Re: Modem problems / Crappy modems

Leonard (pmfan@infinetgroup.com)
Sat, 23 Aug 1997 17:08:18 -0700 (PDT)

On Sat, 23 Aug 1997, Wes Funderberg wrote:
> > I just have to throw my two cents in here.
> And let me add another penny to the pot. (snip)
While everyone is feeling generous, lemme throw a penny too :)
We've had a pretty good chance to demo several competitor's access
servers, but invariably, there's always a set of modems a particular NAS
won't handle. Some of these sets overlap, and some sets are larger than
others. The only thing us ISPs can do is to make a decision - which set
can we live with?

To complicate matters, a particular NAS may work particularly well with a
certain type of telco switch, but not others.The transmission of data
to/from an ISP and the client goes through many different types of
equipment. Any one of these equipment may throw a wrench (or maybe just a
bolt) in the works, which results in lost connections, equipment failure,
etc. As far as I can see, the only way to get perfect or near perfect
connections is to have 1 major manufacturer make everything - the
dialup servers, the telco's switches, the user's modems, the copper
cables, the optic fibres, the wall sockets, the RJ48 plugs, .... And even
then murphy's law on size will kick in. Now I'd say that's chasing the
proverbial golden goose.

>.... but you have to
>remember that most customers are blind to the fact that they dot know
>what's good or not until the obvious happens. So who is really to blame?
That's true. But not entirely devoid of intelligence. For us, we can
usually explain it such that they understand. Most are even willing to
exchange/buy a better modem.