OT: Internet Provider

Wed Jan 7 22:33:38 UTC 2009

drew einhorn wrote:
> Check whether the prospective new provider has bandwidth caps, and what
> happens
> if you usage exceeds the caps.  This can ruin an apparently good option.
>
> I'd research other options, but would wait until after the Jan 13 hearing
> before
> bailing out on SkyWi.
>
> My wife got tired of changing her email address and now uses pobox.com
> to forward her email to her real email address.  "Custom DNS"  from
> dyndns.com
> and their "Mail Hop" sevices may be useful.
>
>
>
> On Wed, Jan 7, 2009 at 2:28 PM, Karl F. Larsen <klarsen1 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>   
>> Mark Haney wrote:
>>     
>>> Karl F. Larsen wrote
>>>
>>>       
>>>>         I am having trouble with my Internet providers. I am now today
>>>> using the telephone company provided DSL sort of fast service. I pay the
>>>> the telephone company (Qwest) $15.00 and the local provider SkyWi $20.00
>>>> each month for my Internet. This has worked fine for around 5 years. But
>>>> now SkyWi has Qwest in a legal fight that is still in court.
>>>>
>>>>         Qwest in a effort to hurt SkyWi, disconnected about 10,000 SkyWi
>>>> users from the Internet without any warning. The State of New Mexico
>>>> Public Regulation Commission ordered Qwest to restore service asap. So
>>>> today Jan 7 2009 we have the Internet from SkiWi and life is good. But
>>>> clouds on the horizon.
>>>>
>>>>         On Jan 13 Court will decide what to do with the current claims.
>>>> If SkyWi looses they just agreed with Qwest to give us 10 days before
>>>> they disconnect us again.
>>>>
>>>>         So now I am looking at options. I can find my old 56k telephone
>>>> modem and go back to Juno. I can get Qwest to just send me the Internet
>>>> without a email server. I can use the web based internet, or the Gmail I
>>>> am now using to send this message to the list. I can try to find another
>>>> local Internet provider for email service.
>>>>
>>>>         I am thinking I prefer Gmail to solve the email problem. Today I
>>>> use Gmail to IMAP email to both my main computer and my laptop. A
>>>> problem is that my wife uses WindowsXP and I am not sure Windows likes
>>>> IMAP. For sure she will hate a new email address :-)
>>>>
>>>>         The other approach will be to hire another local Internet
>>>> provider that Qwest likes. One does exist and it can be done. I will
>>>> explore this tomorrow.
>>>>
>>>>         Does anyone on the list have other ideas? I was quite mad when
>>>> the Internet died on the Tuesday before New Years and Qwest said they
>>>> cant do a thing until Monday after New Years. In fact they were back up
>>>> New Years eve at my home :-)
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Karl
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>         
>>> Well, since I don't live in NM, it's hard to offer a lot of
>>> alternatives.  But surely there are wireless ISPs in the area.  I mean,
>>> even in the mtns of NC we have 4 that connect to my company alone.  And
>>> this is a very rural area.  There's always satellite, I suppose, or a
>>> broadband card from a cellular provider.
>>>
>>> A lot depends on what other options you have local to you.  Based on
>>> what I see in the post, there are no cable companies or telcos close
>>> that offer cable/DSL service?
>>>
>>> <sermon>You know, it REALLY sucks how the big telcos have crushed the
>>> smaller ISPs with lobbying to congress for regulation and cutting the
>>> backbones out of small companies but over pricing access to their fiber
>>> and copper.  This is part of the reason I work for the company that I
>>> do.  We were started as a non-profit that offers lower cost (originally
>>> federally funded, but now self sufficient) bandwidth in WNC to Education
>>> and Research institutions and to get broadband internet into the really
>>> rural areas of NC.  As such, our presence in WNC has caused broadband
>>> internet access prices to drop by 75% in the last 5 years.  Not all of
>>> that drop is due to us, but a significant portion is.  </sermon>
>>>
>>> Other than the above I don't know what other options there are for you.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>       
>>     Thank you for the new ideas. There is a wireless company here and I
>> understand the cost is not bad anymore. We do have cable but they have
>> been quite expensive like $70/mo for Internet. Today I see a ad in the
>> paper saying $10/mo for a year and then no info on the next year. Just
>> like our cable company!
>>
>> Karl
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>>        Karl F. Larsen, AKA K5DI
>>        Linux User
>>        #450462   http://counter.li.org.
>>   PGP 4208 4D6E 595F 22B9 FF1C  ECB6 4A3C 2C54 FE23 53A7
>>
>>
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>>     
>
>
>
>   
    I think that is good advice but for the fact that if I need to find 
a alternate Internet service so will 10,000 other users in this area :-)

Karl


-- 

	Karl F. Larsen, AKA K5DI
	Linux User
	#450462   http://counter.li.org.
   PGP 4208 4D6E 595F 22B9 FF1C  ECB6 4A3C 2C54 FE23 53A7