East Africa Gets High-Speed Internet Access Via Undersea Cable 198
Abel Mebratu writes with this excerpt from the BBC: "The first undersea cable to bring high-speed internet access to East Africa has gone live. The fiber-optic cable, operated by African-owned firm Seacom, connects South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Mozambique to Europe and Asia. The firm says the cable will help to boost the prospects of the region's industry and commerce. The cable — which is 17,000km long — took two years to lay and cost more than $650m."
Re:Very good news! (Score:5, Insightful)
Not everything in Africa is rural....
Re:Very good news! (Score:2, Insightful)
Good, now I can get more money from Nigeria. (Score:5, Insightful)
With this cable, the e-mails about my unknown dead relatives leaving me money will get to me faster. I am very trustworthy, that is why I get so much money from helping to recover money.
Goody, I can make more money helping the people who desperately need my help in recovery money.
Re:Very good news! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Very good news! (Score:1, Insightful)
There is a reason that Africa is considered a 'third world' country.
Since when is Africa a country?
Re:Time to do VOIP (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Pirated broadband (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Good, now I can get more money from Nigeria. (Score:2, Insightful)
Quick geography lesson: in that "country" called Africa (where all the lions, tigers and bears live), there is this place called Nigeria, which happens to be on the left side of the map - that means West Africa, not East.
Way to sum up an entire continent of a billion people.
Whle we're indulging in stereotypes, fuck you... you ignorant American tool.
Re:Good, now I can get more money from Nigeria. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:From RSA... (Score:1, Insightful)
Your government isn't any more corrupt or inefficient than any other. It's just that they are more overtly so.
Re:Not sure it is great news (Score:1, Insightful)
Who says they're just laying cable and forgetting about it? Also, sure it may not improve your internet experience, but millions of Africans will be have their own experience improved. I hate to break it to you, but a lot of spam originates from more civilized, tech-savvy places. The selfishness of some people posting here just amazes me.
Re:Yawn. another trite 'stupid american' attack. (Score:2, Insightful)
I don't care where on the African continent Nigeria is, because it's trivial knowledge that does me no good.
That's pretty much the attitude I'm talking about right there. Nigeria has a population of 150 million people (in the top 10) and because the only thing you learned in geography class was where Colorado and Vermont are on the map, it doesn't matter to you.
Still, you missed the point of my post. The "ignorant American" jibe wasn't just for the lack of geography knowledge, but for the idea that Africa is filled with lions, tigers, bears and 419 scammers.
The difference is, I know there are well-informed Americans as well as ignorant ones, but I'm not going to lump all of them together, even though the subtleties of my post were lost on you.