Session 12 Reading Reactions.

Our readings for this week covered the future of the internet. The reading that caught my eye and I was the most interested in was “The Future of the Internet.” In this article, a study was conducted on users of the internet and the results presented seven scenarios surrounding the future of the internet. Some of the scenarios which interested me the most were, a” low cost internet” (scenario 1) and “English displaces other languages” (scenario 2). So how cheap will a network cost in the future? With the advancements of technology and the speed that advancements occur, it is very likely that network will become as cheap as telephone costs. Telephone lines exist everywhere because they are so cheap, but it is possible that network can reach this level? Of course. Many technologies have been replaced by cheaper replacements, DVD’s have replaced VCR’s, CD’s have replaced Cassettes, and in the future, network will replace telephones. It is already apparent with VOIP technology on the upswing. More and more users are using VIOP due to the low cost of international and local phone calls as well as the price per month. As VOIP grows, telephone lines will become obsolete and network cable will become the new standard. Houses are being pre-wired with network cable, and networks are becoming so advanced that LAN and WAN are being broadcast in cities for mass use.

With relation to English and its use on the internet, how much control will the English language have on internet standards and how will it spread. English is already widely used as one of the dominant languages of the internet. It is my belief that the English language will not displace other languages, it will separate languages and in the future networks will become self contained (within the regions of the language) and users will have to cross over one network (English for example) to another network and possibly have pay a toll (like a toll road) in order to access that “other network”. English, although widely used, is already drawing boundaries within certain communities, look at Myspace for example, it is broadcast in over 30 languages but each site is contained within itself, this simple structure might evolve into certain region containment and the English language will separate, not displace other languages. The only displacement that might occur is to force the languages to remain contained within their own network and prevent a spreading of new language.