There are “Internet cables” across the ocean; there are also “Internet satellites” orbiting the earth. The cables are good because they provide low latency. But that is not the most desired feature of all Internet packets; sometimes, bandwidth or range are higher priority than latency, and in those cases, a wireless transport layer may be preferred.
Latency, also known as ping time by gamers, is the amount of time it takes for a signal to get from one computer to the other. Bandwidth is the total number of signals that can be sent over a given amount of time.
Eg: a bus has more bandwidth than a Kawasaki motorcycle, but also more latency (from a people moving perspective).
Internet is information. Information can easily be sent long distances through wires, so we use wires to cross the ocean, but information can still be sent shorter distances wirelessly through electromagnetic waves, so on land we build a bunch of towers and install routers in our homes to let us access that information wirelessly wherever we are.
In a nutshell, the “Internet” is actually a mix of fibre optic cables, copper wires, wireless networks, and satellites that all intercommunicate with each other using the Internet Protocol (IP). These different parts are used for different purposes.
Wireless is used for mobile devices, home networks, etc., while wired connections are common when speed is of utmost importance, so things like enterprise networks, servers, that sort of thing uses wires and cables. Fibre optic cables uses light to transmit data while copper wires use the flow of electrons (electricity) to do so, the former is faster but more expensive while the latter is more affordable. Finally, satellites are used when neither is available, and typically used when you are somewhere remote, or when normal connection methods are disrupted. In Ukraine, soldiers use satellites to communicate due to the disruption of mobile networks from the war.
The cables under the sea are used to connect the networks across seas and oceans, allowing people on both sides to communicate with one another. A normal wireless connection can’t work at these distances without the use of a very large (and expensive) receiver, so undersea cables are used to do so. Disruptions of these cables (by both natural and human actors) have caused concern for a lot of people as they are critical for communication across the world.
LoveEspresso@cafe.coffee-break.cc 1 week ago
I was reading somewhere that internet means ocean bed cables.
Luci@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
Stop reading that. It’s wrong.
A_norny_mousse@piefed.zip 1 week ago
Eh, not really. OP just fundamentally misunderstood some things. And probably refused to read up on them.
Strider@lemmy.world 1 week ago
But… It’s not wrong. Those cables make up the intercontinental connections. The latency via satellite is far worse.
Ajen@sh.itjust.works 1 week ago
Underwater cables being used for parts of the internet is not the same thing as “internet means wires.”
PM_ME_VINTAGE_30S@anarchist.nexus 1 week ago
So if your Internet traffic (i.e. the stuff you send and receive to others) goes across the ocean, it might go through cables laid on the ocean floor.
adespoton@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
There are “Internet cables” across the ocean; there are also “Internet satellites” orbiting the earth. The cables are good because they provide low latency. But that is not the most desired feature of all Internet packets; sometimes, bandwidth or range are higher priority than latency, and in those cases, a wireless transport layer may be preferred.
LoveEspresso@cafe.coffee-break.cc 1 week ago
What is latency ?
adespoton@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
Latency, also known as ping time by gamers, is the amount of time it takes for a signal to get from one computer to the other. Bandwidth is the total number of signals that can be sent over a given amount of time.
Eg: a bus has more bandwidth than a Kawasaki motorcycle, but also more latency (from a people moving perspective).
Signtist@bookwyr.me 1 week ago
Internet is information. Information can easily be sent long distances through wires, so we use wires to cross the ocean, but information can still be sent shorter distances wirelessly through electromagnetic waves, so on land we build a bunch of towers and install routers in our homes to let us access that information wirelessly wherever we are.
sbeak@sopuli.xyz 1 week ago
In a nutshell, the “Internet” is actually a mix of fibre optic cables, copper wires, wireless networks, and satellites that all intercommunicate with each other using the Internet Protocol (IP). These different parts are used for different purposes.
Wireless is used for mobile devices, home networks, etc., while wired connections are common when speed is of utmost importance, so things like enterprise networks, servers, that sort of thing uses wires and cables. Fibre optic cables uses light to transmit data while copper wires use the flow of electrons (electricity) to do so, the former is faster but more expensive while the latter is more affordable. Finally, satellites are used when neither is available, and typically used when you are somewhere remote, or when normal connection methods are disrupted. In Ukraine, soldiers use satellites to communicate due to the disruption of mobile networks from the war.
sbeak@sopuli.xyz 1 week ago
The cables under the sea are used to connect the networks across seas and oceans, allowing people on both sides to communicate with one another. A normal wireless connection can’t work at these distances without the use of a very large (and expensive) receiver, so undersea cables are used to do so. Disruptions of these cables (by both natural and human actors) have caused concern for a lot of people as they are critical for communication across the world.
Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe 1 week ago
I mean a simple Wikipedia search would’ve corrected that.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet