Jonathan Takiff: New plans bridge digital divide

THE GIZMO: Communications technology for all!

THE GREAT DIVIDE: In his 1928 campaign, presidential candidate Herbert Hoover promised "a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage." We know how that came out. Hoover was elected, but a year later came the Great Depression.

In today's tough economy, some political visionaries talk about "crossing the digital divide," bringing America's most needy into the high-tech age. Every home should be wired to the Internet, it's argued, and every citizen should own a mobile phone - tools vital for kids to keep up on schoolwork, for job seekers to connect with employers.

Thanks to corporate largesse and federal funds, both the 'Net and mobile phones are within reach.

GETTING WISE TO THE WEB: Newly available wherever Comcast/Xfinity broadband service is available - including 99 percent of Philadelphia, much of Pennsylvania and 38 other states (plus Washington, D.C.) - Internet Essentials broadband service aims to give an educational boost to any family that has a child in the National School Lunch Program. Monthly IE broadband service is just $9.95 for as long as the child is in school.

Yes, Comcast agreed to this to win approval from the Obama-era Federal Communications Commission for its takeover of NBC/Universal. Still, let's give props to the company for making the process easy - you don't have to purchase any other Comcast service - and for executive vice president David L. Cohen's national barnstorming campaign to promote it.

DOING THE NUMBERS: Internet Essentials promises content delivery to a home computer at speeds "up to 1.5 Mbps" and to upload users' keystrokes at speeds "up to 384 Kbps." Those numbers are akin to what's found with basic Verizon DSL broadband service, which goes for about $20 a month. Comcast's (otherwise) cheapest, $42-a-month broadband offering boasts downloads "up to 12 Mbps."

Still, IE broadband should prove plenty fast enough for surfing the Web, listening to online music and maybe some partial-screen-video streaming.

BETTER YET: There's no cost for home wiring or for the (self-installed) modem/router that connects to the Web. Comcast normally tacks on $7 a month for that.