Working at Home on the Internet Webpage Archive

(from the Working at Home on the Internet Web Page) 

This is what Robert Litan from the Brookings Institute wrote for the Washington Post and my rebuttal to his perception of what Net Neutrality means to us all.
By Robert E. Litan
Special to washingtonpost.com
Tuesday, May 2, 2006; 12:00 AM

Imagine a world in which millions of senior citizens and disabled Americans, among others, can have, if they want, their medical conditions monitored continuously by devices that communicate over high speed, broadband networks that can automatically alert them if they require immediate medical attention.
 
Such “remote disease management” systems not only would be highly convenient for patients, but based on evidence from the Veterans Administration’s use of systems that do not yet make extensive use of broadband, could lead to huge savings in health care costs.
 
I have calculated in a recent report that the health care cost savings and the reduced need for institutionalizing seniors and the disabled could top $1 trillion over the next 25 years.

My Rebuttal:

Imagine that, you are going to kill your Grandmom, and get rid of all those Pesky Veterans, and the Disabled AND Save the Government $1 Trillion.

How dare you want to keep the internet neutral. Just to save yourself a couple of bucks.

If you take that seriously, you must be part of the Brookings Institute, or AT&T, or Verizon, or Adelphia Cable or Comcast Cable… or any of the other myriad of service providers that ALREADY CHARGE for high speed service but want to make premium service a surcharge.

Even if the premium service were available for an additional price, would your grandparents be able to afford it? That assumes that they can afford and use DSL or Cable in the first place.

I think that this is probably one of the worst arguments for premium service I have ever heard. The Government doesn’t take care of the Vets Now, so who will pay for their new and improved internet access?

The Government made a law to give access to the disabled, and they got ramps at the end of the block to cross the street.

Gramps can’t afford his medicine Now, how is he supposed to pay extra for his medical monitor over the internet once the broadband providers start charging more for the service?

We can’t let this happen, if the Cable and Telephone companies charge premium prices for internet access, the only ones who will benefit is them.

Source:
The Washington Post

Originally posted on the Working at Home on the Internet (Blogger) Blog on March 13, 2006

Just imagine… No more crowded buses, No more traffic jams, No more suits and ties, high heels, dull meetings or office politics. Just you and your computer. Alone, all day.

If this sounds idyllic, read this before you rush out and quit your job. I hope this dispels a few myths about working at home.

The Dream:Extra time to spend with family, exercising, or recreation.

The Reality:While you won’t spend time commuting, you probably will spend more time working all hours of the day and night. Be sure to set regular hours. Separate work time from home time.

The Dream:You are invisible to clients over the phone and on the computer.

The Reality:It is true that you can’t be seen and can lounge around in the buff if you want. The fact remains, you need to maintain a professional demeanor, that is difficult if you are in your bathrobe.

The Dream:No more office politics.

The Reality:It gets lonely home all day by yourself. You may have a pet to talk to, but that probably isn’t very rewarding. Try to set a certain time of the day to get out. Go get a coffee, meet clients, go to the gym.

The Dream:Quiet time, so you can get some work done.

The Reality:Sometimes, it gets too quiet( see previous entry), and other times the phone keeps ringing with sales calls, or someone knocks on the door trying to convince you to change your cable provider.

The Dream:You don’t have a boss looking over your shoulder all day.

The Reality:Look in the Mirror. You are the Boss. It takes a lot of intestinal fortitude to push yourself to make sure the work at hand gets done. Being the boss means taking on all the responsibility.

The Dream:No more sharing office supplies.

The Reality:No more sharing office supplies, printers, copiers, fax machines, not to mention a computer. There is no IT guy to fall back on, it’s up to you if your system crashes. Make sure you have good equipment, with a good support system.

The Dream:Tax write-off’s.

The Reality:This isn’t too far fetched. You will get to deduct some office space, equipment and services. This depends on the area in which you live. In this area, we need to pay an Estimated Tax on what we feel we should earn, and the deductions go against your next filing (which still has to be paid in advance).

