Creation of Computer Networks on the Local Level

Technology
1

In the Creation of Computers on the Local Level thread I had mentioned the concept of forming “community networks.” It is not enough that we have freedom in how computer software and hardware is created; we also have to consider how all of these devices communicate with one another. Individual rights are balanced by collective responsibilities, and people who are self-empowered can be linked together in mutual aid. How would you use computer networks to accomplish this?

Again, this post will begin with a general summary containing resource and reference links throughout. Please feel free to skip it if you would rather just comment on the topic itself…

Marginalization Through Limited Access

To quote an article on Masterclass:

Marginalization, also referred to as social exclusion, occurs when certain groups of people get denied access to areas of society. Many factors can lead to this denial of access to institutions and opportunities, including historical bias and lack of funding.

Marginalized people don’t necessarily belong to one particular demographic: Marginalization occurs due to ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, socioeconomic level, and age. Marginalized groups are often at a disadvantage when it comes to obtaining health care, decent education, and employment that would improve their well-being.

About 60% of the world’s total population has access to The Internet. Many areas, particularly those suffering from high levels of poverty, are excluded from it. It is sometimes referred to as “The Digital Divide”, a term first popularized by the Falling Through The Net: Toward Digital Inclusion report released by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in the years 1999-2000.

Building Community Networks

Some organizations are still attempting to fix that situation by helping groups of people build and maintain their local infrastructure. We might refer to these as “community networks.” Here are some practical how-to guides for making them:

There is actually a rich history behind the concept of the community network, to the point where books have been written about the subject, like Douglas Schuler’s New Community Networks: Wired for Change. Similar to how the beginning of home computers has its roots in the hacker/phreaker counterculture of the 1960s, community networks have always been linked to knowledge sharing, increasing civic intelligence, and the practice of direct democracy.

Building A “Second Internet” For All

The Internet is a global network of computer networks. It is sometimes forgotten that there is a physical infrastructure underlying it all, the so-called “backbone.” Access to it is limited by whether or not a person can pay an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to connect their computer to that network.

A “mesh” or “fully connected network” is one where every device is connected to every other one in such a way that any two can communicate, even if the link between them is broken. This is particularly useful for making things like “disaster-proof” Wi-Fi, not to mention getting around the “internet killswitch” of a corrupt government. It is important to have a resilient communications system in place for whenever disaster strikes. A good example is The Serval Project, which is free software that allows smartphones to still communicate with one another when the cellular network is down. In turn, these connections can be extended through high-frequency radio.

Similarly, data can be transferred between computers through “packet radio.” The limitation is that it is incredibly slow. However, we can twist light and radio waves to be able to hold more data. Experiments have accomplished up to 2Tb/sec. with light and 32Gb/sec. with radio waves. Therefore, is it possible to create a relatively cheap vortex-shaped antenna or waveguide that would make every packet radio user into their very own ISP? :slightly_smiling_face:

What Will You Share?

Imagine that we had sustainable computers built locally, powered with renewable energy sources, that were capable of communicating with one another in just about any circumstance and with no limitation on speed whatsoever. With everyone connected in this way, what type of information could be shared to change the world for the better?

One aspect is the technical skills necessary for survival. A few examples:

Another aspect is the communication skills necessary to get along. A few examples:

In this manner, the practical barriers to abundance are lowered and the alienation between people can be transformed into camaraderie. The world needs all of this now more than ever. Thank you for being an integral part of that constructive change. :heart:

6 Likes