on 8-24-05 8:14 AM, Bruce Johnson at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: >> In my neck of the woods (SF Bay Area), SBC sells DSL at *up to* 1.5 >> Mbps for their Express (basic) package. What speed does Qwest say you'll >> get "up to" in your area? 512Kbps or something? > > Possibly the single most wired corner of the planet after the Ginza.
I only *wish* that that were true, at least in my experience. I was on dialup (at home...) until very recently. SBC dropped my dialup from $14.95 down to $9.95 last year because they still couldn't provide DSL. When I asked them about the price drop on my bill, I was told they do it as a "please stay with us" gesture for people they can't give DSL to. >From what I can tell, WiMAX has undergone limited testing up in SF. Yet, in the city that bills itself as The Capital of Silicon Valley: nothing. It's enough to make you chew your own foot off. > Gawd, I'll bet you even pay less than $50 a month for that basic > package, right? YOUR neck of the woods bears little relationship to > most of the rest of the country, unfortunately. Again, I wish that were true. Getting DSL/cable here is still very much a crap shoot. Drop by broadbandreports.com and you'll always see posts from people here who either aren't serviceable or who can't hope to realize close to full speeds. While the newer buildings/neighborhoods are definitely wired up, there are a lot of older neighborhoods that still aren't. > "This is Qworst. Yer lucky ta get any bits per second, yah ungrateful > clod! Any more lip from yah and we'll re-route your mom's phone line > to Donna's Love Emporium and Massage Parlor, then charge her $75 to > switch it back! Now just shut up, you <bleep>, qwityerbitchin, and > pay your bill!" > > <Across town your mom's phone starts ringing...> > > That, freely translated, is Qwest's standard answer. Yeah, well, I kinda suspected that. I have pals in Seattle who have filled me in on their own Qwest service experience. And what an experience... The problem with broadband, though, is that every install is still, by and large, a custom install. Conditions can vary greatly from block to block and house to house. We're still very much at the stage where just because *you* have broadband doesn't mean your neighbor can get it (and vice-versa). It's getting better, but you still need to do your homework when picking out a home because you can't take anything for granted. > This is why, in the beginning of this thread, nearly everyone said > "To fix your DSL modem get cable." Right, but this assumes you have access to a cable provider. When you have cable service yourself, it's easy to assume that everyone else has that option. But other people may not be as lucky as you are. Locally, at least, cable seems to have more downtime than DSL, too. Again, it's a crap shoot. > For another wonderful tale of DSL fun, try this: > > <http://www.gnomesane.org/story.php/view/4/> > > This is a friend's story of getting support for her DSL service... I guess that's why I'm so fascinated by other peoples' experiences: they vary so widely. Some people are up and running from the first day with no problem. For others, it's nothing but grief from the day they sign up, let alone install the equipment. "YMMV" definitely applies here. Best, James Fraser -- G-List is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- We have Apple Refurbished Monitors in stock! | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-List list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-list.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[email protected]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-list%40mail.maclaunch.com/> iPod Accessories for Less at 1-800-iPOD.COM Fast Delivery, Low Price, Good Deal www.1800ipod.com
