The dangers of relying on the always-present Internet

Ubiquitous Internet connectivity “from anywhere on this planet” has become so second nature that many expect it even in the most obscure, desolate locations, according to a research analyst.

“You go to airports [and] you sit on an airplane and if you can’t connect, people are indignant and get up,” said Gartner’s Vice President of Research Dale Vecchio, adding a few extra loud sighs to illustrate the annoyance of fellow air travelers.

Speaking at 1105 Media’s Budget Optimization Summit held at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel in Washington, D.C., Vecchio told a story of his college-age daughter whom he jokingly called a “left-leaning eco-terrorist” because of her decision to study environmental studies.

The daughter recently made a trip from Chicago to St. Louis on a bus that had advertised having wireless Internet. But after texting the daughter, Vecchio found out that wasn’t the case. 

“The Internet doesn’t work! They said they had Internet!” the exasperated daughter told him, huffing and puffing in a way only an annoyed teenage girl can do.

“And I’m thinking,‘Okay, [she] expected Internet connectivity on a stinking bus driving through the middle of nowhere in Illinois, through a cornfield, and she's indignant because there’s no Internet,” Vecchio said.

1105 Media is the parent company of Federal Computer Week.