Google Starts Running Fiber In Kansas City

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Google Starts Running Fiber In Kansas City

Posted by samzenpus on Monday February 6, 2012 @06:00AM from the lets-get-it-started-in-here dept.

New submitter Kiyyik writes "After weeks of wrangling over shared space on utility poles, Google and the KC Board of Public Utilities have gotten their act together and Google is starting to wire Kansas City, Kansas today. They will be paying attachment fees and hanging the fiber optic lines in the space on the poles reserved for telecommunications. The Kansas City, Missouri side is still on track to begin a few months behind the Kansas side."

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Google by aglider · 2012-02-06 06:02 · Score: 1

is going to be our Overlord.

--
Sent as ripples into the electromagnetic field. No single photon has been harmed in the process.
1. Re:Google by petteyg359 · 2012-02-06 06:04 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  They'll be a better overlord than AT&T...
2. Re:Google by peragrin · 2012-02-06 06:38 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  Most likely not. However google is laying fiber where AT&T won't even update its breaking copper in most cities.
  
  --
  i thought once I was found, but it was only a dream.
3. Re:Google by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:09 · Score: 0
  
  Overlords are actually pretty wonderful when they're that benevolent.
4. Re:Google by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:16 · Score: 0
  
  As if by magic, once this process starts happening, AT&T will reverse course and be more than willing to upgrade areas that need it to keep Google at bay.
  Or, in typical giant duopoly fashion, they will simply tie this all up in court for years. Especially if Google gets aggressive with it's fiber roll-out. Nothing squashes competition like a lawsuit :D
5. Re:Google by poetmatt · 2012-02-06 07:37 · Score: 1
  
  I would love to see ATT try to sue google for being competitive.
  The DOJ would be on top of ATT faster than you can even conceptualize the antitrust semblance there. This is like Microsoft trying to complain to google of antitrust via "non-neutral search" - even the millions of dollars put into fake studies can't convince people of the lies.
6. Re:Google by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 08:26 · Score: 0
  
  Actually, the opposite is the case with regard to telecommunications. Utility monopoly has been justified time and again as a measure of avoiding 'wasteful duplication'. The specific mechanism might not be a law suit, but the final action is the same: mandate to restrict competition. Unfortunately, the millions of dollars(perhaps billions) put into academia has indeed convinced people of these ex post facto justifications.
  Some historical references: http://mises.org/journals/rae/pdf/RAE9_2_3.pdf
7. Re:Google by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 08:35 · Score: 0
  
  You apparently don't understand the history of anti-trust law, as being "too competitive" has actually been a metric in the past for invoking anti-trust law against a company.
  It doesn't matter if your company is more efficient or has a technological advantage. If enough "experts" testify that a company is providing a product or service below what they estimate cost should be, then that company is now guilty of predatory pricing, monopoly behavior, etc and will subject to anti-trust penalties.
  Anti-trust legislation has never been about protecting consumers, but rather a way to ensure that firms favored by government get an advantage over others. If you look at the historical record you'll see this clearly. After almost every successful anti-trust lawsuit in the U.S, consumer prices increase and remain elevated.
8. Re:Google by Tyrannosaur · 2012-02-06 08:36 · Score: 1
  
  going to be? dont you mean already is?
9. Re:Google by morgauxo · 2012-02-06 08:44 · Score: 1
  
  Doesn't that make them a 'better overlord?
10. Re:Google by AmberBlackCat · 2012-02-06 09:08 · Score: 1
  
  AT&T is not the main problem on the Missouri side. It's Time Warner Cable. We've had enough of their outages, bandwidth slowing to a crawl, and insisting any problem is the router rather than the cable modem. I don't know what kind of deal they had with the city government but for years there has been no other real option. And AT&T's option doesn't seem like a real option here, just based on previous experiences with their DSL. I don't trust Google any more than Time Warner, but nothing but good can come out of having them compete against each other for broadband.
11. Re:Google by aglider · 2012-02-06 21:13 · Score: 1
  
  ... correct! It's already.
  
  --
  Sent as ripples into the electromagnetic field. No single photon has been harmed in the process.
12. Re:Google by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-07 02:20 · Score: 0
  
  Overlord?
  You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
  - Inigo Montoya
13. Re:Google by _0x783czar · 2012-02-07 03:31 · Score: 1
  
  What an inspiration to every Computer Major in college. Knowing that they too can grow up to rule the world.
  
  --
  ~theCzar
14. Re:Google by thebeige · 2012-02-20 09:39 · Score: 1
  
  I wish Google were my overlord instead of Telstra :(
I can't wait by NabisOne · 2012-02-06 06:05 · Score: 2

As a Kansas City, MO resident it is exciting to see this happening here.
1. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:11 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  and as a non-Kansas City resident I would like to say "I hope you choke on your gigabit... that glorious wonderfull gigabit..."
2. Re:I can't wait by pixelpusher220 · 2012-02-06 06:11 · Score: 0
  
  Isn't that tornado country? Wouldn't hanging fiber just mean you're going to 'rehang' it in a few years?
  