Don’t let any of this dissuade you from starting your own Work at Home Business, these are just a few things to let you know what you may be up against in your quest. I, personally, feel the rewards far outweigh the drawbacks in owning your own business.

Originally posted on the Working at Home on the Internet (Blogger) Blog on April 6, 2006

A recent press release from SonicWall Inc. gave the results of a Work at Home (remote worker) Survey. It apparently shows that the greater freedom of out-of-office workers helps keep workloads up-to-date and reduces bad tempers.

Here are some of the results of 941 participants world wide…

Productivity:
76% of employees surveyed said they were more productive.
61% of their managers agreed.

Security:
88% stored passwords in easy to find places.
12% used encripted passwords.
56% relied on memory.
4% used the same password for all their devices.

Personal Habits:
39% of both sexes wear sweats
12% of males wear nothing
7% of females wear nothing
44% of women showered
30% of men showered
33% of men shaved
18% of men take a break to do chores
38% of women do the same

Couldn’t do at Office:
35% eat and drink at various times
45% listen to music
28% watch TV
21% take an afternoon nap
12% take a longer lunch

Accessing Work:
80% never lost temper with support staff
40% experience problems accessing corporate network
50% access applications other than E-mail
50% accessed corporate network daily
86% accessed corporate network several times a week
22% used cell phones or PDA’s

What does all this show? I’m not really sure, but I saw myself in a couple of the catagories, so I thought it was an interesting snapshot of Working at Home.

(from the Working at Home on the Internet WebPage) 

I read more than one post today regarding Net Neutrality. I actually wrote a post my self on my PolBlog. This could be a Big Problem if you Work at Home on the Internet, or do anything else there at a reasonable price.

I know I said, that I would keep the Political Rantings on the other Blog, but this could be more important than any of us realize. I will include quotes and links to these other Blogs so that you can find out more on the subject.

My entry into the fray:

Back on March 28th I wrote an article for the PolBlog, SuperHighway or Toll Road*. In it I mentioned that the Broadband, Cable and DSL providers wanted to charge extra for additional speed and preferred access.
 
There is a fledgling movement underfoot. Some of the more important ( in my eyes ) Bloggers and internet users are starting to bring the problem to light.

ME “Liz” Strauss of Successful Blog** writes of Blogging and Country Stores:

So hear me whisper this. Some folks don’t care about country stores and communities. They care about pipelines that carry bits and bytes and how much they can charge for that service. . .
 
Would you read what I read today by a man named Jeff Pulver? He’s running a contest for ideas to help make people aware. Here are the rules.
 
I really like our country stores a lot. My life would be less without all of you. What if WE Go the Way of the Old Country Store?

Brian Clark of CopyBlogger*** writes of the Four Horsemen of the Internet Apocalypse:

The US Congress is pushing a law that would abandon Network Neutrality, the Internet’s First Amendment. Network neutrality currently prevents companies like AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner from deciding which Web sites work best for you based on what site pays them the most. Without Network Neutrality, the scenarios outlined above are just the beginning. And it will affect people all over the world, not just in the States.

Jeff Pulver has started Viral Marketing to Save the Internet+ inviting anyone who can write or put a video together (in a professional manner), to enter his contest++ to Help Save the Internet.

If you care that you are probably going to be wedged off the internet by Big Business, with Congress’ help, then try to do something that will keep the Internet Neutral and open to everyone.

I personally plan on writing more that one E-mail to various portions of the MSM (Main Stream Media) in order to get the word out to stop Congress and the Phone and Cable companies from infringing on the Neutrality of the Internet.

Update: There is a petition at MoveOn.org to send to Congress. If this is important to you, you may want to stop by and sign it… and be sure to send an E-mail to your friends.

Referrals:
* SuperHighway or Toll Road
** Successful-Blog
*** CopyBlogger
+ Jeff Pulver’s Virial Marketing to Save the Internet
++ Rules of contest