Dialup Internet

James Martin
Posts: 1011
Joined: Sun 15 Feb, 2004 19.26

Does anyone still use it?
DJGM
Posts: 528
Joined: Fri 15 Aug, 2003 15.39
Location: Manchester
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Nope. Not me at least. Next question?
Jamez
Banned
Posts: 2587
Joined: Sun 30 May, 2004 23.02
Location: Bristol

Yep.

I was informed by BT on Monday that I cannot receive broadband because they can't be asked to bother upgrading their shitty 1920s copper wires on decaying telegraph poles.

Broadband is only available to those lucky enough to live within 3 miles of the nearest exchange or have cable.

I have neither, because BT is a shitty and disgraceful monopoly which should be crushed and the entire telecoms network opened up!
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Sput
Posts: 7547
Joined: Wed 20 Aug, 2003 19.57

Actually the 3 mile thing is *way* out of date now Jamez. It's provided to anyone with a line good enough to receive it, though 1 and 2 meg are limited to certain line stats.

Any by opened up do you mean that any adsl or voice supplier can use BT's network? If so then it, er, already is.
Knight knight
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marksi
Posts: 1892
Joined: Wed 07 Jan, 2004 05.38
Location: Donaghadee

Jamez wrote:Yep.

I was informed by BT on Monday that I cannot receive broadband because they can't be asked to bother upgrading their shitty 1920s copper wires on decaying telegraph poles.

Broadband is only available to those lucky enough to live within 3 miles of the nearest exchange or have cable.

I have neither, because BT is a shitty and disgraceful monopoly which should be crushed and the entire telecoms network opened up!
As I understand it, here in NI if you are too far from the exchange, BT will offer you a subsidised satellite broadband system. This allowed them to declare NI the "first European region to have 100% broadband access" when what they really meant was "we've converted all our exchanges".

From the end of the month BT will start moving everyone onto 8Mbps broadband, but the speed you get will depend on the distance from the exchange.
Jamez
Banned
Posts: 2587
Joined: Sun 30 May, 2004 23.02
Location: Bristol

My nearest exchange is 4 miles away, which is not far.

I think it's so bad that I can't receive broadband when people living in far more rural areas than me can get it!
Chris
Posts: 845
Joined: Fri 15 Aug, 2003 19.03
Location: Surrey

From the end of the month BT will start moving everyone onto 8Mbps broadband, but the speed you get will depend on the distance from the exchange.
It's a bit pointless if they impose strict low caps on data transfer though. What's the point in having an 8 meg connection when you've got to be "clock-watching" to make sure you don't go over your limit. There's not much point in having an 8 meg connection to load the BBC News site 0.8th of a second faster. :?

I do agree with Jamez somewhat about their monopoly in places where LLU and cable do not reach. Pretty much every provider which is not LLUed MUST purchase a BT wholesale product, and therefore are tied to whatever they are offering.
DJGM
Posts: 528
Joined: Fri 15 Aug, 2003 15.39
Location: Manchester
Contact:

Agreed about caps on hi-speed broadband. A few weeks a go "Freedom2Surf" introduced a budget 8Mbps broadband
service, but with a ridiculously unrealistic usage of 500MB per month. And that wasn't a typo with the last 0 missing!

What the hell is the point of that? A connection up to 8Mbps, yet you can only download half a gigabyte per month!
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Pete
Posts: 7631
Joined: Fri 15 Aug, 2003 13.36
Location: Dundee

Sput wrote:Actually the 3 mile thing is *way* out of date now Jamez. It's provided to anyone with a line good enough to receive it, though 1 and 2 meg are limited to certain line stats.

Any by opened up do you mean that any adsl or voice supplier can use BT's network? If so then it, er, already is.
I'm well over 3 miles from my exchange and I get 1mbit. moo tells me I shall be getting more soon
"He has to be larger than bacon"
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Bail
Posts: 1142
Joined: Fri 15 Aug, 2003 21.41
Location: UK

Most exchanges in the UK will be "ADSL Max" enabled at the end of the month, meaning people who get 1mb or so now, should be able to get 6-10mb services.
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shaun
Posts: 65
Joined: Fri 15 Aug, 2003 15.04
Location: Mid Cornwall

I might be on one of those rural exchanges but at least my line is short and capable of 2mb now, and 8mb when it comes (or thereabouts - 7.9mb sync). I'm enjoying my 34dB SNR and 20.5dB loop attenuation.

On a more serious note - try re applying when the ISPs roll out 8mb as there are no line limits to those products - you'll get the best speed the line can take and it will be very variable. I would recommend one with a 1month contract in case the line is really bad and keeps dropping.
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