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  • #1

    I'm thinking of switching ISPs...

    Mods, if this is in the wrong place, or inappropriate, I apologize...delete if necessary.

    Anyway, I currently have DeathStar (or Striped Blue Globe, or whatever you want to call them) as my Internet provider, and I have VERY low end DSL. I've been thinking of upgrading.

    I checked DeathStar's website recently, and the fastest I can get in my area is 3Mbps. The problem is, we use the Internet a LOT at my house (YouTube, I work at home 1 day a week, wife plays a facebook game, son uses Khan Academy, I download LARGE files for development projects, like Visual Studio, Eclipse, Android Development Toolkit, OpenOffice, I'm taking online classes, etc). With the newer plans, DeathStar "caps" usage at 100GB per month, then charges for every 50MB over that (something like that).

    With what we do on the net, I could easily see us going above this 100GB "cap" quite frequently.

    There's another company that services my area, well call them PlanetConnection. They offer the SAME 3 Mbps, but they don't have a cap.

    My wife is reluctant to go with PlanetConnection, as she says, "Does anyone even use them anymore??"

    I don't want Satellite Internet, and we don't have a lot of cable options out here, either. We can't get "Red Checkmark" either where I live.

    Anyone got any advice? Have any of you in the U.S. used PlanetConnection, and what did/do you think of them?

    I'm gonna have this connection on between 4 and 5 computers...

    Thoughts?
    Skilled programmers aren't cheap. Cheap programmers aren't skilled.
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  • #2
    Be cautious about switching to small, local providers. Consider this a cautionary tale (and apologies for the threadjack).

    For years, we had internet service through a locally owned provider (wireless internet, there are no cables or fibers out here currently). The service was great, the employees were friendly, and the tech staff was prompt with getting back with you and getting it sorted when a problem was encountered. Then they were bought out by some outfit out of state (let's call them Finger) that was in the process of buying up all the small local providers that would sell out to them across several states. Service immediately went all to hell, and their tech support office was open 9-5 M-F. So if you encountered issues at night or on weekends, well, enjoy waiting for them to eventually get back to you.

    Service outages became a daily thing, and slow internet and then suddenly, no internet at all. So we called. And waited on hold. For HOURS (no exaggeration, I timed it). Oh, well, see they're doing equipment upgrades in the area, right? We'll have to replace your receiver. How's next Tuesday sound for the tech to come out? Sounds pretty shitty, frankly, that'll leave us with no internet for over a week.

    After a few rounds with Finger, we switched to the OTHER local provider, a smaller company that hadn't had as many customers as our previous one. Turns out that people were switching over to them in DROVES from the ISP that bought out our previous provider. All is well, our service is stable (a bit surprising since their customer base essentially tripled or more in about a month).

    THEN... Finger buys out the provider we'd switched to to get away from them. Which makes this ISP the ONLY internet provider out at the end of town where we live. And right back to sucky service, regular outages (usually at least once a day), and then they thought up a new one. A new 'service', where you pay them $10 a month for 'PC Protection'. So if you have any issues with your computer, they'll send a tech out to fix it for you (as long as you're willing to wait a week or more for someone to come out and don't mind that it's probably some local with next to no actual computer skills)! Except they enrolled all of their customers in this new service without, ya know, actually ASKING if the customers wanted the service. They set it up so you actually have to contact them and opt OUT of the 'service'. It's a damn good thing that boyfriend actually LOOKS at the monthly bills and noticed that additional charge snuck in there (I did file a formal complaint with the BBB for that one).

    So, ya. Be careful with hopping between internet providers. Sometimes you wind up stuck with worse than you started with. Also, wireless internet might be a viable option for you if there's a provider in the area that does it. Just... stay away from Finger.
    You're only delaying the inevitable, you run at your own expense. The repo man gets paid to chase you. ~Argabarga

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    • #3
      Quoth Kittish View Post
      Just... stay away from Finger.
      I'm not even sure I know who "Finger" is. I looked up PlanetConnect, and their customer base for consumers is around 1 million.

      They've actually been around for a while.

      I might have to talk to my wife about this more. 3Mbps would be drastically faster than what I have now...
      Skilled programmers aren't cheap. Cheap programmers aren't skilled.

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      • #4
        See if there are other options available in your area. It depends on where you live and how comparatively rural it is. If you're within 20 miles or so (I think) of a major city, your options should expand.

        Also, keep in mind that satellite-based internet, unless I'm mistaken, is dialup-speed when it comes to uploads. This could be a major issue with online gaming.
        "For a musician, the SNES sound engine is like using Crayola Crayons. Nobuo Uematsu used Crayola Crayons to paint the Sistine Chapel." - Jeremy Jahns (re: "Dancing Mad")
        "The difference between an amateur and a master is that the master has failed way more times." - JoCat
        "Thinking is difficult, therefore let the herd pronounce judgment!" ~ Carl Jung
        "There's burning bridges, and then there's the lake just to fill it with gasoline." - Wiccy, reddit
        "Retail is a cruel master, and could very well be the most educational time of many people's lives, in its own twisted way." - me
        "Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down...tell you she's hurtin' 'fore she keens...makes her a home." - Capt. Malcolm Reynolds, "Serenity" (2005)
        Acts of Gord – Read it, Learn it, Love it!
        "Our psychic powers only work if the customer has a mind to read." - me

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        • #5
          I live in a somewhat rural area, about 35 miles outside of a major city. Our only real DSL/Landline option is DeathStar. As far as "cable" goes, There's a Company, but we don't want to go that route. I know this because before we moved I checked into Red Checkmark, and they don't service our area with Internet/Land Line.

          I'm not a fan of Satellite-based Internet. I have Satellite for TV, though. The problem I have with Satellite, is if it rains too hard your internet could go down. I've heard the speed is relatively fast, but that's my big issue with satellite Internet.

          PlanetConnect does, however, service our area. And while I'd like something faster than 3Mbps, that's a big improvement over what I'm getting now.
          Skilled programmers aren't cheap. Cheap programmers aren't skilled.

          Comment

          • #6
            Satellite is effectively DSL for download speeds (upload will suck serious donkey balls, as I mentioned before); it can be fast, but it depends on the their specific setup. And yes, anything that messes with sat tv signal will kill the internet too.
            "For a musician, the SNES sound engine is like using Crayola Crayons. Nobuo Uematsu used Crayola Crayons to paint the Sistine Chapel." - Jeremy Jahns (re: "Dancing Mad")
            "The difference between an amateur and a master is that the master has failed way more times." - JoCat
            "Thinking is difficult, therefore let the herd pronounce judgment!" ~ Carl Jung
            "There's burning bridges, and then there's the lake just to fill it with gasoline." - Wiccy, reddit
            "Retail is a cruel master, and could very well be the most educational time of many people's lives, in its own twisted way." - me
            "Love keeps her in the air when she oughta fall down...tell you she's hurtin' 'fore she keens...makes her a home." - Capt. Malcolm Reynolds, "Serenity" (2005)
            Acts of Gord – Read it, Learn it, Love it!
            "Our psychic powers only work if the customer has a mind to read." - me

            Comment

            • #7
              See if they offer pair bonding. It just multiplexes two DSL lines. We just got this done and I've gone from 7mbit to 20. I'm seriously considering getting a second pair if I can justify another $60 a month.
              But the paint on me is beginning to dry
              And it's not what I wanted to be
              The weight on me
              Is Hanging on to a weary angel - Sister Hazel

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