  Just seems like burying it is going to be the better option...sure it's more expensive, but this is G$$gle we're talking about :)
  
  --
  People in cars cause accidents....accidents in cars cause people :-D
3. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:12 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  You mean just like every other ISP on Earth? Who cares you chucklefuck.
4. Re:I can't wait by SJHillman · 2012-02-06 06:16 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  It's going on existing utility poles, which tells me two things:
  1) It's much, much cheaper for the initial implementation as well as any additions or repairs later on compared to burying it
  2) The poles already exist, so tornadoes are likely already accounted for by the existing infrastructure
5. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:22 · Score: 0
  
  G$$gle is the new M$.
6. Re:I can't wait by Shatrat · 2012-02-06 06:25 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  You're correct. I work in this industry.
  UG fiber is several times more expensive per mile than Aerial fiber. It's somewhat less vulnerable to cuts, but much more difficult to locate and repair those cuts when they happen (especially rat chews or horizontal boring damage) so it's a bit of a wash really.
  
  --
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7. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:52 · Score: 0
  
  Yes. When you're talking about running that much fiber, in a day or two you can expect an enormous, pipe-clogging data dump.
8. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:13 · Score: 0
  
  and as a non-Kansas City resident I would like to say "I hope you choke on your gigabit... that glorious wonderfull gigabit..."
  http://www.speedtest.net/result/1705675097.png
  Very few servers can handle 1 gig right now. They're better at dishing it out, but they're trash at taking it.
  Of course, as a user, I'll just fill up my truck until it clogs all the tubes.
9. Re:I can't wait by sexconker · 2012-02-06 07:15 · Score: 1
  
  You're correct. I work in this industry.
  UG fiber is several times more expensive per mile than Aerial fiber. It's somewhat less vulnerable to cuts, but much more difficult to locate and repair those cuts when they happen (especially rat chews or horizontal boring damage) so it's a bit of a wash really.
  Plus I'm sure Google wants people to SEE the wiring go up. I wonder if the people doing the work are wearing a "Google" branded jacket or helmet.
10. Re:I can't wait by Rasperin · 2012-02-06 07:22 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  As a Shawnee, KS (just about 5minutes from North Kansas City, KS) resident I can only think of one tornado that has come close to this area in the last 12 years (I think there might have been one in 1999) and the amount of damage it did was rip a few roof tiles off a house. Tornados do a pretty good job of staying out of this area, however that doesn't mean we don't get 70-100mph winds every so often that knock down said poles. Honestly, those days seem to do more damage in this area than tornados do.
  
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11. Re:I can't wait by ZeroSumHappiness · 2012-02-06 07:22 · Score: 1
  
  From what I understand it'll be Google employees doing the hanging, so yeah, they probably will have Google branded jackets and trucks.
12. Re:I can't wait by Shatrat · 2012-02-06 07:24 · Score: 2
  
  If I had to guess they're contractors and are wearing hi-viz yellow and orange, and the fiber is going to be plain black All Dielectric Self Supporting fiber going up on poles that probably already have other companies fiber, as well as copper, and cable TV facilities hanging on them. Most people drive past thousands of miles of fiber every day (if you go by individual strand) and don't notice it. If you see a black cable going into a large black canister, that's a splice case. If you see a cable doubled back on itself using a horseshoe looking device that's a slack loop.
  
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13. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:32 · Score: 0
  
  Isn't that tornado country? Wouldn't hanging fiber just mean you're going to 'rehang' it in a few years?
  No
14. Re:I can't wait by Alyred · 2012-02-06 07:38 · Score: 1
  
  Yes, it's somewhat sad that one of the states that is the most adverse to science and knowledge will now be one of the fastest being able to receive it.
15. Re:I can't wait by RatherBeAnonymous · 2012-02-06 07:59 · Score: 2
  
  Fiber is remarkably durable. Last Spring we had bad storm roll through that took down 8 utility poles along the road right in front of work. The power was out, cable TV lines snapped, phone lines had to be restrung, but the fiber on those poles never broke. Once power was restored our Internet connection was back up. The hospital about 5 miles down the road is also serviced by that fiber trunk and never lost service. The ISP, who had not gotten any reports yet from the utility companies, had no idea there was a problem other than the connection dropping at my work.
16. Re:I can't wait by aaronjp · 2012-02-06 08:09 · Score: 1
  
  Ice storms do more damage here than Tornados ever have.
17. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 08:09 · Score: 1
  
