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From: ccml@hippo.ru.ac.za (Mike Lawrie) To: shem@minster.york.ac.uk CC: kenfri-net@Athena.MIT.EDU, BBELLMAN@BESTSD.SDSU.EDU Date: Tue, 28 Apr 92 9:40:44 EET Shem writes:- > > Volume: KShs 574.60 KS > Time: KShs 574.60 per hr To set a departure point for discussion, how about assuming the following model:- 1. Internal (ie withing Kenya) networking is not a fundamental problem - hosts can be accessed by dial-up, and/or by using the X.28 service, and/or by X.25, or by dedicated line. Someone else might wish to follow this up, I am looking at the international link in this note. 2. International access, based on a 24 hour/day, 30 Mbyte/day connection and volumes, could be achieved by 2.1 X.25 2.2 Dedicated line (min speed 9600, 64 Kbd much better) (The 30 Mbyte/day is purely arbitrary, based on experience in South Africa - we have 25 or so Universities and research institutions involved. This figure is low by today's standards, I would guess). So, using Shem's figures, let's look at costs. X.25 Costs (annual) ---------- Take it as 575 per Kilo Segment for volume, and 575 per hour of connect time (is this the INTERNATIONAL or the INTERNAL rate? I assume that it is the international rate). A segment is a maximum of 64 characters, it could be as little as a single keypress. Connect time: 575 for 24 hours for 365 days = 5,037,000 Traffic: 575/1000 for 30,000,000/64 for 365 = 98,378,906 <<<minimum>>> TOTAL 103 Million/year Dedicated Line Costs (annual) -------------------- (Assuming figures are for international 9600 baud, which is slowish) (Figures from Luvemba Kigada's note) Kenyan component: 66,000 for 12 months 792,000 USA component ($5000) 145,000 for 12 months 1,740,000 TOTAL 2.5 Million At 2.5 Million KSH and any amount of data that you can squeeze through a line of 9600 bd, compared to 103 Million KSH that varies with volume and could cost per keypress, there is no doubt at all which way to go. PLEASE, someone, check the basic figures of my calculation, and my assumptions (like you need 24 hours/day connectivity -- I don't see how you connect to the Internet without this, but maybe I have the wrong idea about what is needed. I clearly am influenced by what we DEFINTELY need for research in South Africa). [Note: An international dedicated line incurs two costs, one for each end of the line. These costs should be approximately equal, but this is not always the case - not so for South Africa and USA. Someone should call the Kenyan telcom and get confirmed figures, and indeed should ask them to confirm the calculations above. The cost varies with the baud rate, so confirm 9600 bd prices and ask for 64 Kbd prices]. Regards, Mike -- Mike Lawrie <ccml@hippo.ru.ac.za> Director, Computing Services ph +27 461 22023 x 279 Rhodes University, Drostdy Rd fx +27 461 25049 South Africa
