Scot Posted March 17, 2003 Share Posted March 17, 2003 I'm wondering what kind of broadband coverage you'd like to see in Scot's Newsletter in future. Do you want me to cover federal regulatory events, like the FCC decision and how that might affect DSL availablity? Do you want me to focus on things you can do with broadband? Is broadband coverage not that important to you? Would you like to hear about broadband problems and solutions? Do you want me to focus on new and emerging techologies? Are you sick of hearing about two-way satellite (or don't feel I cover it enough).Your opinion matters. I'm interested. -- Scot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havnblast Posted March 17, 2003 Share Posted March 17, 2003 I feel DSL and Cable are common household item, even though I am still on Dial-Up, but satellight is an interesting issue and I have done installs with the DishNetwork system and it appears to be a nice system.I don't think people fully understand the satellight system and some of the issues with it, for instance one can not do online gaming with it cause of the latency.Advantage of satellight is if you move around a lot you can just pull it down and reset it up and don't have to wait for the hook up or hook up fees in the new area. Granted that not a lot of people will be able to reset it up, but for me it would be no problem. If I could only afford it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paracelsus Posted March 17, 2003 Share Posted March 17, 2003 Personally, I find all aspects of Broadband interesting to read about. The Pros & Cons of each type will probably factor into any decision I may make in the future, as to which would fit my needs and circumstances best.Currently, I'm still on Dial-up. I would love to go Cable, and Family & Friends that have it, rave about it. Unfortunately, I live in an apartment complex in a "University" town in north Texas, with a rinky-dink Cable provider who doesn't offer Internet Service.Went Satellite for TV several years ago.... and have considered this option with Direct-TV. The delay aspect wouldn't bother me, but with the severe weather we get here in the Spring (and occasionally Fall & Winter) I wouldn't relish connection Outages (If I still lived in SoCal, weather wouldn't be a consideration)About the only option I have now would be DSL, through a phone provider. But from what I've read (in SFNL) and a couple of people who have tried it, the reality usually doesn't live up to the promise... especially for the extra $$$ (And we have older wiring where I'm living)Having said all this... I still find the coverage interesting. I may move at some point! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havnblast Posted March 18, 2003 Share Posted March 18, 2003 If I had the option of DSL or Cable I would take DSL, the DSL in our area is excellant and they dont even offer Cable. Cable is shared where DSL is not. Overall they are comparable it just depends on your ISP service more than anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arena2045 Posted March 18, 2003 Share Posted March 18, 2003 About broadband coverage…I live in Rockford IL (yes I know in my profile it says Chicago, most people don’t know where Rockford is, and since I lived in Chicago and its well known, I put it down as my location…)Where I live it’s just on the outskirts of town, out in a nice quiet country setting. The road that I live on comes off a major highway for my area, and there are some sub-divisions in the area (a big cash cow for the local cable company).Unfortunately the subdivisions are on the opposite side of the highway from where I live, and the cable company refused to come down my road for only 15 houses (which were all willing to pay for cable service)… With the lack of cable everyone on my road now has a satellite dish, and as far as I know I’m the only one who has a DirecWay Duo system (TV and 2-way Internet on one dish).I must say that I simply love my satellite high-speed connection! Sure there are times when violent weather interferes with the signal, but most of the time I wouldn’t want to be on my computer when a severe thunderstorm or tornado is in the area. Also I’ve found that if the service is down for no apparent reason, DirecWay makes an explicit statement on their support numbers explaining the problem. That message, in and of its self, is good enough for me when they are experiencing difficulties.As mentioned on a separate thread, I have MSN as a dial-up backup. I’m using their $9.95 plan which is basically 20 hours of dial up and a low fee for any other hours after that. I also chose to keep MSN (had it before the satellite) so I wouldn’t have to change my MSN (subscriber) email addresses and because they offer more dial-up numbers than DirecWay does if the service is ever down. Also it is a great back up if I need to