The superfast 'œGrid' - broadband on steroids and the end of the Earth?

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Monday, 07 April 2008 18:30

Opinion and Analysis

The Times Online states that the Grid computing project started seven years ago, and amazingly will capture so much data from the LHC each year that 56 million CDs would be needed to store all that data!

According to a 2005 press release from CERN, the grid “includes more than 100 sites in 31 countries”, which makes it “the world's largest international scientific Grid.”

Given the fact that most countries are still struggling with ADSL2+, fibre rollouts, WiMAX networks and 3.5G HSPA upgrades to existing 2G and 3G networks, CERN’s superfast broadband grid project is certainly making plenty of waves on the international technology news circuit.

But the reality is that consumers will have to likely wait years before the technology is sufficiently advanced – and affordable enough – to be made available for consumers.

More likely, wireless broadband and fibre networks will keep consumers happy over the next decade, if some other form of superfast networking technology isn’t invented first.

So, if CERN’s grid ever makes it to your street, it’ll be very cool. But I’ll bet something even faster and better will be invented before too long, while Australia waits... and waits... and waits... for the Federal Government’s super-slow 12Mbps fibre broadband network... promised to be delivered in a glacially slow 5 years from now.

Note: thanks to iTWire reader Overseer for the heads up. And no, this is not satire, but very, very 100% real. I mean it and I'm not joking! The links in the article are genuine and will show you there is no satire here.

If you're not sure what I'm referring to in regards to satire, please read this article on Vista's Source Code being leaked, and this article on the imaginary perfection that is Microsoft and Vista SP1, where the comments section of each explores recent controversies generated right here at iTWire, as opposed to within the Large Hadron Particle Accelerating Collider at CERN. Have a nice day. :-)