  Most ISPs are not in the Ad business with a privacy invading agenda to push. And what's with every other article on /. being about Google anyway?
  --
  If you care about your privacy you should not be using any Google product at all.
18. Re:I can't wait by Flaming+Troll+Shill · 2012-02-06 08:19 · Score: 1
  
  Comcast? Every other cable company? At least I admit to being a shill :P
19. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 08:45 · Score: 0
  
  You're correct. I work in this industry.
  UG fiber is several times more expensive per mile than Aerial fiber. It's somewhat less vulnerable to cuts, but much more difficult to locate and repair those cuts when they happen (especially rat chews or horizontal boring damage) so it's a bit of a wash really.
  It also depends what the infrastructure is available. They would not necessarily do underground work if they have access to aerial drop cable points.
20. Re:I can't wait by mdmkolbe · 2012-02-06 11:44 · Score: 1
  
  What does "horizontal boring damage" mean? People drilling though the air? Animals that burrow though plastic and copper (but only horizontally)?
21. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 12:20 · Score: 0
  
  You mean every other ISP who offers up to 10Mb speeds? It's not like there are any ISPs in the Kansas City area who offer even 20 Mb speeds. I don't much care for Google setting up a virtual wireshark tap on my home connection but I'd be tempted to sign up for a chance to download a game from Steam in one day.
22. Re:I can't wait by timeOday · 2012-02-06 12:41 · Score: 1
  
  Unlike power or copper telephone, it seems like it should be relatively affordable to lay fiber in a mesh so there are redundant routes to neighborhood-level routers so service can continue, albeit at reduced capacity, if some routes go down. Does anybody do that?
23. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 12:54 · Score: 0
  
  How fast information travels to an area has a direct impact on its inhabitants. We will see a flock of tech minded and likely liberal inhabitants, as well as a shift to a more wholesome mindset. Perhaps communication like this might heal one of the more socially damaged areas in the US.
24. Re:I can't wait by Nehmo · 2012-02-06 14:42 · Score: 1
  
  Ice storms do more damage here than Tornados ever have.
  And the municipal governments do more than both. (KCK resident speaking.) As this project is behind schedule in terms of Google's early announcements, I assumed Google somwhow clashed with the crooks and was contemplating abandoning the project. Now, I see the project is underway. Google must have caved and paid the necessary bribes.
  Oh, the tornados? They are not a significant threat. The Kansas City (the metro straddles the Kansas-Missouri state line) metro is in a 5 tornadoes per 100,000 mile^2 (260,000 km^2) per year area http://earthstorm.mesonet.org/materials/graphics/TornadoFreq.gif (KC is in the extreme upper right corner of Kansas) . This is not the highest risk area. Moreover, tornado damage is usually localized. Most people in Kansas City don't even know someone who's seen a tornado.
  
  --
  (||) Nehmo (||)
25. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 15:18 · Score: 0
  
  I can confirm the google trucks. There are "Google Fiber" trucks rolling around Stanford's campus on occasion
26. Re:I can't wait by Shatrat · 2012-02-06 16:18 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  A horizontal borer is used to put in underground cable and conduit without trenching. Its the only way to get across railway or highway but if you hit another cable or utility its the end of the damn world.
  
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27. Re:I can't wait by Rasperin · 2012-02-10 09:00 · Score: 1
  
  I've lived through two tornadoes, one on the outskirts of Wyndotte when I was 14 at a family meetup. We were really lucky my uncle (at his house) had a cemented basement, the tornado barreled right through his house with two half houses on each side. And one when I was 4 that blew out the windows in my pre-school. So they do happen but the ice storms, wind storms(70-100mph), cold snaps(-20f), and heat waves (110f+) are going to be far more destructive. I have to admit I know very little about the KCK council and thank (a higher power) that I live in Johnson County.
  
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28. Re:I can't wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-20 15:07 · Score: 0
  
  To build mesh you need to deploy and maintain thousands of battery powered routers in pits somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Cheaper to pull 1000 direct fibers back to a cabinet.
I can wait by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:10 · Score: 2, Funny

As a Kansas City, MO non-resident it is not exciting to see this happening there.
Still a bit confused... by Darkness404 · 2012-02-06 06:11 · Score: 2, Insightful

Really though, I'm still a bit confused with how Kansas City managed to get Google's fiber optic cables when really it was Topeka that should have been chosen...

Either way, a good development that should help the KC area get more technology companies and make it a bit more livable.

--
Taxation is legalized theft, no more, no less.
1. Re:Still a bit confused... by bogaboga · 2012-02-06 06:14 · Score: 0
  
  Really though, I'm still a bit confused with how Kansas City managed to get Google's fiber optic cables when really it was Topeka that should have been chosen...
  