connect to the internet on my laptop away from home.All-in-all with the addition of my high-speed satellite connection I’ve now been able to set up a wireless home network (its truly awesome to be able to surf the web on my laptop from any room, outside, or in our guest house), I’ve been able to download files outstandingly fast and no longer have to wait for the computer to dial in (unless I’m using MSN as backup).Yeah the equipment (depending on how you buy it) can be expensive, but if DSL or Cable just isn’t available in your area satellite might just be what’s right for you.P.S. I’m a gamer; but now that I’m older, am a full time college student, and work the equivalent of a full time job, I don’t have time to play games online. So the delay with satellite doesn’t affect me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbredmound Posted March 18, 2003 Share Posted March 18, 2003 First, yes to all of your questions about new information. I want to know about the future of communication, and broadband is the actual beginning of true, worldwide communication.I have friends who are on Cox Cable broadband... . I have friends, who are using satellite...$$$ .I am a bit of an amazing story, because I am 20 mile from town, and have DSL; Vernon Communications in Wisconsin is building a "first of it's kind" network out here in the sticks. Services become available as the hardware and software are perfected (mostly by European companies). They are proving that, properly managed, telephone-based DSL is more than do-able just about anywhere...if only telephone company management didn't stink (eg, QWest).Watch the power companies, Scott...more people have electricity than telephones, and with most of the phone company execs trying to get their craniums out of their alimentary canals, power line-driven DSL may be the big up-and-comer. You and I both know that the cost of infrastructure is the driving factor, and if you drive almost anywhere in the US and don't see powerlines, that is because they are underground.You know, Scott, SOMEBODY in cyber-journalism should break the Vernon Communications story to the world. It's an unfolding saga, but with 80+% of the rssidents of Phoenix unable to get DSL, and my having it on my farm, 20 miles from the nearest town...beat that story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stryder Posted March 19, 2003 Share Posted March 19, 2003 We are actually in the infancy of this technology. I think you should keep your options open and try not to focus on any one aspect of broadband. Bring us a variety of what is happening as far as breakthroughs, choices, where the future is headed, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackR Posted March 19, 2003 Share Posted March 19, 2003 If I had the option of DSL or Cable I would take DSL, the DSL in our area is excellant and they dont even offer Cable. Cable is shared where DSL is not. Overall they are comparable it just depends on your ISP service more than anything.Broadband services are not the same in all geographical area, and it depends on the nature of your contract.E.g. I have a Cable service and DSL service (NYC Tri State Area). I am using both for about 2 years.DSL is a 768Kb/sec. down $39 per month. Cable is about 3Mb/sec. $44 a month.For regular Internet surfing both behave the same.Cable Download is around 300KB/sec. DSL 80KB/sec.At peak traffic Cable goes down to 220KB/sec. DSL stays the same.220KB/sec. is still close to three times the speed of the DSL.Note: b=bit B=Byte. 1Byte=8bits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeber Posted March 19, 2003 Share Posted March 19, 2003 I'm adding my vote that the topic remain open to all sorts of discussions of broadband. So I guess "yes" to all your suggestions, Scot. Personally, I'm in my first month of using the new and reinvented Ricochet wireless network. Coverage is limited to San Diego and Denver currently ( let me add, in case you're curious, that it's about 9:00 PM and I'm sitting here with the front door and windows open...no snow in the yard) The speeds are about 3x dial-up, but still only between dial-up and DSL. But that's OK when you combine a (modest) speed increase with the ability to wander anywhere in the county and get on-line...and for my needs it's heaven. And it allows me to use the phone again. Dial-up numbers are provided as part of the service for out-of-coverage areas (99.9% of the US). The price, $44, is acceptable, considering the benefits. I really appreciate having access without the branded browser, etc, etc. I can use my favorite browser (Mozilla), Eudora 5.2 for mail (Ricochet does provide a web mail address, but I still use the one from my dial-up, and still active, account). I've been trying to find users of the former Ricochet/Novatell network and get their input on how they liked it, or didn't. I'm quite