping in as little as 1 day with our quick start program.  That means you can charge cards today for the idea you had yesterday thanks to the speed of fixed wireless broadband.

Of course, this will also demand a processing service.  Authorize.net is fast becoming the processor of choice for many small businesses, especially startups, because of their fast-start program as well.  You can begin charging cards before your PCI audit and all funds will be escrowed, waiting for your eligibility for release.  No need to wait.  Go. Sell. Make money. The Square is also making waves, but its equipment might prove impractical for the average retail volume.

Whatever stands between you and your revenue, find a shortcut.  Find a way around it.  Speed is the name of the game in startup business, and the most vital parts of your infrastructure--your network and your payment system--can be the worst culprits.  Find an alternative.  Go. Start.

Labels: Broadband, Fixed Wireless Broadband, Retail, Startup

posted by Unknown at 8:47 AM Link to this Article  0 Comments

Wednesday, February 23, 2011
As CNET blogger, Larry Downes, put it, "Action follows hearings.  The hearings weren't simply for show."  Downes, who was called to testify on Capital Hill last week regarding the FCC's recent Net Neutrality regulations, suspects we will see the FCC's net neutrality regulations overturned by the now-republican congress. 

Why?  In short, because there was no need for it.  Congress asked the FCC to demonstrate that a crisis of power was stirring in the world of broadband providers, one that would require government intervention in order to keep the market stability, and according to one congressman, they could not.  "We held a hearing today in which we gave the commissioners of the FCC one more opportunity to provide sufficient evidence of a crisis that warrants government intervention. They failed." said committee chairman, Fred Upton.  "The controversial Internet regulations stifle innovation, investment and jobs. A federal bureaucracy should not be picking winners and losers."

The proponents of the FCC's ruling are not left without answer, however, as many have pointed out that one simple reason for overturning the ruling in the first place is that protection already exists for the broadband market.  Existing antitrust laws already in place can be, and indeed have been, used to keep the t-com titans in check. 

At stake for the FCC is the exclusive power to regulate the businesses in its own industry.  Antitrust laws are FTC-enforced and regulate every industry from software to baking powder.  By putting forth regulations specific to the Internet and how it is used in commerce, the FCC is flexing a muscle that says, "Our arena is different."  And, I'm not sure I disagree.  The questions over how data is managed across nationwide networks, down to the 1's and 0's of switching, packets, and sniffing that few people in the industry understand, let alone those outside, might just be too much for a non-specialized agency to handle.

Nevertheless, congress is saying, the FCC can offer their expertise when needed for a ruling on existing laws.  Indications appear clear that by this Spring, net neutrality will be squashed, if not directly, effectively though budget diversions and other measures at congress' disposal.  Those in favor of net neutrality will have to, at least for now, rely on the existing laws our nation has put forth to protect the free market.

Labels: Broadband, FCC, Net Neutrality, Telecommunication

posted by Unknown at 4:51 AM Link to this Article  0 Comments

Tuesday, February 15, 2011
The cloud is all the rave these days, thanks in part to the Windows 7 commercials--which I have yet to figure out the meaning of, by the way.  But, one thing their advertising has done is to bring the term "cloud computing" into every sphere of computer usage, from home computers to enterprise networks.  But, as with any new lingo coined by the masses, its definitions vary widely.  I would like to offer one important point of clarity that I believe we can all agree on:

There is a difference between cloud data storage and true cloud computing.

Cloud data storage has actually been going on for years, if not over a decade.  Companies have long shared files via FTP, shared drives, even newer SaaS products like DropBox.  In fact, Google Docs made it's debut as a cloud sharing tool to many small businesses, not a cloud computing tool.  While their word processor and spreadsheet tools were woefully under-developed, the ability to store office documents online and collaborate with anyone was quite a succeess.

But this differs categorically from true cloud computing because the manipulation of this cloud-stored data is still done on the local machine.  Cached updates and even command processes are done on the local RAM and local CPU.  When the user is done, he/she simply publishes the changes to the cloud for others to see. 

Cloud computing, on the other hand, puts the computing itself on the cloud.  The simplest example is Google Docs as it's used today.  People open their doc in the browser, where, with the exception of some client-side javascript commands, the actual computing is done in the cloud. 

But this puts a new strain on broadband networks, and makes desktop computing stats obsolete.  Whereas we used to talk about how fast the computer's processor was, and how large of a bus it had, now the processor speed that matters is the server's, but the bus is the broadband connection.  If your pipe to and from the server is not big enough--if your broadband speed is too slow--then your cloud computing experience might not be all its cracked up to be.

In the next era of cloud computing, the discussion over a CPU's speed will be replaced by the discussion over how fast a set of commands can make it from terminal to server--from desktop to the cloud.  Cloud computing changes everything.

Labels: Broadband, Broadband Speed, Cloud Computing

posted by Unknown at 6:05 AM Link to this Article  0 Comments

Tuesday, February 8, 2011
When I was little, my grandmother had a plaque on her wall that read, "If you want to know how precious home is, go away and keep the key."  In other words, while you're in your home you can take it for granted.  If you leave its comforts, but keep the key (remember that it's there and can still be returned to) you'll gain appreciation for it.

Here I sit, typing on Blogger.com, connected to a free Wi-Fi connection at a restaurant, my inbox has dinged a few times already with new emails from friends, and soon you (the reader) will likely discover this new post via my Facebook or Twitter stream.  I have opinions, and I have the liberty to share them.  But, more importantly, I'm afforded the ability to share them via this thing called the Internet that we all have taken for granted.

Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes commented on the recent Internet ban in Egypt with some profound statements about our society's Internet-dependence.  "Although the turmoil in Egypt is a matter for the Egyptian people and their government to resolve, limiting Internet access for millions of people is a matter of concern for the global community. It is essential to communication and to commerce. No one should be denied access to the Internet."

Essential? His words are strong.  It's essential to communication and to commerce.  It's not a nice thing.  It's no longer a luxury, according to Noyes.  It is required to have an economy to speak of.  And, Noyes adds, nobody should ever be denied access to it.  It's a basic human right, so to speak.

I'm not sure I agree with the severity and weight of Noyes' opinion, but he hints at truth.  If not a God-given right, it's certainly a very very important thing.  It's like a car, or a phone.  It's hard, if not impossible, to contribute to a modern economy and society without Internet access.

So, that being the case, what is the role of free-world ISP's?  Not the U.S. nationally, as a government entity, but of internet service providers headquartered outside of Egypt with the ability to subvert the Egyptian government's decision.  And, what's at stake?  It's one thing to take a passive role: make internet available via satellite and radio wave spectrum, such that if a rebel on the ground could get to it, they may.  ISP's have done this already.  It is quite a different thing to put workers on the ground creating temporary "triage infrastructure" not dependent on state-controlled networks.  Building new, after-the-fact infrastructure could be accomplished but at great risk. 

The first question is this: Is internet as vital as Noyes says it is?  Secondly, if Internet is so vital, like food and water, then is it the natural responsibility of those who have it to take an active role in supplying it even against the government's will?  If you've answered yes to the above two (and I'm not sure I can yet) the ultimate end to this logic is the third question: what are you doing about it?

Labels: Broadband, Egypt Internet, Fixed Wireless Broadband

posted by Unknown at 7:50 AM Link to this Article  0 Comments