Internet upgrades keep rural Iowans in loop

The digital revolution literally was passing the Clarkes by last week, as a crew from Minnesota stretched new fiber optic cable from giant red spools and buried it along 300th Street. Interstate Communications is the local family telecommunications company based in Truro that serves about 1,100 customers, also in and around nearby St. Charles and St. Marys. The company has replaced about 90 percent of its old copper lines with fiber optics to provide faster Internet service and more cable TV options in an effort to remain competitive.

Appcore is a cloud computing company that since 2008 has been headquartered east of Truro and relies on the Interstate Communications network to conduct business across continents. Led by venture capitalist Brian Patrick Donaghy, Appcore coordinates with its other offices in New York, London and Zimbabwe from amid the Warren County cornfields. Last week I chatted with four employees who typed away on their keyboards next to a crackling wood-burning stove.

Ann Borseth uses a wireless connection through her DSL hookup to get Internet access in her business, Country Chiropractic, in rural Truro.