[ih] The Sub-atomic Physics of The Internet

[Dave Crocker]

On 8/28/2020 12:39 PM, Jack Haverty via Internet-history wrote:
> Unfortunately, it seems IMHO today that even if two computers can
> communicate, their human users often cannot.   Perhaps someday someone
> will build a "social gateway" that restores connectivity among the 4+
> billion Internet users.


In the period leading up to the mass-market adoption of the Internet, 
things were extremely fragmented, with a variety of separate and 
non-interoperable networking technologies, and a variety of separate and 
non-interoperable email systems, for departments and enterprises.

This changed only because the market demanded the change. Vendors do not 
naturally embrace unified interoperability. It reduces profit margins.

In the current fragmentation, the market is making no such demand.

For some reason, people are tolerating having to access a wide array of 
different browser taps and independent apps, open at the same time, 
doing what really is the same job, only because the constituent services 
do not interoperate.

I currently have to keep active several independent mail systems and 
several independent instant messaging systems.  It is the price of 
dealing with an array of people and groups.  And I've no reason to 
believe my case is unusual.

In a current, mission-oriented activity, involving hundreds of 
participants from around the country, we are communicating via a 
self-contained enterprise collaborations system, which has its own chat, 
voice, and conferencing system, as well as via telephone texting and a 
separate, enterprise email service.  Critical messages get missed 
because the recipient didn't have the right app open, or didn't get a 
system notice.

The only interesting question, here, is why we put up with this?

d/

-- 
Dave Crocker
Brandenburg InternetWorking
bbiw.net