Technology: Replacing the Internet

From a technically challenged individual who is just on the brink of learning the ins and outs of the internet, NOW there are changes brewing? These changes will be far different from the usual 'improvements and updates' which send me babbling into the corner for hours. We are talking total replacement of the internet by a bigger and more complex system.

THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION wants to build an experimental research network known as the Global Environment for Network Innovations, or GENI, and is funding several projects at universities and elsewhere through Future Internet NetworkDesign, or FIND.

The National Science Foundation and other major 'think tanks' expect this project to cost at least 350 million dollars and take 15-20 years to make a reality.

How will this all affect the 'average' computer user? What of the cost to redesign/ reprogram computers to run the GENI systems? The learning curve alone should give everyone reason to move cautiously. Where will the funding for the research and implementation of a completely new internet be found?

With the concern of terrorist activities and other illegal activities increasing every day, of course the government is going to want tracking and identification systems included. Who will have input into what programs and capabilities the new system would be able to provide? All this brings back the concerns of 'Big Brother' watching you through your computer activities and eavesdropping on your personal information all over again.

How would a new system be put in place? Would it merge with the programs now being used or replace everything entirely?¹

The Stanford University , Clean Slate Design for the Internet Research Program asks two important questions;

"With what we know today, if we were to start again with a clean slate, how would we design a global communications infrastructure?", and "How should the Internet look in 15 years?"

It has taken less than 30 years for the Internet to grow from a small experimental network for researchers to a global infrastructure that connects hundreds of millions of people. IP, the technical foundation of Internet, is regarded by both the general public and scientific communities to be the ultimate communication system available. Up until now network researchers have focused on solutions to improve the Internet by addressing problems such as security and privacy issues as they arise. There are those in the research fields that equate this practice with putting a band aid over an open wound or sticking your finger in the leaking dike. Stop gap measures at best which will need to be addressed more fully in the future. Can we really expect to know where the internet will be in 15-20 years?

THE CLEAN SLATE PROJECT asks the question:

" Given the benefit of hindsight and our current understanding of network requirements and technologies, if we were not bound by existing design decisions and would be able to design the network from first principles (a clean slate design), how should we do it?"

At the very least these questions will keep many researchers hunting for solutions and new theories and technology will continue to change at explosive paces. For those internet savvy individuals and techno minded geniuses out there the 'What if...questions are an exciting possibility, for the rest of us, we need to simply hold on and ride by the seat of our pants!²

Sources:

1. Geni: Global Enviornment for Network Innovations
22 April 2007. < http://geni.net >.

2. "Clean Slate Design for the Internet: An Interdisciplinary Research Program at Stanford University"
22 April 2007. < http://cleanslate.stanford.edu >.