[LINK] Broadband for a Broad Land

[Tom Koltai]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: link-bounces at mailman.anu.edu.au 
> [mailto:link-bounces at mailman.anu.edu.au] On Behalf Of Richard Chirgwin
> Sent: Monday, 3 January 2011 1:42 PM
> To: link at mailman.anu.edu.au
> Subject: Re: [LINK] Broadband for a Broad Land
> 
> 
> On 3/01/11 12:54 PM, Tom Worthington wrote:
> > Frank O'Connor wrote:
> >> At 10:59 AM +1100 28/12/10, Tom Worthington wrote:
> >>> I started writing a submission for the NBN Inquiry: 
> >>> <http://blog.tomw.net.au/2010/12/broadband-for-broad-land.html>.
> >> Mmm ... many Internet apps are Web based, and don't 
> benefit from the 
> >> increase in bandwidth beyond the initial 12 Mbs ... The problem on 
> >> the Web is latency ... and depending how the NBN 
> implements this the 
> >> Web may or may not be a better experience. ...
> > I assume that the NBN's optical network will cut out many 
> hops between 
> > data source and the customer at home, reducing latency. 
> What happens 
> > with the wireless sevice is anyone guess. Are there any 
> specifications 
> > from NBN Co. about latency?
> None about the wireless. I don't think wireless has been 
> specified yet.
> 
> Most of the latency of Internet applications comes from router 
> processing, doesn't it? The reason I mention this is that the 
> NBN is a 
> layer 2 network - it's not providing the router layer. I'm 
> happy to be 
> corrected on this by those more knowledegable, but: if (say) 
> iiNet has 
> ten hops between its Sydney data centre and San Francisco, 
> the NBN won't 
> affect this. It will deliver customer traffic to the iiNet 
> data centre, 
> which is where the traffic will enter iiNet's routing and pick up the 
> same ten hops.
> 
> RC

I think you are correct Richard, I used to calculate each "hop" as being
34 ms. Therefore 10 hops on a single ISP with older style routers
attempting to define a set of QOS rules adds 340 ms latency to each
packet. 

Fibre will eliminate some latency, mainly the digital to analogue
switching of layers 1-3. Unfortunately the physical across the pond
transit will remain the same. Therefore persons currently connected to
DSL at Broadway exchange [there are none] will notice zero
differentiation. Those connceted to Bigpond at Paddington will save
about 132 ms and others various.

All up, from a time saving perspective, the NBN will save Australians an
average of approximately three seconds per hour (x 8 million surfers =
10,000 minutes per day - which if we calculate that using the koltai
leisure minutes calculator is valued at around $25,400 per day which
should obviously be included in the business case on the basis that:

Power is saved as results are received faster; ergo persons browse for
shorter time or;
Persons browse for the same time, obtain more results faster and become
smarter; [countries IQ goes up]

Either way, the NBN has a beneficial hedonic value that possibly may
have been overlooked in the cost bnenefit analysis.


TomK