A recent Wired article reminded me of the first time a friend tipped me off to the then-new Red vs. Blue videos (beware salty language, adult themes). At the time, I found it hilarious and didn’t give a thought to it ever being called “The Future of TV.” Now called “machinima,” it has exploded among… Continue reading
This video is really making the rounds – I have seen it on multiple lists and many have forwarded it to me. I found it hilarous, but be warned that it features salty language that may be offensive to some and is probably NSFW. Video: Continue reading
Telecompetitor, March 28, 2013 There are numerous things municipalities can do to help bring high-speed broadband networks to their communities, said participants at an FCC workshop on gigabit communities yesterday. The workshop was held as a follow-up to FCC Chairman Genachowski’s announcement earlier this year that set a goal of having at least one gigabit… Continue reading
Wall Street Journal, March 27, 2013 The Bay Area is experiencing a rebirth of municipal Wi-Fi networks, after a decade of fits and starts in such efforts. Last week, Santa Clara launched a free public wireless network that blankets nearly the entire city of 120,000 residents, or about 19 square miles. The new network replaces… Continue reading
On Wednesday, March 26, Christopher Mitchell will be on the last panel at the Federal Communication Commission’s Gigabit Workshop. The full agenda is here and starts at 9 AM EDT. The entire event will be webcast via fcc.gov/live. Mitchell’s panel will begin at 2:20 EDT and discuss the ways communities can leverage local tools to… Continue reading
Mike Scott, City Manager of Moultrie in Georgia, joins us for Episode #39 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast to share the origins of the Community Network Services (CNS) network that joins four towns in four counties in rural southwest Georgia. In this interview, Mike Scott shares some of the benefits of the network for… Continue reading
St. Paul Pioneer Press, March 25, 2013 Comcast is doubling the download speeds of some of its most popular Internet broadband services in the Twin Cities, the cable giant said Monday, March 25. The faster speeds for its three most popular residential service tiers — Performance, Blast and Extreme 50 — became effective at 12:01… Continue reading
Motherboard, March 21, 2013 Google just announced that it plans on expanding its high-speed fiber-optic service beyond Kansas City, and into another fast-growing nearby city, Olathe, Kansas, home to some 120,000 people. “The Olathe City Council approved an agreement to bring Google Fiber to their city,” Google Fiber Community Manager Rachel Hack wrote in a… Continue reading
Nearly 20 years ago, a small community between Seattle and Bellingham, Washington, began building a fiber optic network to connect key municipal facilities. In the years since, Mt Vernon has expanded the network to many community anchor institutions and businesses locally, including in two nearby towns. Information Systems Director Kim Kleppe and Community & Economic… Continue reading
We have long been impressed with Cedar Falls Utilities (CFU) in Iowa. They built an incredibly successful municipal cable network that has now been upgraded to a FTTH network. CFU transfers $1.6 million into the town’s general fund every year, reminding us that community owned networks often pay far more in taxes than the national… Continue reading