  And your reason(s) for Topeka would be...
  Or why don't you just tell us why you're a bit confused?
2. Re:Still a bit confused... by SJHillman · 2012-02-06 06:18 · Score: 1
  
  Why Topeka? From Google's official FAQ:
  Why did Google choose Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri?
  Nearly 1,100 communities across the country expressed interest in this project. Our goal was to find a location where we could build efficiently, make an impact on the community, and develop working partnerships with the local government, utility and community organizations. We believe we’ve found this in both Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri.
  http://www.google.com/fiber/kansascity/faq.html
3. Re:Still a bit confused... by Aladrin · 2012-02-06 06:18 · Score: 2
  
  Maybe he means http://www.geekologie.com/2010/03/topeka-kansas-renamed-google-k.php
  
  --
  "If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - DM
4. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:30 · Score: 0
  
  Or probably because they could wire up two cities at once and make it look like they were doing twice the work when really they will both probably run from a single central backbone location.
5. Re:Still a bit confused... by icebike · 2012-02-06 06:41 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Square miles is square miles. You don't run everything that big from a single backbone location.
  Building in two cities in two different states brings in not just the regulation of two states but also the federal government regs.
  Its a perfect storm of red tape. If the project survives this it could be replicated anywhere, even in the People's Republic of Santa Monica. This is as much of an experiment for Google as any thing else.
  .
  
  --
  Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
6. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:05 · Score: 1
  
  It's because Kansas City has a unified government with the county and the city itself. They are one in the same so Google has fewer hurdles to jump over to get this stuff wired.
7. Re:Still a bit confused... by Hadlock · 2012-02-06 07:14 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  Not mentioned: Kansas City is a combined city-county government. That roughly halves the amount of city level and county level paperwork, only one board to brib^H^H^H^H inform, one set of telecommunication laws to study etc etc. Many other medium-sized cities have distinct city and county level governments (in addition to State government).
  
  TL;DR Kansas City has one fewer governing body & sets of laws/jurisdiction (2 vs 3) than most cities it's size do.
  
  --
  moox. for a new generation.
8. Re:Still a bit confused... by sexconker · 2012-02-06 07:17 · Score: 1
  
  Really though, I'm still a bit confused
  Hey baby, I hear the blues a-callin',
  Tossed salad and scrambled eggs
  Oh My
  Mercy
  And maybe I seem a bit confused,
  Yeah maybe, but I got you pegged!
  Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha!
  But I don't know what to do with those tossed salads and scrambled eggs.
  They're callin' again.
9. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:20 · Score: 0
  
  Really though, I'm still a bit confused with how Kansas City managed to get Google's fiber optic cables when really it was Topeka that should have been chosen...
  Either way, a good development that should help the KC area get more technology companies and make it a bit more livable.
  They agreed to give away more to google than competing cities. A failed promise of no utility pole attachment fees, relatively flat terrain, relatively low population density were what I understand were motivations for google to chose KCK.
  KCK is low per capita income, has high crime, very high taxes and is otherwise an undesirable place to live.
10. Re:Still a bit confused... by Rasperin · 2012-02-06 07:24 · Score: 1
  
  Nevermind if you are going to choose Kansas, this is the best area to choose with the highest level of income and (iirc) the biggest area of people (well assuming the expand to Johnson County which is the burbs of KC).
  
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11. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:46 · Score: 0
  
  I don't think fast internet is going to make up for KC being a miserable shithole in a miserable god forsaken wasteland of a state populated by abject retards.
12. Re:Still a bit confused... by QuantumRiff · 2012-02-06 07:46 · Score: 1
  
  Fiber is made from glass.. Glass comes from sand, that is millions of year old crushed rock and shells, being heated at high temps. Since Topeka refuses to acknowledge that the earth is any more than 6000 years old, obviously, the people there don't believe glass can exist. You can't install something that can't exist, and google was chased out as a blasphemer..
  
  --
  
  What are we going to do tonight Brain?
13. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:57 · Score: 0
  
  Really though, I'm still a bit confused with how Kansas City managed to get Google's fiber optic cables when really it was Topeka that should have been chosen...
  Either way, a good development that should help the KC area get more technology companies and make it a bit more livable.
  I'm sure they chose KCK because if it's extremely-close proximity to the downtown KC carrier exchange. Topeka is ~60 miles away from that exchange with limited fiber installation available between KC and Topeka.
  Downtown KC has a very large carrier exchange due to it's geographical location (right in between Chicago & Dallas on the North-South route). I've been in the POP room a few times, and it's really impressive.
14. Re:Still a bit confused... by Culture20 · 2012-02-06 08:11 · Score: 1
  
  Fiber is made from glass.. Glass comes from sand, that is millions of year old crushed rock and shells, being heated at high temps. Since Topeka refuses to acknowledge that the earth is any more than 6000 years old, obviously, the people there don't believe glass can exist. You can't install something that can't exist, and google was chased out as a blasphemer..
  You missed a serious step in your logic. if all Topekans really believe the Earth to be 6000 years old, then they believe the sand was created 6000 years ago in its current form, and its resemblance to millions of years old crushed rock to be a coincidence (or design). Your belief that sand is millions of years old has no bearing in their beliefs.
15. Re:Still a bit confused... by budgenator · 2012-02-06 10:53 · Score: 1
  
  Well fiber was made out of glass about 6000 years ago maybe, nowadays we use plastic, it's much clearer than glass.
  
