> > ----Original Message Follows---- > From: John Gunn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Reply-To: Friendly list for people new to Linux > <[email protected]> > To: Friendly list for people new to Linux > <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: Need Faster Internet Connection > Date: Sat, 23 Jun 2007 15:25:38 -0700 (PDT) > Thanks to all of you who contributed to this thread. > Your comments were all helpful to me in making my > decision. > > I checked with DSLExtreme and found that my location > qualified for their service and have decided to give > them a try. > > I plan to add a report of the experience to this > thread, when I get on-line. > > Gus, they have a referral program through which they > will credit the account of a current user for a one > time amount equal to the monthly rate of a person > who > signs up as a result of that user's recommendation. > Send your "Username" to me off-list, and I'll use it > in my application. > > Thanks, again, to all. > > John Gunn >
Since several of you expressed interest in DSL Extreme, I am posting this description of my experience. On 26 Jun 2007 I signed up for DSL Extreme's 384-1500kbps / 128-384kbps Plan. It's the plan called "2X Faster DSL" on this page https://secure.dslextreme.com/Medusa/DSL/Default.aspx?show=mpreq Note: I just noticed they have dropped their prices. When I signed up that plan cost $19.95/mo. Since I'm paying by the month, I wonder if I'll benefit from this reduction. On 27 Jun 2007 I was notified by email that my "activation date" would be the 29th. Due to a mistake I made in my bank information the modem arrived on the 30th. The modem is a D-Link DSL-2320B. D-Link Product Page: http://www.dlink.com/products/?sec=0&pid=554 Manual: ftp://ftp.dlink.com/Broadband/dsl2320B/Manual/dsl2320B_Manual_12.zip The modem came with three phone line filters, the necessary cables, and a Set Up CD for Windows and Mac. Note: After the modem arrived, I called about a filter for my wall phone. They sent me one at no charge, but my Panasonic phone was not securely held by the studs the filter provided. I went back to a line filter which I was able to hide under the phone. There was room for a comment in the on-line application form. I'll bet I could have mentioned my wall phone there and saved the wait for the filter to arrive by mail. Installation was easy. As soon as I turned on the modem it quickly synced with the DSLAM. I had to 'ifdown eth0' and 'ifup eth0' to get DHCP to work its magic. The modem is configured in bridge mode. My initial speeds were very disappointing, scattered between 700 and 900 kbps on the speed test at http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/ . In the process of checking the wiring, I discovered the old phone wall outlet, which had been the "property" of Pacific Bell, had bent wires that make poor connections to the pads on the modular phone plug. I pulled those wires back out to their original location and the speed immediately jumped up to 1313 kbps, where it has pretty consistently remained. Needless to say, I immediately set about replacing all three phone outlets in the apartment. This poor connection didn't have any effect on the speed of the 56K V.92 external acoustic modem which used that outlet for a couple of weeks before I got DSL. That speed was a pretty consistent 49.3 kbps. The new outlet didn't make it any faster. I have an old Alcatel Speed Touch Home modem which I got at a rummage sale. It provides just about the same performance. I hacked it into a Speed Touch Pro model and got the following information about my connection from it. Alcatel Speed Touch Pro Modem Operational data report : near end (Downstream) ----------------------------------------------- Attainable line rate : 2372 kbit/sec Attainable Atm rate : 2112 kbit/sec Used line rate : 1760 kbit/sec Fast used Atm rate : 1536 kbit/sec Interleaved used Atm rate : 0 kbits/sec Rel. capacity occupation : 74 Noise Margin : 10 dB Line attenuation : 60 dB Output Power : 16 dBm Operational data report : far end (Upstream) -------------------------------------------- Attainable line rate : 836 kbit/sec Attainable Atm rate : 736 kbit/sec Used line rate : 480 kbit/sec Fast used Atm rate : 384 kbit/sec Interleaved used Atm rate : 0 kbits/sec Rel. capacity occupation : 57 Noise Margin : 16 dB Line attenuation : 38 dB Output Power : 11 dBm And here is what these terms mean: Attainable Line Rate (AKA Synch Rate) This is the maximum rate at which your modem can connect to the DSLAM if there was no service provisioning limiting the bandwidth. Anything over 2,000Kbps is considered good. The higher the number the better. Used Line Rate Your Used ATM Rate (actual service rate) plus bandwidth to cover the overhead and provisioning of the service. Fast Used ATM Rate Actual bandwidth at which your service has been provisioned. The actual number can vary a little depending how you are physically serviced. If there is a number here that also means your connection is "fastpathed". Interleaved Used ATM Rate Actual bandwidth at which your service has been provisioned. The actual number can vary a little depending how you are physically serviced. If there is a number here that also means your connection is "interleaved". Relative Capacity Occupation Percentage of your overall available bandwidth used to obtain your service ATM rate. For example; if your max line synch rate was 5888Kbps and you were provisioned on a 1472Kbps service you would be using 25% capacity. 1472/5888=25% capacity. The lower the relative capacity the better, but you can still get maximum speeds (although a less stable connection) even with a very high relative capacity. In other words you could be synching at 1472Kbps with 98% relative capacity and achieve maximum speeds, but you may experience more disconnects. Noise Margin (AKA Signal to Noise Ratio) Relative strength of the DSL signal to Noise ratio. 6dB is the lowest dB manufactures specify for modem to be able to synch. In some instances interleaving can help raise the noise margin to an acceptable level. The higher the number the better for this measurement. Line Attenuation Measure of how much the signal has degraded between the DSLAM and the modem. Maximum signal loss recommendation is usually about 60dB. The lower the dB the better for this measurement. Output Power How much power modem (upstream) or DSLAM (downstream) is using. Maximum recommended is about 15dB. The lower the power the better for this measurement. I'm very happy with the service I have gotten from DSL Extreme. The phone wait times have been short, and the people eager to help. But, most of all, it has given me a much fuller view of the Internet. Being able to stream audio and video and update my systems with ease has made a world of difference. I used to pay NetHere $10/mo for my 49.3 kbps. Now for a little more than twice that I am getting 1313 kbps. Instead of "Buy two and get one free," I now "Buy two and get 25 free." I'll be happy to answer any of your questions while the experience is still fresh in my mind. John Gunn P.S. If any of this makes you decided to go with DSL Extreme my Username is "johngunn". Oh, by the way, did I mention that my DSL Extreme Username is "johngunn"? ____________________________________________________________________________________ Be a better Heartthrob. Get better relationship answers from someone who knows. Yahoo! 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