 |
|
| CURRENT SECTION :: TechZone | |
|
 |
Computer users and businesses worldwide are making the most of going online because the internet is overworked and dangerously close to collapse. This is the latest warning from the world's biggest chipmaker, Intel, which says a tenfold increase in usage in the last decade means the Web is struggling to cope. At the heart of concerns, is the 30-year-old model for the net that contains "architectural limitations," and fails to manage the current heavy workload and remain secure. Patrick Gelsinger, chief technology officer at Intel, said that as spam email now accounts for nearly 80 per cent of all sent emails the task for the network is even greater. "The Web was never meant to cope with the volume of users and data traffic seen today," he said. "We're running up on some architectural limitations." The rise of worm and virus attacks was also said to be continually working against the system by undermining stability through security gaps in the network. Intel believes the answer is a better "smart" system of internet that will manage the higher volumes of traffic and kill viruses before they attack computers. "These new smart services could allow the internet to detect and warn of worm attacks on its own," said Gelsinger. He added that such a model already exists in the form of Planet Lab, a prototype being developed by Intel that features a collection of 429 computer nodes, in 181 sites around the world. The project, known by some as the 'Intelnet,' is backed by large organisations, such as Cisco Systems, Hewlett Packard, AT & T and Cambridge University. The new system and the 'demise' of its predecessor has prompted some experts to suggest the warning is more a commercial opportunity, rather than a serious technical urgency. Jim Page, technical director of Email Systems, a message-filtering firm, said the technical claims had more than a "nugget of truth" but "we don't need to replace the internet." "What they're talking about is great news for Intel commercially," he said, "but it's not an end-of-the-world scenario." According to Email Systems, 85 per cent of all email traffic in August was spam, and was distributed from at least 25 countries. The US and the UK are the worst offenders, sending almost 70 per cent of unsolicited messages, out of those identified with a traceable origin. Sep 15, 2004 Email this article Printer friendly page Previous Page
|
|
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
| All content © Contractor UK Limited | [Archive] | [Register for News Letter] | [Privacy Statement] | [Terms of Use] | [Top of Page] |