It almost seems like a previous lifetime: discovering the internet and then somehow managing to save enough to get an internet connection. In today’s world of high-speed and almost unlimited internet access, it is tough to imagine an online existence that was once possible only through the telephone line and at a staggering cost of Rs100 per hour. But that’s the way things were 14 years ago.It was in the mid-1990s that the Internet found its way into Karachi homes. Then, even having a computer at home was considered a novelty. So just imagine having the ability to communicate with loved ones abroad with the click of a button. It was also the time when there wasn’t any Facebook or YouTube. Google was still an obscure number and social networking was still years away.

Initially there were just a few companies around that offered internet access. And that too was a process that used to take at least three days or more.

The setting up was nothing less than testing a nuclear weapon. It required a device known as a modem, something that would make so much noise that the whole neighbourhood would know that you are trying to connect to the Internet.

14Kbps was the speed derived out of this modem, which was a little later replaced by the 56Kbps set-up. Once online, the downloading of the pages seemed to take hours upon hours. However, the excitement then was discovering Pakistani
websites. Not many existed. Dawn.com was one of the few around that had exclusive Pakistani content, making it the most viewed of the Pakistani sites. It arguably still is.

Internet access in Karachi — as in all of Pakistan — was hostage to the quality of reception of the telephone line. Hence, in this case as well, the linesman was all-powerful. Make sure he’s happy and the Internet worked smoothly. But as demand increased and as technology became cheaper, soon options started appearing that allowed people to be connected more easily.

The first I heard of this convenience was when a cousin visiting from Europe told me that plans are afoot to bring internet connectivity that, when the computer is switched on, automatically connects you, just like switching on the TV and being able to immediately access cable channels. Not only did this become a reality in the country, we latched onto the wireless bandwagon with much aplomb.

The Internet today is cheaper and much, much faster. Unlike the previous decades, not many companies are pushing for consumer coverage. In fact, not many of the famous companies that made a name for themselves as internet service providers (ISPs) are there anymore. Wireless internet is the order of the day. Hence, no more running after the linesman as well. And we are way beyond the desktop and even the laptop for our online existence. It’s now about internet on the move, in
the palm of your hand, in your mobile phone or any other compact mobile device.

Any connection that takes 30 minutes to download a movie or cannot display video in real time is considered slow.

It’s all about speed, and Karachi is very much in the faster lane.—Atifuddin Khan