The LAN is a Buggy Whip

Most of us have a LAN (local area network) at the office. But these LAN’s have also become increasingly common in our homes, supporting multiple computers and wireless networking. The LAN offers us fast file transfers, network resources sharing (printing, internet access & file storage) and some security over our local data.

But the LAN has a big problem…it’s that “Local” word. Who wants things local? We aren't local. We travel from city to city, from our houses to our cars, from our offices to God knows where. We need our personal or corporate digital assets everywhere, on any device. Can you think of a digital asset (personal or corporate) that you would not ever want to access outside of the LAN wall? Even my twelve year old can articulate the fleeting nature of that “local” concept. But there must be a good reason to keep these networks local, closed to the outside world...right? Security? File Transfer Speed? Internet Access? Printing?

Well, let's remove security from that benefits list.

• A survey conducted by Security Wire Digest found that 84 percent of home computer users are concerned about security, but more than three-fourths don't take basic precautions, such as updating antivirus software.” 1
• A national Harris Interactive survey of 597 computer users conducted for Imation, Corp., reveals: Nearly three out of five personal computer users have lost an electronic file they thought they had sufficiently stored.
• One in four users frequently back up digital files, even when 85 percent of computer users say they are very concerned about losing important digital data.
• Thirty-seven percent of the survey's respondents admitted to backing up their files less than once per month.
• 91% of users have intrusion software (frequently referred to as "spyware" or "sneakware") on their home computers, much of it placed surreptitiously by music or file sharing programs. Despite heavy use of those programs, 94% of users do not know that spyware is often bundled with file sharing programs.
• Although 76% have some kind of anti-virus software computer, only half of that group has updated their software in the past month. With 250 new viruses released each month, 62% of all broadband users are thus significantly vulnerable.”
• 41% of users lack any kind of firewall whatsoever, leaving their computer wide open to attack from the Internet.
• Only 33% have a properly configured and secure firewall, meaning two out of every three broadband homes are not secure” 2
  

And one other thing. All those mom and pop businesses we hear about that are the underlying engine of our economy…many of them are run by “consumers” and their PC’s are just as screwed up at the office as they are at home. This data shows that consumers and micro businesses should let someone else handle their network and data security, and fast!

What about printing? What happens now that all these wireless laptops are moving around the world? Do we really need to download new printer drivers and configure our laptops every time we want to print to a new location? I hereby command the printing Gods at HP and Xerox to offer a simple to use WAN printer, with some kind of universal print-driver. A simple Universal Print Format to any external I.P. address. You know its coming. And if they're worried about having unsolicited junk printing on our WAN printers, add a password.

So that leaves us with network speed and ubiquitous access. Many believe that these 2 remaining items will be the fuel for the next economic revolution. In fact, they're on the way.
The only thing keeping the LAN alive is the WAN's marginal data transfer speeds. Once WAN data transfer rates increase to 50 megabits per second, that will be the end of the LAN. Transfer speeds in Japan and South Korea are already approaching 10 megabits per second, and this for as low as $20.00 per month.

WI-MAX, also known as 802.16 will offer bandwidths up to 54 megabits / sec with a 50 Km range. This technology is already appearing in cities like New York & Baltimore.
What does this futuristic world look like without a LAN? For consumers, one of the necessary changes will be the liberation of the desktop. The concept of chaining a computer user’s data, software and application settings to a single computer or local network is shortsighted. Our personal computing environment is an asset that must be treated as any other valuable assets...it must be managed, protected and easily available anywhere. Simple, without integration or configuration. Unchained.

The future is about mobility and ubiquitous computing, and there is nothing “Local” about that.

1 Security Wire Digest: October 25, 2002

2 The National Cyber Security Alliance: June 4, 2003

Joel Allen is president of AllenPort Co., based in Princeton, NJ.

© 2005 Joel E. Allen. All rights reserved