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Too Much Free Time

by Mike Masnick

Tue, Aug 21st 2007 7:15pm




Filed Under:
fiber optics, guns

Companies:
level 3, teliasonera


Gunshots Slow Down The Internet... Again

from the really-need-to-do-something-about-all-that-gunplay dept

Back in 2005, we had quite a story about how DSL lines in New Mexico were apparently knocked offline due to "random gunfire." That story got even more bizarre when a guy who was playing online poker at the time, blamed the outage on him going "all in" on the wrong hand (he claims he went all in just as the DSL turned off, but when it came back, it went in on a different hand). However, it still struck us as interesting that random gunfire could impact your internet service. Apparently, it wasn't an isolated case. The latest is that random gunfire is being blamed for a general slowdown in the internet, after fiber-optic cables near Cleveland were "sabotaged by gunfire." Who knew that gunfire and internet wiring were such a dangerous combination?

20 Comments | Leave a Comment

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  1.  
    identicon
    Hoeppner, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 7:47pm

    well the electical companies around here have to replace those ceramic things that they hang the wires from every year around public hunting areas north of us. a good deal of the shape is designed to deflect bullets do they don't get to the part that the wire is actually hanging from.

     

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  2.  
    identicon
    Witty Nickname, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 7:54pm

    Al Gore

    So THAT is why Al Gore hates guns! They slow down his invention!

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  3.  
    identicon
    Tip your waitress, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 8:08pm

    I've heard of cyber terrorism, but this is ridiculous!

    Thank you ladies and gentlemen, I'm here all week.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  4.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 8:24pm

    Well, the secret voices coming from my router are telling me to do things with guns ......

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  5.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 8:33pm

    Just another bogus argument to ban guns.

    Guns don't slow down the internet - people do.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  6.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 9:15pm

    Re:

    Edit:

    Guns don't slow down the internet; people from Second Life do.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  7.  
    identicon
    GoblinJuice, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 9:17pm

    Bust a cap in yo line, biatch! =D

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  8.  
    identicon
    The Swiss Cheese Monster, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 9:49pm

    I think we need more trigger locks on guns.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  9.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 21st, 2007 @ 11:30pm

    Re:

    No, no, you need confirmation boxes.

    "Your gun is trying to fire. Cancel or Allow?"

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  10.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 1:07am

    I suppose

    Perhaps the bullets may be cutting cabling.
    I think the solution here is buried cables.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  11.  
    identicon
    RandomThoughts, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 5:31am

    We need more trigger locks on people.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  12.  
    identicon
    Rational Beaver, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 8:16am

    Sabotage indeed!

    FTA: "When technicians pulled up the affected cable" (i.e. it was buried), and "The damage affected a large span of cable, more than two-thirds of a mile [1.1 km] long".

    Sounds like somebody's got a bone to pick with the interwebs.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  13.  
    identicon
    Nasty Old Geezer, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 8:20am

    Re:

    I am in favor of both types of gun control:

    1 -- Keep guns away from people who should not have them (criminals, unsupervised children, drunks, and mentally unstable persons)

    2 -- 3 inch groups at 100 yards

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  14.  
    identicon
    Petréa Mitchell, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 8:50am

    Re: Sabotage indeed!

    I asked the nearest gun-control opponent for thoughts on how someone would end up shooting at and managing to hit a buried fiber-optic cable, and the best scenario we could come up with was a bored person with a powerful shotgun taking potshots at some small animal. Weak, I know, but not as hard to believe as someone taking the time and trouble to figure out exactly where the cable was and shooting it up intentionally.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  15.  
    identicon
    Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased), Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 8:51am

    Re: Hoeppner

    Hunters shoot at the insulators (ceramic things) intentionally. The insulators don't protect wires, they prevent electricity from flowing to places they shouldn't. The shape has nothing to do with deflecting bullets. If random gunfire was a problem, they would make bulletproof insulators (FYI - they don't). Now, a hunter hitting a 1/2 inch diameter conductor from the ground has got to be difficult.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  16.  
    identicon
    Chuck Norris' Enemy (deceased), Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 8:54am

    Re: Re: Sabotage indeed!

    Communications companies are notorious for burying their cable shallow.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  17.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 12:59pm

    Re: Re:

    "1 -- Keep guns away from people who should not have them (criminals, unsupervised children, drunks, and mentally unstable persons)"

    This practically eliminates all lawyers and politicians from owning guns. Hey thats probably good!

    "2 -- 3 inch groups at 100 yards"

    Come on you can do better than that...

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  18.  
    identicon
    name, Aug 22nd, 2007 @ 1:04pm

    Re: Al Gore

    hahaha

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  19.  
    identicon
    sezer, Apr 14th, 2008 @ 8:43pm

    fiber cabling

    Fiber optic cable -- technical support -- information web site - - http://fiberoptic-cable.blogspot.com

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  20.  
    identicon
    jaky, Dec 1st, 2008 @ 4:26am

    Re: fiber cabling

    Hunters shoot at the insulators (ceramic things) intentionally. The insulators don't protect wires, they prevent electricity from flowing to places they shouldn't. The shape has nothing to do with deflecting bullets. If random gunfire was a problem, they would laptop AC adapter make bulletproof insulators (FYI - they don't). Now, a hunter hitting a 1/2 inch diameter conductor from the ground has got to be difficult.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]


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