Christian Peterson
Reporter@riverbendnews.org
On Thursday, Jan. 12, Kinetic by Windstream officially cut the ribbon on their fiber optic project in Hamilton County. Kinetic was joined by the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners and Clerk of Court Greg Godwin. Before the ribbon cutting, former commissioner and Kinetic employee Josh Smith took a moment to say a few words, as he has been spearheading the project.
First, Smith thanked everyone who helped with the project. Smith told the public there are already 125 homes in Hamilton County that have fiber optic. He also announced that by 2025, 98 percent of Hamilton County will have the opportunity to gain fiber optic lines. “It’s a very proud moment to see both sides come together,” Smith said.
Kinetic also brought a trailer and some employees to show the process and work they were doing. It illustrated how they splice the wires and how small, thin and fragile they are. Conversations filled the air as the group celebrated the culmination of all the hard work they had put in.
Fiber optic internet is a new internet technology that transmits information as pulses of light. It is transferred via fragile strands of fiber made of glass or plastic. The fibers are roughly the diameter of a strand of hair, however, when they are bundled together into a cable, they gain the ability to transmit more information over greater distances and faster than other mediums. On top of the faster speed and longer distance, there cables are nonmetallic, so they are not affected by any electromagnetic interference. Even more impressive is they are safer, as there is no current and they cannot create a spark for fires.