The internet is great when it works. But what do you do when your network goes down? Picture/123rf
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Recently, my service provider was having issues when the network went down and not only did I lose internet, but my calls kept dropping. For some reason I won’t disclose, I can’t get fiber optic.
I’m part of a generation that saw the early days of the World Wide Web, and I’m old enough to remember a time before mobile devices, when all you had was a landline phone. I’m still very old-school in that I prefer reading physical books to reading on a screen.
Today, everything related to my work is online. Even writing in Word relies on a reliable network connection. So when it goes down, it means I can’t do my job.
I get it. We all have the latest devices and we all seem glued to our screens these days, but I have to think that maybe we’re all spending too much time online and less time talking to each other.
I wouldn’t say my phone is actually an extension of my arm – it’s almost a given that I miss an occasional call because my phone is on one end of the house and I’m on the other.
The Internet certainly has its pros and cons.
I wonder how we would cope if the worst happened, like a natural disaster and we lost the internet or couldn’t call anyone.
But there are some things we need to seriously consider, especially for people in rural areas.
What happens if we suddenly don’t have a phone, or we’re out somewhere without internet connection, and we encounter an emergency (like a fire or car accident)? Not all devices are able to call 111 without signal.
This has happened before. I once covered a story about a family who lost everything in a fire and couldn’t get a signal unless they drove 15 minutes to a main road. When they get out safely, what happens if other families don’t get out safely? It only takes a few minutes for a fire to break out, and if no one raises the alarm, precious minutes are wasted. There aren’t even emergency services.
Don’t get me wrong. The internet is great when it works, and it’s been really helpful during COVID when we’re in lockdown, allowing us to stay in touch with friends and family we can’t see in person.
When it works, it’s great, but when it goes wrong, it can go terribly wrong.
Leanne Warr is editor of The Bush Telegraph.