Hmm. So - Comparing ISPs to utilities is interesting. Ignoring stuff like double-dipping, net neutrality, the absurd rate hike for the first tera of bytes versus the second, that if they sneak it in now they can say "well you knew about it" when everyone is streaming 360 VR video and blow past a TB...
For internet, I have:
- A throughput (overall speed)
- Fluctuation in speed
- Data caps and overages
- Use-or-lose-it data (from the caps)
- Installed equipment I "rent"
For utilities, like water, power, and gas:
- I have all that I need [for home use]
- (extremely rarely) Rolling blackouts
- Tiered pricing by usage
- Only pay for what you use
- Installed equipment I own (house?), or am not responsible for (apartment)
The really interesting one here is the data cap + use-or-lose vs tiered + pay as you go, but the only real difference (that my uneducated ass can see) is whether I pay for what I don't use.
But here's what's interesting: I turn off my AC to conserve power and save me money, except when I really want it. I really don't do that with the internet. I don't think - Oh, this'll cost me X in dollars-per-byte; maybe I won't. And the internet isn't really built to support that! I can't preview how much a site will cost to load; I don't have browser tools to "turn of lights in rooms I'm not using".
The closest thing I can liken it to is economy travel versus business travel.
In economy, I pay for everything a la carte. Aside from sheer discomfort - there's friction to every action, everything is at least a little aggravating, and I think about whether I actually want to do any given thing.
In business, I don't. I just ask for what I want and if it's available I get it. Zero friction (baring load time, I mean, wait time for service), everything is a little bit soothing, and I don't really think that much about whether I actually want something.
The second situation is more utopian, although it does occur more environment cost, since I'm more wasteful.
I think I'd rather have data caps than pay-per-byte [at the consumer level], and it doesn't really seem reasonable to expect no data caps. I want my super fast pipe that I use in bursts, rather than a reasonably fast pipe I use continuously. I want this because I like having an internet where people aren't thinking about what a page will cost them.
...except some people are, because they're under low data caps (mostly mobile?).
...but then there's still the edge effect when average internet usage approaches the caps.
...and maybe it IS a good idea to put pressure on the Web to reduce page sizes.
Worrying about page weight is kind of a red herring and micro-optimization. You've really got to get into binary data streams before it's possible to blow through a data cap like this. For example, you could download the full text of English Wikipedia twice a day, every day, and not come close to hitting 1 TB[1]. Text is cheap.
This is part of why I chuckle about people tearing their hair out to minify and obfuscate JS or CSS files to reduce them by a handful of kbs - when their pages load a dozen uncompressed full-resolution images and a 1080p auto-playing video.
For internet, I have:
- A throughput (overall speed)
- Fluctuation in speed
- Data caps and overages
- Use-or-lose-it data (from the caps)
- Installed equipment I "rent"
For utilities, like water, power, and gas:
- I have all that I need [for home use]
- (extremely rarely) Rolling blackouts
- Tiered pricing by usage
- Only pay for what you use
- Installed equipment I own (house?), or am not responsible for (apartment)
The really interesting one here is the data cap + use-or-lose vs tiered + pay as you go, but the only real difference (that my uneducated ass can see) is whether I pay for what I don't use.
But here's what's interesting: I turn off my AC to conserve power and save me money, except when I really want it. I really don't do that with the internet. I don't think - Oh, this'll cost me X in dollars-per-byte; maybe I won't. And the internet isn't really built to support that! I can't preview how much a site will cost to load; I don't have browser tools to "turn of lights in rooms I'm not using".
The closest thing I can liken it to is economy travel versus business travel.
In economy, I pay for everything a la carte. Aside from sheer discomfort - there's friction to every action, everything is at least a little aggravating, and I think about whether I actually want to do any given thing.
In business, I don't. I just ask for what I want and if it's available I get it. Zero friction (baring load time, I mean, wait time for service), everything is a little bit soothing, and I don't really think that much about whether I actually want something.
The second situation is more utopian, although it does occur more environment cost, since I'm more wasteful.
I think I'd rather have data caps than pay-per-byte [at the consumer level], and it doesn't really seem reasonable to expect no data caps. I want my super fast pipe that I use in bursts, rather than a reasonably fast pipe I use continuously. I want this because I like having an internet where people aren't thinking about what a page will cost them.
...except some people are, because they're under low data caps (mostly mobile?).
...but then there's still the edge effect when average internet usage approaches the caps.
...and maybe it IS a good idea to put pressure on the Web to reduce page sizes.
It's almost like civilization is a hard problem!