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16. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 11:23 · Score: 0
  
  The People's Republic of Santa Monica? You know that's where Google is already located ... it being so anti-business and all.
17. Re:Still a bit confused... by icebike · 2012-02-06 11:34 · Score: 1
  
  Google Main office is Mountain View, but, yeah, they are in Santa Monica as well.
  Not a chance of getting something this big past the meddlers and busybodies that run Santa Monica.
  
  --
  Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
18. Re:Still a bit confused... by thogard · 2012-02-06 11:41 · Score: 1
  
  Most major fiber runs tend to follow highway, railroad or pipeline right-of-ways. KC is in the middle of all 3. As you mentioned, its along the Texas-Chicago route but also a cross roads for the east-west as well as links to the North West. St Louis is about as well connected but since it has fewer oil pipelines and less fiber along the rail lines and a mess of governments, I could see why it KC would be a much better choice for a pilot project.
19. Re:Still a bit confused... by cshark · 2012-02-06 15:30 · Score: 1
  
  That, and there are a lot of techies that don't have fast enough internet here in KC. The best AT&T can do is 6mb. The best anyone else can do is 10. Infrastructure around here is ancient and antiquated. So Google is positioned to make a big difference in the lives of every day users.
  
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20. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 16:27 · Score: 0
  
  Nevermind if you are going to choose Kansas, this is the best area to choose with the highest level of income and (iirc) the biggest area of people (well assuming the expand to Johnson County which is the burbs of KC).
  No, this is a KCK / KCMO plan.
  No discussions about expanding to Johnson County. KS is NOT the best place to expand. Where there is a high level of income is NOT the best place to expand. The high income areas already have LOTS of connectivity choices.
21. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 16:40 · Score: 0
  
  I don't think fast internet is going to make up for KC being a miserable shithole in a miserable god forsaken wasteland of a state populated by abject retards.
  It won't but you are a troll.
  There are a lot of dumb asses here, I wish you had said where you were from so I can avoid the mistake of relocating to your neighborhood!
22. Re:Still a bit confused... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-07 01:37 · Score: 0
  
  A failed promise of no utility pole attachment fees
  It wasn't a failed promise. As far as I understood, they had always promised that they could use the upper section for free, and google could still do that if they wanted. The problem was, using the upper section required using higher paid labor to install the lines (due to the danger from working closer to the electrical lines). As far as I know, the lower utility section was never promised to be fee free, but google would rather pay the fee to use that space than pay the extra costs involved with installing in the upper section
This is news? by bobbied · 2012-02-06 06:17 · Score: 1

I guess it is for KC folks, but I've had fiber to my house for years here in Texas from Verizon. Seriously, they are really only setting up the backbone network at this point, so there is a LONG way to go before they will be ready to cable up their first house. Call me when they sign up their first customer....

--
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
1. Re:This is news? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 06:55 · Score: 0
  
  what? you want a gold fucking star for buying a service that was availble to you before it was somewhere else? Whoopie shit for texas they can now beat you stupid with a bible at the speed of light while being a lazy whore to mexico
2. Re:This is news? by imjustmatthew · 2012-02-06 07:02 · Score: 2
  
  Gigabit fiber from Verizon? No, I didn't think so.
  FWIW, I have Verizon FiOS here, and it's nicer than anything else in the area, but it doesn't hold a candle to what a real high speed connection could look like from Google. Especially since Google owns so much of it's own long-distance backbone, I'm betting their local fiber is going to be wired up pretty well to the rest of the internet tubes.
3. Re:This is news? by OverlordQ · 2012-02-06 07:15 · Score: 1
  
  I guess it is for KC folks, but I've had fiber to my house for years here in Texas from Verizon.
  Um, no? This is ten times faster then verizon's fastest offering* which isn't even available everywhere, so yes, it is news.
  *Yes I know 1 Gigabit isn't 10x greater then 150 megabit.
  