satisfied, but it's still pretty new to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choco Posted March 19, 2003 Share Posted March 19, 2003 If I had the option of DSL or Cable I would take DSL, the DSL in our area is excellant and they dont even offer Cable. Cable is shared where DSL is not. Overall they are comparable it just depends on your ISP service more than anything.I may be wrong but I have read that while cable is shared at the user level, DSL becomes shared at the central station which can lead to the same type of bottleneck.FWIW, for several months I had both in my home. PacBell(now SBC) and RR (now Comcast) cable modem. I found the cable modem connection faster especially on uploads. I now just have Comcast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fLoOdY Posted March 19, 2003 Share Posted March 19, 2003 I've been on hs cable since 1999: MediaOne-> ATTBI-> Comcast (this month)I have a built-out SOHO Lan, 100mb switched; and protected by a SonicWall. I've been telecommuting since Jan 2000 with a PPTP VPN. I am a customer service SAN engineer for the "second-largest" computer company.I have a particular interest in all matters concerning Comcast. I was determined not to go through another domain change, so I registered my own to use email hosting services from TZO.com just before the advent of the ATTBI era.I'd be interested to hear anything about Comcast... VPNs, bandwidth, the 3mb/256kb Pro plan, and even about their HDTV services. I'm also interested in all SOHO networking and consider myself to be fairly experienced. Good to have Scot- Forums... it will be lively and informative in here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chapmx Posted March 19, 2003 Share Posted March 19, 2003 As I am currently looking to get satelite internet service I am very interested in this topic and hope to see coverage of it in the Broadband forum! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dicknite Posted March 20, 2003 Share Posted March 20, 2003 Being a 2-way Satellite (DirecWay) user, I never tire of reading about it... I do not know what your demographics are as to location of your readers, but Satellite covers a lot of this country that wires do not - if we let people know there is an option, it might get them signed up and then the terrestrial broadband companies might get interested in taking those customers away from satellite by expanding their service areas.I would drop satellite faster than a booger in a reception line if either DSL or cable were available. As it is, satellite is all that's available. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my 1.5 - 2 Meg download speeds, and the always-on aspect, but there are system problems that require continual maintenance/tweaking/rebooting that I would love to get rid of.I think your coverage of products, services, hardware, etc., is great. Don't focus on one thing too long, unless, of course, I'M interested in it! d|:^)Dick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henderrob19 Posted March 20, 2003 Share Posted March 20, 2003 I got cable as soon as it was available. It was available here in Alberta, Canada before the phone company knew what DSL meant. Cost CAD40/month unlimited. It's as fast as:DSL is a 768Kb/sec. down $39 per month. Cable is about 3Mb/sec. $44 a month.For regular Internet surfing both behave the same.Cable Download is around 300KB/sec. DSL 80KB/sec.At peak traffic Cable goes down to 220KB/sec. DSL stays the same.220KB/sec. is still close to three times the speed of the DSL.I use a Bluetooth Personal Area Network and it tops out at 1MB/sec for wireless surfing.Our Provincial goverment is paying for and installing a high speed network based on DSL throughout the entire province. It will be used to link hospitals and schools, etc. They're going to setup doctor's offices with face to face internet access so small town doctor's and their patients can consult with Specialists in the big city hospitals. Pretty good stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThunderRiver Posted March 30, 2003 Share Posted March 30, 2003 I am probably interested in FCC regulation. I have always been unhappy with the cable companies in north eastern part of US. They seem to have monopoly around here, and they can set their price however high they desire. For example, without TV cable subscription last year, I had to pay 45 bucks just to have 150 kb/sec down and 12 kb/sec up.Now this year, without TV cable subscription, it is 65 bucks just to have the same basic service. and yes, I don't mind saying the name. It is Comcast. The wicked one. My girlfriend from her area in Illinois is stuck with Charters Communition, and it is worse than Comcast, and yet charges even more. I don't think it is right for these companies to overchage people's money.Down in south at Houston (my hometown is Sugar