Why didn Cornell have enough bandwidth for usage when cable modem and other Internet providers have unlimited/unrestricted access?
To some extent, this is an apples and oranges comparison. There are a number of differences between the two types of services. Many cable modem services are a shared network. Unlike a switched network, such as ResNet is, a shared network means that all users on a particular subnet or LAN (all those who share the same Gateway/are on the same local network) are competing with each other for a share of the bandwidth provided. This sort of service places a bandwidth bottleneck on the local network and is more friendly towards a service’s connection to the actual Internet because users automatically restrict each other’s bandwidth by competing for the same piece of the pie. Switched networks, like Cornell and ResNet, give each user a full-speed dedicated connection which always allows them full access to their own personal connection, and which does not compete with any other users at the local level. The downside of this means that there is much higher load placed on the connection to the