  --
  Your hair look like poop, Bob! - Wanker.
4. Re:This is news? by bobbied · 2012-02-06 07:36 · Score: 1
  
  Hmmm.... Still, my 25 MegaBit doesn't approach the bandwidth available on the fiber to my house (which carried the phone line, their full set of cable channels as well as their on-demmand streaming as well). My pipe from the ONT to Verizon is limited to the fiber capacity, which is the same as what Google is doing. That Verizon throttles me to 25 Megabit is simply an imposed limit, not a real one.
  So let me know when they sign up their first customer and how much they pay. Maybe I can use the competition to get more bandwidth and a cheaper price out of Verizon. Oh, and I'm betting that they don't make money for YEARS....
  
  --
  "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
5. Re:This is news? by bobbied · 2012-02-06 07:49 · Score: 1
  
  Verizon could offer Gigabit if they wanted/had too. Once you have fiber to the house, you can offer what ever speed you decided to offer. I believe that verizon tops out at 150 Megabit, but there is nothing preventing them offering more. At some point they'd have to roll out new ONT's (mine's basically limited to 100Base-T but I'm sure the equipment exists.
  I still don't think this is all that newsworthy, at least until they hook up their first subscriber in a few months. Then, I want to know when they start to turn a profit on this venture. Going to be hard to get any kind of ROI on this business given the infastructure costs
  
  --
  "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
6. Re:This is news? by NJRoadfan · 2012-02-06 09:13 · Score: 1
  
  The new GPON ONTs Verizon is using for 150/35Mbit service have Gig-E ports on them.
7. Re:This is news? by thogard · 2012-02-06 12:10 · Score: 1, Interesting
  
  "Once you have fiber to the house, you can offer what ever speed you decided to offer."
  Why do people keep repeating this lie? PON has been in use for about 2 decades and in that time has speed up 40x from the first production stuff to the fastest in a lab. Point to point fiber has increased 20,000x times in 4 decades based on the fastest gear I can buy over the counter in town today.
  Most FTTH is some sort of passive optical which is shared with somewhere up to 4096 other customers and one strand. This is not the yellow multi-mode fiber pairs that you can slap a 40 gigabit transceivers on and make it go faster.
  Since its a single fiber, when the ONT (i.e. fiber modem) turns on its laser to talk to the head end far away, it blinds its own receiver. It also blinds the receivers for most of the other nearby ONT as well and there is a delay before they can start seeing packets again. Some companies have tried to get the transmit on one color and receiver on another but that makes things very expensive. Some places have tried optical filters with other problems but most just use the cheapest lasers they can get and live with the self-blinding problem because they are building cable TV networks.
  There is also the packet coordinating problem. An ethernet packet on the 25 Gbit types PON systems is about an inch long and travels a bit faster than half the speed of light. To get 100% utilization out of your upload bandwidth, you have to coordinate the low cost optical modems to about a tenth of a nano second. The optical length of 10 km of fiber hung from poles changes by tends of meters as the wind blows it around.
  PON and its derivatives are broadcast networks that started out life as a way to reduce the cost of large cable TV networks. Its not a peering network and I'm not sure it will ever be.
  The network of the future will mirror the current telco networks with a pair of fibers to a central switching fabric.
8. Re:This is news? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-07 00:49 · Score: 0
  
  Verizon could offer Gigabit if they wanted/had too
  Yes, they COULD do it if they wanted to or had to. Meanwhile, google doesn't HAVE to do it, but yet they still WANT to do it, and thats what they intend to deliver.
  You sound like the bitter guy who says "I could have done that" anytime someone gets rich for doing something you apparently didn't bother to take the time to do.
9. Re:This is news? by bobbied · 2012-02-07 01:53 · Score: 1
  
  So are you saying Google is intending to use at least two fibers to the customer to get around this issue? Somehow I don't think they will.
  My point here is that Google is not making any huge leap in technology. Hanging fiber on poles is great and Google apparently has enough money to do it, but the *real* question is not about the technology being deployed. The real question is: Can Google make it pay? If Google doesn't make money on this, it won't matter.
  The technology to use the fiber to my house will march on, speeds will improve while equipment prices decline. What's expensive today, will be run of the mill soon. The fact that I have fiber to my house won't change. Having a single fiber in that last mile was and is a huge leap over twisted pair or even coax and the truth is that the bandwidth over that fiber will continue to improve with time. Is my 25 MegaBit link stressing the bounds of physics and technology over that single fiber? Nope, not even close.
  
  --
  "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
10. Re:This is news? by thogard · 2012-02-07 02:49 · Score: 1
  
  I have no idea what they are doing but I would like to know. I do know that the single fiber GPON that is being deployed here is just as future proof as the stuff I was putting the in ground in the mid 80s and splicing with xacto knives in the early 90s... as in its going to be ignored.
  I can't imagine that Google would try anything other that dual fibers to a switch and then run it from there. There are gigabit switches you can get that can hang from a cable.
My wasted youth by interkin3tic · 2012-02-06 06:25 · Score: 1

AT&T has only rolled out LTE in a few select cities. One of which is Kansas City. Now they're getting fiber too?

