FINALLY - High speed internet - Kinda!

[rv1pop]

Just before noon on July 4th, 2011 my "high speed internet" jumped from 54kbps to 1.2 mbps! It is not totally stable but it seems to be staying over 200 kbps. My "landline" VoIP phone is staying up most of the time! (Requires at least 380 to be duplex conversation.) And I can now view this forum, and actually watch some of the streaming. I can even see You-tube or whatever it is! Just thought I would let you know I am joining the information age!

 

[LoTech]

Thats great! Can't do much below 256k. Hope you get all the bugs worked out.

 

[Dishman Dan]

Welcome to the info age!

I hope you enjoy "boob-toob" !

 

[rv1pop]

The ISP has been working for two years to bring up the speed. When they offered internet out here they were not expecting the number of customers out here... They said they had not expected the deer and badgers to want internet! This is the third time they have DOUBLED the capacity. They started figuring 1028 circuits would be enough, to start. Now running 8192. The 2nd and 3rd additions are on a different frequency, so they have been able to reduce the load on the first group - which I was on. I am just past the fringe on the higher frequency.

 

[Stargazer]

Who is your provider? Frontier (former Verizon)?

 

[rv1pop]

Nah. We are too far out for the big companies. We are in the Columbia Gorge, so we have GorgeNet!

 

[turbosat]

Same boat here, Pop. Here its called the phone company. Should be called the Monopoly Company, because that's what they got.
Unless you want to pay the big money for satellite internet, lol.

 

[highskies]

Just before noon on July 4th, 2011 my "high speed internet" jumped from 54kbps to 1.2 mbps! It is not totally stable but it seems to be staying over 200 kbps. My "landline" VoIP phone is staying up most of the time! (Requires at least 380 to be duplex conversation.) And I can now view this forum, and actually watch some of the streaming. I can even see You-tube or whatever it is! Just thought I would let you know I am joining the information age!

Right now I have a 10 meg connection. They also have a 50 meg connection that is actually cheaper than the 10 meg connection, I think. But before this, I had DSL for about 10 years. Last year, because of the economy and the type of work I do, it became hard to pay my dsl bill, which was 70 bucks a month including my landline phone. So eventually my DSL was terminated. I actually had to go back to dialup for 5 or 6 months, lol. Trust me, the speed you are now getting, that's still light years ahead of dialup, lol. When I was on dialup for that 5 or 6 months, it felt like I had went back into the stoneage or something, especially after having had DSL for 10 years prior to that.
And Youtube on dialup..no way. So if you're able to now watch youtube videos, you have plenty of speed compared to dialup.

 

[rv1pop]

I am well aware of dial-up. We moved in here in 2005 and got the best we could, then. We had a "high speed modem", it was supposed to do 56K --- ha-- we had a transfer rate just below 600. Centurytel became the 3rd owner or our telephone system and got us up over 2400 baud for actual transfer rate. Then we went with GorgeNet and a microwave link. That gave us a blazing 500 kbps --- for about 6 weeks. Then as the customer base increased or speed went down. They doubled tower capacity. that helped again or a few more weeks then as customer base increased speed went down. GorgeNet doubled capacity by adding a new higher speed setup, at a different frequency, I am told. I was to be put on that new system, but I am just past the fringe for that frequency/power. Now, they doubled the capacity again and I still am on the old system, but the customer load has been cut WAY back and they will not be adding anymore to the oldest system.

 

[LoTech]

my area has been wait-listed for DSL here for about 9 years. Still only a few places in the county that have it. Thank God for cablenet!

 

[Lone Gunman]

I use a USB data card from nTelos that works off of the cell phone tower near me. I've got a 1.2m connection with a 15GB/month limit that costs me $45 a month and I'm damn glad to get it! I'd been on dialup and even used both ISDN and multilink PPP (dual modems) and that stuff had cost me well over $120 a month. The real bitch is that DSL is available less than a half mile from me and the a**holes at Verizon won't run it any further. I hate it when that happens!!!

 

[Stargazer]

I was to be put on that new system, but I am just past the fringe for that frequency/power. Now, they doubled the capacity again and I still am on the old system, but the customer load has been cut WAY back and they will not be adding anymore to the oldest system.

They probably have you on the 900 mhz or 2.4 ghz frequency. The 5.8 ghz frequency range has higher capabilities of data but 2.4 ghz should be enough to bump up your speed to 5-10 MB at least if you have decent signal. 900 mhz is more limited. Your issue is your line of site to the tower. Your client radio device (antenna) needs to be clearing the trees more by going where the trees are thinner, closer to the edge of a hill or raised to increase signal strength. Larger antennas are also able to increase the signal strength.

 

[rv1pop]

They tell me a larger antenna would raise the erp too high. The range is 5 miles, I am 7.2 miles from the tower. I am line of sight to the tower. No trees at all. I am on one ridge, tower on another.

One 'neighbor' put a USB "N band" antenna in a pizza dish holder and is getting wi-fi from someone and his closest neighbor is at least 2 1/2 sections (miles) away! He thinks it may be from a power sub-station about 6 miles from his place. Ah, who knows what can be done.

 

[highskies]

The real bitch is that DSL is available less than a half mile from me and the a**holes at Verizon won't run it any further. I hate it when that happens!!!

Well if you can't get them to come to you, you have 2 choices. You can either move, or expand your property line in the direction of the dsl limits. Do you think you could expand your property line about a half mile without getting in trouble with anyone, lol? Probably not I'm guessing. When I had dsl, the central office was within rock throwing distance. I always maintained top speed day or night. It's still within rock throwing distance, since it's still across the street from me. Except now I have cable internet instead.

But I know what you mean about diahup, then being thankful for any data plan better than dialup. These past 5 or 6 months when I had to resort back to dialup, I would have felt like I had died and gone to heaven if I could come up with even a 1 meg data plan at the time.

 

[Dishman Dan]

I have cable internet and it works great except the price keeps going up!

DSL is not supposed to be in my area but it might be if located within 5 wire

miles of the office. My neighbor a few years ago was told he could get

DSL so he signed up. He received the equipment and then was told that it

was not available in the area so he sent the stuff back. Within one month a

Verizon crew setup somekind of box in his yard that says DSL on it.

His place is within the 5 mile limit by 100 feet and the box is for DSL and

it is supposed to be available to anyone along the way including my house.

But for some reason that box is lost in the system and there is no record

of it so DSL technically is not available in my area. About 2 years ago I

had a phone rep find this box in their system and he was going to get

back to me after checking into this situation.

Well... I still have overpriced cable.

 

[Tron]

We've had cable internet ever since 2000, when it became available here. Recently had to replace my modem, as it was an antique ...

As for Cox, yes they are expensive. They keep increasing their speed, and the bill increases as well ...

 

[rv1pop]

Well, --- warning plug coming --- If you live in the Columbia Gorge area, UNLIMITED Internet and VoIP phone bundle for under $60 a month. (I pay $40.) GorgeNet. Service is exceptional and personal.

 

[Stargazer]

I have installed on the 2.4 ghz spectrum 7.5 miles away non-line of site an got around 4 MB down (the max the AP allowed at the time). They lived on a hill (not the highest elevation though) and there were other hills between them and the tower that came close to the fresnel zone. Every experience is different though. I done another one 6.5 miles away. It was a built in 19 db panel antenna that I used. The installs were done during the summer while the trees were in bloom.

If you have line of site then your distance should not be an issue. A larger antenna will help with the signal quality.