Repairs Underway on Mediterranean Cables

By Geoff Duncan Published December 22, 2008

Repairs Underway on Mediterranean Cables

Operations are underway to repair three undersea telecommunications cables that were damaged in the Mediterranean Sea over the weekend, disrupting telephone and Internet service in parts of the Middle East and south Asia. However, this time the cause of the cable cuts is suspected to be a ship’s anchor, rather than a deliberate act or terrorism or sabotage.

The damage to the FLAG, SEA-ME-WE4, and SEA-ME-WE3 cables occurred late Friday; by Sunday a remotely-operated submarine robot was being used to locate and assess the damage to the cables. It’s possible a ship anchor could have dragged the cables some distance from their proper locations. Once the damage areas have been located an identified, the remote robot will bring the cables up to a repair ship which will repair the damage and then re-lay the cables on the ocean floor.

Recommended Videos

The three cables are owned by different operators, but all lie in the same area. Cable cuts in early 2008 took place in disparate locations in the Mediterranean and southeast Asia over the span of a few days, leading some to suspect the cables had been deliberately sabotaged.

Both sets of cable cuts disrupted telecommunications and Internet service through portions of the Middle East, India, south Asia, and as far away as Taiwan, although most regions currently report alternative connectivity arrangements have been set up to enable communications until the cables are restored.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Computing

How to change margins in Google Docs

Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content --- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Computing

What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app

A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Computing

Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs

A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.