DistOS-2011W User Controlled Bandwidth: How Social Protocols Affect Network Protocols and Our Need for Speed

Abstract

In the past 20 years, advancements in computing have gravitated towards connectivity, specifically the rise of the internet. The last decade (2000 – 2010) has seen a global increase in the number of internet users by over 400%, and as expansion into the Middle East and Africa continues, the total number of people connected to the internet will only grow.[1] As we continue to build computer interfaces which simplify the user experience (iOS, for example) more of the population can make use of computers without knowledge of how a computer works. Specifically, terms like bandwidth or latency mean little to the average computer user in terms of the actual performance of their computer. This paper will review what distributed computing means to an average user as well as how we can make better use of our networks by providing users with simple to use tools to understand bandwidth and how different applications utilize the finite resource. We will begin with an introduction describing typical internet traffic as well as how users typically interact with the internet. Following the introduction is a look into the need for user controlled bandwidth and what benefits it affords. Next we will examine a particular case study in which households were given a tool to monitor and adjust their bandwidth usage. The subsequent section will examine some current tools for implementing user controlled bandwidth. The final section of the paper provides a discussion on the current state of user controlled bandwidth and what direction it may take in the future.