Reflecting on the topic “a networked home” I thought about growing up without television and how everything changed once WiFi arrived.
I remember the days when I would have to physically plug my laptop into the internet cable just to send some emails to my friends or eventually to log in to Facebook. And I imagine I wasn’t the only one. Most people around my age or older will have memories of the internet cable and the sheer luxury that WiFi was when your first modem was installed.
However, this magical illusion that was WiFi quickly faded into something that was just a part of life. We all began to take connectivity for granted. Well, those of us who were lucky enough to be connected did anyway. For many others around Australia, especially in very rural and outback areas, they remained in the dark. (Gregg 2010, p. 161)
With WiFi came the nagging. My brother and I would ask for a new laptop or a better phone because we felt a bigger urge to connect with our friends, peers and everyone on the internet. Gone were the days of simplicity when we would only watch DVDs on a weekend. Now, we were able to access anything at anytime. To my surprise this really never worried our parents. I suppose they realised that the lack of television during our childhood had to be made up for somehow.
At the beginning the WiFi would drag and lag, but we didn’t mind because we still felt lucky. It could take up to 18 hours for a TV episode to download, but at least we could watch it! However, as the years progressed as did our expectation that internet speed and accessibility would continue to improve. And in my mind it did. There were only sparing moments of frustration when we couldn’t watch a BigPond movie, Iview or Netflix because too many people were using the internet.
It wasn’t until I moved out of home last year that I realised that it’s a pain. Setting up the internet wasn’t difficult, we already had an NBN connection installed and it was all for the “reasonable” price of $59.99 a month. This split between two people was manageable. However, over the past year I have experienced drop outs on more than several occasions. This is of course a pain for anyone let alone a University student with assignments to submit. And last month I received an email from my server stating that they are going to improve the fibres from the node in Wollongong to my house. This means the price will increase by $10 to $69.99 a month.
Overall, the WiFi is a wonderful creation, but in comparison to many nations I often wonder why we can’t fix these simple problems and keep it affordable. I also keep wondering what the future of WiFi will even be… What do you think?
Reference
Gregg, M 2010, ‘Available in Selected Metros Only: Rural Melancholy and the Promise of Online Connectivity’, Cultural Studies Review, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 160-163.
A Travelling Proust 