I lived there in high school, during which time I had not so much as a pager, and considered myself lucky to have AOL on dialup.

I'd like to take this opportunity to tell all the kids in KC that I hate them.
1. Re:My wasted youth by billcarson · 2012-02-06 06:41 · Score: 1
  
  Consider yourself lucky you had a pager.
2. Re:My wasted youth by localman57 · 2012-02-06 07:06 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  Reading Comprehension Question #22:
  
  Based on the paragraph above, interkin3tic had:
  
  A. AOL Dialup
  B. A pager
  C. Both AOL Dialup and a Pager
  D. Neither AOL Dialup or a Pager
3. Re:My wasted youth by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:07 · Score: 0
  
  I hate them too. I live in a suburb of KC (and commute in there every day) and best I can get is a DSL line that dies for weeks at a time several times a year.
4. Re:My wasted youth by aaronjp · 2012-02-06 07:08 · Score: 1
  
  I believe he's saying he didn't even have a pager.
5. Re:My wasted youth by littlebigbot · 2012-02-06 07:20 · Score: 1
  
  I'm looking for "E. All of the Above", but I don't see it.
6. Re:My wasted youth by interkin3tic · 2012-02-06 08:21 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  It was supposed to be A. By "Not so much as a pager" I meant I did not even have a pager, let alone a smartphone. I don't consider myself an expert in writing, so I apologize if that was poor writing.
7. Re:My wasted youth by localman57 · 2012-02-06 08:23 · Score: 2
  
  You're fine. Was Spoofing the guy who responded. :-)
8. Re:My wasted youth by billcarson · 2012-02-06 10:40 · Score: 0
  
  I thought you meant something like a numeric pager instead of an alphanumeric one. Still, pagers were the coolest things at the time.
poles? by CurryCamel · 2012-02-06 07:01 · Score: 1

They are hanging the fibre in the air? How quaint.
OK, now they're doing it right. by Animats · 2012-02-06 07:01 · Score: 2

OK, now they're hanging cable in the telecommunications area of the pole, where it's supposed to go. Putting it up with the power lines was a stupid idea to begin with. You don't work up there unless you have to, and then you have to turn off the power or use long "hot sticks".
1. Re:OK, now they're doing it right. by sexconker · 2012-02-06 07:20 · Score: 0
  
  You don't work up there unless you have to, and then you have to turn off the power or use long "hot sticks".
  Kinda like fucking a whore in the front hole.
2. Re:OK, now they're doing it right. by POTSandPANS · 2012-02-06 07:21 · Score: 1
  
  I believe they were going to do it that way all along. As I understand, Google was trying to get out of paying the owner of the pole for use of the space. Unless Google is going to come out and replace the pole when someone hits it with their car, they should be required to pay for the space.
Interesting by DaMattster · 2012-02-06 07:03 · Score: 1

It is good to see Google willing to do what no other traditional telecommunications company is willing to do. 1GB FTTH is available in Japan and there is talk about it happening in the UK. It is a shame to see Verizon, AT&T, CenturyLink, and Sprint still trying to squeeze money out of antiquated technologies. Another competitor to the entrenched Big Telecom companies was sorely needed. This will force the legacy carriers to up their ante or try to fight a losing game in the court systems to block Google. Google is one of the wealthiest companies out there and it is not inconcievable that it would be more costly to fight in court then simply to fight on the open market by bringing 1GB FTTH at the same cost but in 1/3 of the time.
I didn't have to wait. by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 07:20 · Score: 0

As a resident of the Chattanooga, TN, area, I already have FTTH, and could be provisioned with gig-service with a phone call.
I just don't need it. That much.
1. Re:I didn't have to wait. by Ihmhi · 2012-02-06 07:43 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  As a resident of the Newark, NJ area, I lament the fact that most of the copper wire has been stolen. The Internet is going out all over the neighbo
  NO CARRIER
  
  --
  Random Thoughts From A Diseased Mind (Not For Dummies)
2. Re:I didn't have to wait. by NJRoadfan · 2012-02-06 09:09 · Score: 2
  
  At least Verizon is rolling out Fios in Newark to make up for it.... oh wait, thats because the State of New Jersey is requiring them to in exchange for that sweet state wide TV franchise they got. One of the provisions for the franchise was to wire all 21 county seats in the state of Fios, even if they are in areas where Verizon isn't the ILEC.
3. Re:I didn't have to wait. by Ihmhi · 2012-02-06 12:49 · Score: 1
  
  I noticed the trucks; they were around my neighborhood a couple months ago.
  Honestly, considering how often backdoor political deals don't work out for us in NJ (especially in Newark), I'm pretty much fine with this. It'll be nice to have some degree of competition around here.
  
