[2090] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: NREN and the Economics of Mainframes Versus Workstations
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Derek Atkins)
Sat Jan 25 12:10:06 1992
To: sean@dsl.pitt.edu (sean mclinden)
Cc: com-priv@psi.com, drw@BOURBAKI.MIT.EDU
Date: Sat, 25 Jan 92 12:07:48 EST
From: Derek Atkins <warlord@Athena.MIT.EDU>
> sean@dsl.pitt.edu (sean mclinden)
> I suspect that part of the problem (besides the "experimental" nature
> of the software) is that most users really do not think in metaphors which
> easily allow them to fully utilize networks.
> ...
I disagree. I think many people just don't know what a network
can do and people don't take the time to explain it. Have you
tried explaining to people what a network can do? How do you
go about it?
When I try explaining the InterNet to a layman, I just give them a
metaphor. I explain that a computer network is similar to 'the'
(maybe I should say 'a'?) phone network -- you have your terminal
device, a.k.a. a phone (or computer); you have your address (phone
number); you have an address list, or phone book (or named, or
NIS, or other name-service).
If you want to contact someone, you pick up your phone and dial the
other person's phone number. If you want to contact another computer
you just (theoretically) give it the address of the remote system and
it tries to connect you.
The next step is to say that using this network, you can act just as
if you were typing at the keyboard of that machine (most laymen only
understand PC's -- if anything -- so I try to use PC-like analogies)
and it allows you to use the computing power of the remote machine.
Now, I realize that many people reading this understand what I'm talking
about, having used telnet to log in to remote machines... But its not
difficult to explain to others, if you take the time to form an
analogy to things they understand.
The only problem currently is that it depends what network you are on --
and there is no 'global' network (like the phone network) -- so yes, the
analogy breaks down.
Sean, many people stay with mainframes because PC's are still
relatively new, (12 years old, approx?), and don't know what is
available to them. If you bought a Mainframe in 1975, I doubt that it
would get trashed in 1985 -- they cost a lot of money, etc. etc. BUT
-- if they were to start over TODAY, then there are more choices for
them, and their decision might be different.
When the cost of replacing all the PC's and mainframe with
workstations gets to be a reasonable value (Your example was a
hostpital, which usually has little money and gets 3rd hand
hardware anyways) then I'd expect to see a change.
Just because the Technology is there at the top doesn't mean that it
can trickle down to the bottom in no time at all. People are scared.
They don't know what's available, and people are scared of the
unknown. If more people understood what was available, then maybe
more people would be excited about it.
Consider the fact that the InterNet wasn't really known to the
public at large until 1988 and the RTM worm.
-derek
Derek Atkins -- MIT '93 -- Electrical Engineering
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