It seems that a pioneering Technologist in Britain has used a 3G Mobile Phone to provide internet access to the 21 Apple Laptops on The Manx Telecomputer Bus, a fully outfitted Commuter Bus purchased by the Isle of Man to bring Computer exposure to the smaller communities of the Isle.

On the bus, the phone is plugged into a laptop that acts as a server for other machines on board.  Despite sharing the connection between 21 computers, the speed has impressed Mr Townsend.

"The service that children are getting through this phone is actually quicker than on their desktop machines in the school," he said.   "These machines go like the wind and it makes my lesson go so much better, thanks to our 3G phone."  Mr Townsend said the Computer Bus had shown the potential for 3G technology, which fuses the scope of the internet with mobile telecommunications.

"People are hungry for information, people want to get on the web, get their e-mail, faster and faster and anything that allows us to do that is going to take off," he said.

This is another glaring example of how "the most powerful nation on the planet" is still not getting it.  This is a brilliant idea and I applaud Mr. Townsend for his vision and dedication to the people of The Isle of Man.