  --
  Random Thoughts From A Diseased Mind (Not For Dummies)
4. Re:I didn't have to wait. by russotto · 2012-02-06 15:28 · Score: 1
  
  As a resident of the Newark, NJ area, I lament the fact that most of the copper wire has been stolen.
  GET OUT! GET OUT NOW! THERE'S SOMEONE IN THE HOUSE!
  (no, I don't have any inside information, I just assume that if you're in Newark and have a computer, someone's coming to steal it.)
5. Re:I didn't have to wait. by ThatsNotPudding · 2012-02-07 00:18 · Score: 1
  
  Don't worry; crack heads can easily tell optical fiber lines from copper and leave them be.
Sabotage by SuperTechnoNerd · 2012-02-06 07:57 · Score: 2

I wonder how long it will take incumbent telcoms to sabotage their infrastructure, like happend(s) here between time-warner & verizon.
Not enough reason to live there ... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 08:20 · Score: 0

Kansas City is a nasty place.
Fiber or not, I'd rather live elsewhere.
1. Re:Not enough reason to live there ... by Hatta · 2012-02-06 08:22 · Score: 1
  
  If you're on the MO side, it's not so bad. Especially if you like BBQ and Jazz.
  
  --
  Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
2. Re:Not enough reason to live there ... by elgeeko.com · 2012-02-06 08:33 · Score: 1
  
  You ever been to Slow's down on the river market? BBQ and Jazz in one spot. Awesome. It's been a few years since I last ventured into downtown, but Slow's is almost worth the drive.
  Great, now I want BBQ.
3. Re:Not enough reason to live there ... by Oswald+McWeany · 2012-02-06 09:15 · Score: 2
  
  I don't think there is much "fiber" in BBQ.
  
  --
  "That's the way to do it" - Punch
4. Re:Not enough reason to live there ... by cshark · 2012-02-06 16:50 · Score: 1
  
  Oh dude, you're absolutely right. It's terrible. Horrid even. The job market sucks. It's the worst there is. Seriously, don't bother coming here.
  
  --
  This signature has Super Cow Powers
Here is where... by fullback · 2012-02-06 09:45 · Score: 1, Funny

I'll add my obligatory post to say that I don't live in the US, so I'm now into my 11th year of having fiber.
But, I understand that you don't have the money, since you need to buy tanks and guns and shit to kill people while invading far off countries that don't threaten you in the least, not to mention all of the Homeland Gestapo people and crap you have to pay for.
1. Re:Here is where... by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 15:54 · Score: 0
  
  well its much easier to have fiber across a country smaller than a typical us city dumbshit
Restrictions? by nilbog · 2012-02-06 10:59 · Score: 2

I'm interested in what Google will allow on their network. As I understand it, they want to see what creative things people will do with gigabit connections in their homes. Does that mean Google will allow people to run their own webservers, etc? I'm also interested in learning some of the things that Google *thinks* people might do with such speedy connections.
My state has a fiber optic network but most cities have banned it because Comcast successfully lobbied against it as "unfair competition." I guess it takes someone as big as Google to overcome that sort of thing.

--
or else!
1. Re:Restrictions? by thogard · 2012-02-06 12:15 · Score: 1
  
  I want to put part of a RAID array on the other side of town.
2. Re:Restrictions? by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-06 13:39 · Score: 1
  
  Well, you have the Redundant part of RAID down, anyway...
Old news by gmhowell · 2012-02-06 11:17 · Score: 1

We've known since the early 1900's that everything's up to date in Kansas City. They've gone about as far as they can go.

--
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
And when Google finishes laying its fibre in kc... by cshark · 2012-02-06 15:28 · Score: 1

I will make sure to login to Slashdot and let you know exactly how fast my new internet connection is. I may gloat about it a little, but you'll survive.

--
This signature has Super Cow Powers
On poles? by the_arrow · 2012-02-06 21:15 · Score: 1

I get that it's cheap to put on poles, but will it still be cheap after a couple of storms? I can't say that I've seen many poles inside a city in Sweden for, well, ever? Even in the country side there are barely any wires on poles left, even much of the electricity wires are dug down.

--
/ The Arrow
"How lovely you are. So lovely in my straightjacket..." - Nny
Competition is good by jweller13 · 2012-02-07 05:20 · Score: 1

The potential here for increased competition against the telephone and cable companies can only be a good thing.
Lessons learned by Anonymous Coward · 2012-02-13 02:39 · Score: 0

I wonder if Google has talked to Sprint about lessons learned from its ION days.
http://www.networkworld.com/archive/2001/126613_10-22-2001.html