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How hard and expensive would it be to send a file from my house in London to a coastal area in Spain? It would most likely be software I want, so it must transfer perfectly, however if it is feasible then movies would also be great.

I am in a situation where it is impossible to get a telephone line and there is often only 2G mobile signal.

Anything is better than nothing, so speed is not a huge concern.

EDIT: 2G is too expensive. Internet cafes are too far away. The postal service is not reliable. I have no car. Satellite services are far too expensive and even if I wanted to they are always scams where I live.

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    $\begingroup$ so if speed is not a concern, use 2G; over that distance, it'd be way faster than anything you could build. $\endgroup$
    – Marcus Müller
    Jun 10, 2019 at 21:07
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    $\begingroup$ As answered below, shipping over a thumb drive is quicker, more reliable and safer. fun article if you still want some kind of packet transfer: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_over_Avian_Carriers $\endgroup$
    – HTDutchy
    Jun 12, 2019 at 8:54
  • $\begingroup$ Using 2G would likely save money, too, unless you're planning on installing a pair of HF base stations anyway. $\endgroup$
    – mrog
    Jun 12, 2019 at 17:03

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To get that distance, you're going to need to use an HF frequency, which means you won't have nearly as much bandwidth as Wi-Fi. Transferring a movie could take a very long time.

Additionally, you may have legal issues if the file is encrypted. That's not allowed for amateur transmissions in the United States, anyway. I'm not sure about your jurisdiction.

And you might run into different legal issues if the file isn't encrypted. (You could be accused of mass distribution of copyrighted content because anyone within range could receive the file.)

There's yet another potential legal issue if you send a movie that has music in it (i.e. nearly every movie). Transmitting music generally isn't allowed. But, again, the laws in your jurisdiction may vary.

Your best option might simply be to send DVDs or flash drives in the mail. Or you could look for a place within driving distance that has a good internet connection and download your files there. There are also satellite internet services available if you're willing to pay for them.

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    $\begingroup$ +1 for the legal issues. Imagine getting sued under two different sets of copyright laws, in two different courts! $\endgroup$
    – Zeiss Ikon
    Jun 10, 2019 at 17:06
  • $\begingroup$ How long is a long time? How would I do it, like do you have a tutorial? Good point about the movies, instead I will just transfer free open source programs to stay legal. Why is it illegal to send encrypted data? Thanks for your help so far! $\endgroup$
    – John Smith
    Jun 12, 2019 at 14:25
  • $\begingroup$ @JohnSmith There are a lot of variables that will affect the transmission speed. See ham.stackexchange.com/questions/6276/…. You can reasonably expect to wait several hours per megabyte in the best case. It might turn into weeks per megabyte, depending on those variables. Because you're asking why encrypted data is illegal, I'm guessing you don't have an amateur radio license yet. The studying you have to do to get licensed will answer many of your questions. $\endgroup$
    – mrog
    Jun 12, 2019 at 16:59

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