[Chapter-delegates] PICISOC article for IPV6 day

[Andrew Molivurae]

PICISOC is sending out the article below to be printed in local newspapers
around the Pacific region on June 8th. It is just a  simple explanation to
ordinary Pacific Islanders:

*Will you feel the earth move on June 8th? The Internet is about to change!
A massive change is underway to modernise the Internet. The old Internet
protocol called IPv4 (that is version 4) is on its way out and a new
protocol called IPv6 (version 6) is on the way in. This change is being
celebrated around the world on June 8th, called the World IPv6 day.**

**So what is the Internet Protocol? The Internet Protocol (IP) is a set of
rules for communication between devices on the Internet. These protocols are
similar to those that we may be required to use when communicating with our
parents, chief, pastor or Member of Parliament – they are a set of rules
that allow us to communicate effectively. Sometimes we can simply broadcast
our message for all to hear, at other times we must obey strict protocols.
The Internet Protocols have similar methods, depending on how we wish to
send or receive information.

The current version of the Internet Protocol (version 4) has been used for
over 35 years. During this time it has been extended and improved and has
served us remarkably well. However, we have now run out of addresses. Just
like the problem when a telephone exchange runs out of telephone numbers,
new services can’t be provided to new customers
When you think of new customers on the Internet, think China and India. With
China and India growing at a very fast rate, Internet address**es are being
used up very quickly.
To fix this problem Internet engineers are now starting to move to a new
version of the protocol – Internet Protocol (version 6). This change is
similar to the change to telephone numbers that happened in Vanuatu a few
years ago where telephone numbers increased from five to seven digits.
The new protocol will also work much better with the next generation of
mobile phones meaning that people will be better able to access the Internet
from their phone.
So do you need to do something on June 8th? No. There is no need to panic
because the Internet will continue to work with the old protocol for a long
time to come. The change to IPv6 will be a gradual one.

Do you want to find out more about IPv6? The first place you should ask is
your local Internet service provider or telephone company. Also, why not
think about joining the Pacific chapter of the Internet Society (PICISOC)?
It’s free and there are lot of information about the Internet (also for
free). Our local representative from ISOC is (name of isoc member in that
country). Join online at www.isoc.org/membership and nominate PICISOC as
your local chapter.

Happy web surfing!*

-- 
Kind Regards

Andrew Molivurae
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