Comments on: BYOB - Bring Your Own Bandwidth

By: Stephen LaFond

Stephen LaFond — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 15:24:25 +0000

Check out http://www.proxylord.com to access blocked web sites. It is very fast and secure. Works on Youtube also!

By: » It was going well until… Cathy Nelson’s Professional Thoughts

» It was going well until… Cathy Nelson’s Professional Thoughts — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 02:34:55 +0000

[...] a back-up plan or two! At least I haven’t had any of Wes Fryer’s problems like this and this. I do have comfort though in that he offers solutions to consider. Will I give up? Nah. Just plan [...]

By: Darren Kuropatwa

Darren Kuropatwa — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:16:12 +0000

Thursday was a bad day to do presentations it seems.

Wish I had one of those doohickies with me then.

By: Life is not a race to be first finished » Blog Archive » St Peter Chanel

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 10:13:57 +0000

[...] when preparing a presentation where the web is fairly crucial. The inimitable Darren Kuropatwa and Wes Fryer had a little meltdowns as [...]

By: John Martin

John Martin — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 16:30:35 +0000

Wes, just recently I went with a similar product from Verizon to address our lack of broadband in my community (that and my landline got dug up!). I’m really loving the physical disconnection and nomadic encouragement that this device provides! It strikes me that when we are working with educators at their facility, behind their firewall, that perhaps admin/IT folks should be present to see the power that many of these blocked services carry. Sometimes the message and cost comparison is more powerful when it is illustrated (in a nice way of course).

But that brings up Ed’s point: “…how do the students ever get a chance?” Are we sending them the message that learning is limited within school walls? Is that the kind of message that schools wish to send?

I’ve joked with my wife to be subversive and use our cellular wireless card with her personal laptop in her class so that her students can see what they’re missing. But the reality is that it would probably cost her her job despite the fact that what she is doing is in the best interest of her students.

And the battle rages on… for now the casualties are limited to the global growth of our students but at some point its effects will be felt by the rest of us, when our students are unable to compete in a global economy.

By: Ed

Ed — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:54:25 +0000

Most of the time I’m trying to share cool stuff on the computer to a classroom of students and haven’t found the bandwidth to be a problem but the firewall with its strangely configured blacklist. Being part of a lumbersome bureaucracy, getting site approvals puts a lot of front end organizing into the work. Moving to a card would work for me but then how do the students ever get a chance?

By: Steve

Steve — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:29:44 +0000

Wes, network and other technical woes certainly test the “stuff” presenters are made of! You need to get one of those “Been there. Done that. Got the scars to show for it.” T-shirts. Cell-based Internet cards are a great idea, especially those that work on 3G and other higher bandwidth networks. I will keep that in mind, yet pray that I don’t need one. I have had good luck so far.

By: Jim Walker

Jim Walker — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 10:35:01 +0000

It has taken a few years, but the Sturbridge Host Hotel where the MassCUE conference is held offers projectors in every breakout room and free WIFI for everyone. I was at a Will Richardson workshop that was so popular the IT staff had to setup an extra WIFI router in the room. I was impressed that the hotel staff worked throughout the day to make sure everyone had Internet access.
Wes, also thanks for the link to the Obama campaign. I have been thinking of sending him some money and the link made it easy. The Yes We Can video is very powerful and I will be sending links to my friends.

By: Sue Waters

Sue Waters — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 09:57:17 +0000

Sorry I am totally amazed. This was a technology conference? Even in Australia our venues provide data projectors - that should be a given. Definitely a plus having your own bandwidth although it is very costly here.

By: AllanahK

AllanahK — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 04:49:12 +0000

I so want one of those. Just started touring about the place this week and came up against a brick wall of how to access the non ‘ubiquitous’ internet.

Heaps of my stuff is on line- I can open a whole lot in tabs and show that way but you don’t get the inter-connectedness if you can’t be live- trying to explain twitter and not be able to show someone it just sounded silly.

Once you actually buy the unit you are then faced with bandwidth charges- that would bring the cost up a lot- at least it would here in NZ where our broadband is real S-L-O-W. I already pay $50 a month for a 6GB cap.

By: Wesley Fryer

Wesley Fryer — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 03:28:16 +0000

Cool, glad to know you’ve had good results with the same card. I didn’t think about the power outage feature– that would have come in handy during our ice storms in Oklahoma earlier this winter! Hopefully we won’t have another opportunity to test connectivity under those conditions this year!

By: Tony Vincent

Tony Vincent — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 03:15:07 +0000

I use that same connection card (but with Sprint). It works great. I’ve had mine for a few months and I wish I would have gotten it a long time ago. Having my own bandwidth has saved me so many headaches because you’re right–a presenter just cannot rely on a conference’s or institution’s Internet connection.

(It’s also cool when the power is out–your can still be online with your laptop.)