Something else from the newletter for those who are interested:
City Limits: Is everyone in urban Canada getting the internet they need?
JOIN US on June 11, 2024 from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM ET for our webinar focused on digital inequities in Canada’s major cities. While conversations typically focus on rural and remote areas, many urban residents also struggle with insufficient internet access, impacting their work, education, health and connectivity. Discover how communities are taking innovative steps to bridge this #digitaldivide.
Today I spoke out on the need to extend the Affordable Connectivity Program with my New Dem Coalition colleagues. Over 135,000 households in #OH11 are enrolled in the ACP – which is closing the #digitaldivide.
A major factor in closing the digital divide is creating more reliable Internet access that is affordable. Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) and local traffic are critical to help with this.
Over the past 10 years in the DRC, we can see the dramatic impact that IXPs had on access⬇️
So twice a month I hang out at my library and give people technology help. Back in 2021 I went down there and said to the administrator "hey do you want this?" And they did, so I've been doing it ever since.
What surprised me is that ALL OF MY TAKERS in all this time?
Senior citizens.
And they are absolutely baffled by modern software. In more ways than one. But flat UI is a big one. This is a #DigitalDivide issue I don't see discussed at all.
All 50 states are poised to receive large grants of federal money to expand broadband access, but they have a lot of work to do to meet the government’s requirements.
States are also in something of a race: The first ones to get funding will be able to begin hiring from the limited pool of technicians capable of installing fiber optic cables.
For some families, those who don’t have a lot of cash, it’s still the only place they can go to get connected to the internet, to watch a movie, to listen to music.
Hey whoever made the decision to close our central public library branch in Garden Pl at 5:30pm on weekdays - and 5pm on weekends - you might want to keep in mind that...
@Daojoan
> For some families, those who don’t have a lot of cash, it’s still the only place they can go to get connected to the internet, to watch a movie, to listen to music. Growing up, my library was my second home.
🌦️Checking the weather is an act that many of us do daily without much thought, but for the community of Ulukhaktok, this simple search wasn't so simple until Internet access was expanded last year.
More reliable and affordable Internet has positively impacted the community.
Learn how we, with the generous support of Baicells and FlyAirNorth, worked with the people of Ulukhaktok to build a #CommunityNetwork :
Fears that #Israel or international partners could pressure #Egypt into accepting millions of #Palestinians settling in the #Sinai have abounded for decades in #Cairo: #HosniMubarak strenuously denied reports in 2017 that he had cut a deal with #MargaretThatcher in 1983 to resettle Palestinians exiled in Lebanon in the peninsula, adding that #BenjaminNetanyahu, had also proposed the idea in 2010.
Restrictions placed by the Israeli authorities on #Palestinian#CellularProviders upgrading their networks has meant that for years Palestinians have had to rely on much slower connections than those in #Israel.
Palestinians in the #WestBank are only able to use 3G mobile services, while those in #Gaza only get 2G. Meanwhile, Israel is upgrading from 4G to 5G.
Today's key concept is #PredatoryInclusion: "a process wherein lenders and financial actors offer needed services to Black households but on exploitative terms that limit or eliminate their long-term benefits":
If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this thread to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:
These "#ZeroRating" programs charged subscribers by the byte to reach any service except Facebook and its partners. Facebook claimed that this would "bridge the #DigitalDivide," by corralling "the next billion internet users" into using its services.
The fact that this would make "Facebook" synonymous with "the internet" was just an accidental, regrettable side-effect.
Luckily, solutions like #EndlessKey from @EndlessOS exist where we can deliver rich, curated, offline-capable self-guided learning resources to kids on Chromebooks.
When kids' devices are online at school, they can download as much interesting content as their Chromebook’s storage can handle. Then when they’re offline or using expensive Internet, they can still get a similar experience of an “offline Internet.”
#CyberCafes#Nigeria#DigitalDivide#DigitalInclusion: "In the mid-2000s, Nigerian telecom companies started offering mobile-browsing packages, and the purchase of internet-enabled mobile phones jumped. Suddenly, there was an alternative to the long queues, overstuffed rooms, lack of privacy, and risk of arrest that characterized cybercafes.
More than half of Nigerians use the internet, but only 30% of them own a personal computer, and data can still be prohibitively expensive. That means there’s still a market for internet cafes among low-income families and those who need to print paperwork."
Using unlicensed software can cost you your job, scupper your educational prospects and impact your personal life. Yet, a large number of people in developing countries are risking it all and leaving their computers and data vulnerable to malware infections. The Hustle delves into why.
We aim to empower the world with knowledge and opportunity by solving the barriers that prevent equitable access to technology—one of the largest of which is connectivity. Windows becoming ever-more dependent on the cloud leaves people on the wrong side of the digital divide.
CIRA Launches beta release of their new Internet Performance Test (IPT) (beta-performance.cira.ca)
Try it and give feedback here:...