Land, southwest of Houston), gets fiber optics DSL for a little more than 25 bucks, including tax, and the speed of their DSL service is blazingly fast.. Oh well. Comcast...mmm *thumb down*Thunder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted March 30, 2003 Share Posted March 30, 2003 I would love to hear about ANYTHING to do with broadband/high speed Internet from any source.I can't help but be excited about receiving satellite Internet. We have had a c-band/ku satellite dish for about 12 years now, and a small digital satellite dish since the first couple months after Dish Network started selling their systems/programming.The only thing I don't like about satellite Internet companies is their short-sightedness regarding OS support.All of the current ones that I am aware of say they REQUIRE a Windows box to provide the connection. However, there appears to be a pretty expensive "proprietary Intel-based hardware device" for business use from SkyCaster.com that they say is DirecWay Certified and has built-in firewalling and routing and that they say needs no software interface on any computer connecting through it.Anyway, I too think we are really in the infancy stage of all of this. I don't think we have even seen where we are going with high speed connections yet. I don't have any idea what that might be, but I am anxiously awaiting its arrival When I think that less than 20 years ago we were connecting at 300 baud. Now, in our residential homes, many of us can now bring down files in a matter of seconds or minutes. These same files would have taken all night even on 14.4 connections just a few short years ago.I would also be interested in FCC regs and congressional bills that could affect our connections to the internet regardless of how we connect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaflady Posted April 2, 2003 Share Posted April 2, 2003 Please keep covering all aspects of Broadband - all flavors. Whatever appears interesting or informative. I have had DSL at home for 3 years (was GTE now Verizon)and for 2 at work(PacBell now SBC). I love it but you never know - stuff happens and I always want to know options. Currently cable is not an option here in beachside hills of LA - we have Adelphia - which kindly sends brochures each month with the TV bill advertising their cable options and then tells you "not available in your area". When I travel I usually have to use "dial-up" and so have to maintain another ISP just for that. It does get expensive but I'm ok for the next few years because it is a perk of work. I would love to have the ability to go anywhere and just plug in and be on. Maybe a future wireless system of somekind will be the answer. Meanwhile I really hate that $10 for 24 hrs web TV you find in a lot of hotels - whew!So please let us know anything and everything - all the time. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teffy Posted April 4, 2003 Share Posted April 4, 2003 I am most interested in things you can do with broadband and in broadband problems and solutions.Teffy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freddy Posted April 15, 2003 Share Posted April 15, 2003 I assume a review of all the carriers speeds (real v, actual ), reliability and costs is near-impossible. How about educating the readers on what to consider when comparing broadband services? And maybe some words of caution.I had Earthlink Cable Broadband, provided through Time-Warner cable. The speed and ease of setup was acceptable. My problem was the fact that the two companies don't talk to each other when it came to billing related matters. Its seems Time Warner insists on charging their own rates, which was a few dollars more than Earthlink.Earthlink wouldn't do anything and referred all billing matters to TimeWarner. Both TW and Earthlink suggested I cancel and resubscribe so different Earthlink salespeople can process the transaction. Can you believe it?!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted April 15, 2003 Share Posted April 15, 2003 Freddy --Now that is an answer only an idiotic CSR could have come up with!! Are they really not able to take care of their customers that badly!Here's a great source of information on ISPs of all kinds:The List: The Definitive Internet Services Buyer's Guide(Don't be put off by the majorly advertisement ridden main page ... disregard those and use the navigation links on the lower left side of page.)Another great way to check out ISPs is at this epinions.com ISP searchAlways good to get users opinions, right ?Another spot to maybe check could be:GetConnected.com(although I don't know if I'd recommend buying through them...I haven't personally used them.)And get even more links for comparison by Googling for compare+ISP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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