[clug] [OT] The Register is trying to crowfund $100-$250K for indep study on NBN

[Robert Edwards]

On 20/06/13 14:08, steve jenkin wrote:
> [bail now if you don't care for the NBN and Politics]
>
> A lot of you on-list will have opinions about how the NBN should be
> built. If you're like me, you want to scream at the radio/TV when
> inane political comments about the NBN are made/reported by
> politicians and others on both sides.
>
> Here's a chance for us to collectively "put our money where our mouth is".
>
> A little study like this is unlikely to change the outcome of the next
> election, but it will help "keep the B's honest".  It won't stop the
> NBN-haters or fanboi's dukeing it out still all over the Internet.
> That fine sport will continue into the next decade.
>
> It will give voters some firm facts to push-back on _both_ political
> parties. If politicians see an issue turn against them in polls, they
> will respond unless they're ideologically bound to it.
>
> <http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/06/19/iregi_to_australia_heres_your_chance_to_find_nbn_answers/>
>
> <http://www.pozible.com/project/26539>
>
> Questions:
>
> * What broadband service does Australia and comparable nations require
> in the future?
>
> * What broadband connection technology provides the longest likely
> working life and lowest operational cost to meet the demand identified
> in question one?
>
> * What will entrepreneurs in business and government do with the NBN?
>
>
> Rephrased on 'Pozible' site as:
>
> We want to address that with an independent study to answer three big
> NBN questions:
> * What do we REALLY NEED?
> * What's the BEST TECHNOLOGY to build with?
> * What happens AFTER we build the NBN?
>

And, of course, here is the big problem. The first question is
pozibly quite ill-phrased.

Who is "we"? Is "we":
  - Australian businesses (small, medium, large)?
  - multi-national corporations?
  - the government?
  - the health-care sector?
  - education providers (primary, secondary, tertiary)?
  - the gamers?
  - the guys at home watching porn?
  - the single mums in woop-woop struggling to feed their kids?
  - the politicians, pozibly trying to build monuments to themselves?

And what is the time frame "we" REALLY NEED to provide this in?
6 months? 12 months? 5 years? 20 years?

And what do "we" REALLY NEED it for?

Remember, we are talking about $29BN+ - that's more than
$29,000,000,000.

I think that most people (including myself) just can't conceive what
an enormous amount of money that really is. Is it really a good value
proposition?

Just asking...

Bob Edwards.