# 2315
One of the smartest people I know on Internet tech issues is my blogging buddy Scott McPherson, who has written extensively about the fragility of the Internet and telecom issues during a pandemic.
Rather than rehash (and probably do so poorly) things he's already gone over -I'll simply refer you to some of his musings on the subject.
Why telecommuting will probably fail in a pandemic, Vol. 1
Journal Entry by Scott McPherson on November 28, 2007
Has anyone noticed their Internet connection slowing down over the past few days? Has anyone not noticed the slowness of the Internet, especially at night? E-commerce retailers are experiencing a huge surge in shoppers this holiday season. And nowhere is this more evident than in the (i...
Why telecommuting will probably fail in a pandemic, Vol. 2
Journal Entry by Scott McPherson on January 11, 2008
Computerworld magazine does a fine job of keeping pandemic preparedness on the minds of Chief Information Officers (that's Head Geek of corporate and government IT-dom), as well as decision-makers and IT personnel. Anyway, in their latest issue appears this gem of a story: Eight-day IT outage woul...
Journal Entry by Scott McPherson on March 19, 2008
As veteran readers of this Blogsite know by now, I am decidedly pessimistic about the ability of the Internet to stay viable during a severe influenza pandemic. Not that I think the Internet will collapse, never to get off the canvas again. Far from it: Recall that it was the US mil...
Why telecommuting will probably fail in a pandemic, Vol. 4
Journal Entry by Scott McPherson on April 17, 2008
Sorry for the dearth of posts since my open letter to the Indonesian president. Been very busy! But I also had the bad fortune of missing last night's South Park. You can't get any better, dead-on social commentary than this cartoon show for grown-ups. That's grown-ups, don't...
Why telecommuting will probably fail in a pandemic, Vol. 5
Journal Entry by Scott McPherson on June 4, 2008
A story in today's Washington Post brings the "bandwidth crunch" issue to light, and shows what Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are doing to try and regulate the flow of ones and zeroes. First, here are some quick excerpts and a link to the whole story. Heavy Internet Users Target...
Scott also writes a tech blog for ComputerWorld called Tiptoeing Through Minefields , and (when he finds time for it) is the CIO (Chief Information Officer) for the State of Florida's House of Representatives.
I dredge up all of this today because last week there was a meeting in Washington D.C. to discuss many of the issues that Scott has addressed in his blogs.
Keeping the Internet up, and Information technology systems working, during a pandemic would a tremendous challenge. With millions of people potentially staying home to avoid infection and either working online or seeking entertainment on the Internet, the ability of the system to carry the load is in real doubt.
Network management - which I take to be a euphemistic term for controlling, or limiting, certain high bandwidth Internet activities - may be required to keep the net viable.
This from NETWORKWORLD.
How telcos and ISPs are prepping for a pandemic
Network management, bandwidth priority will become critical tools
By Brad Reed , Network World , 09/18/2008
Network operators and IT professionals already worried about how hurricanes and financial meltdowns will impact their work lives can add another potential catastrophe to their list of concerns: a global pandemic.
During a panel sponsored by the FCC in Washington, D.C., Thursday, representatives from telecom carriers and ISPs discussed what steps they’ve been taking to prepare for the mass outbreak of a disease such as influenza, and also described the needs and challenges they would have to meet to keep communications up and running during a major global crisis. The most important tool at ISPs’ disposal during a serious pandemic, panelists agreed, was that of network management.
