Re: [SLUG] RE: Verison DSL

From: Robert Eanes (rheanes3@yahoo.com)
Date: Thu Feb 27 2003 - 20:02:21 EST


I was intrigued by your description of DSL vs Cable.
And I am writing here to say two things: firstly,
steve, you are correct about the speed issue for
Cable. According to an article on CNET (link posted
below) cable does have potentially faster speeds.
Secondly, the stated speeds for ADSL(via verizon) are
erroneous. the cheapest solution from DSL has a
stated speed of 768 bits per second down and 128 bits
per second up. I routinely monitor my connections,
and can verify those speeds are accurate. For some
bursted short downloads I get far in excess of this
speed.

To be fair though... verizon DSL seems to have a poor
record with technical support, and customer service.
To each his own, I've never needed them, so I can't
say for sure.

I did run RoadRunner for a while. I can't say much
about the speed. I was running a p1 laptop and an old
mac 6400 on a dsl router at the time, and that setup
really wouldn't put a load on either system as a
client. I did notice however that everyday at around
5:00pm the system would slow to a crawl.. better than
dailup, but still not what I paid for. That's mainly
why I changed to DSL when we bought our house.

Through what little research I have done, I come to
these conclusions: Cable is probably the wiser choice
for a home user that is not going to try and run any
servers. They have better customer support, the price
is right, and setup is a breeze compared to DSL. On
the other hand, if you wish to have a static IP and
run servers then Verizons business dsl at 69.99 is the
way to go. Generally speaking, business users will
have some knowledge above what an end-user would, so
would be able to ask the right questions and get the
service they paid for( frankly, I put many linux users
in this category). Also, DSL offers a more stable
connection (not speaking to downtime here, but more in
to the peaks and valleys of speed).

In the end, there is no substitute to doing your own
research. Opinions abound, as well as experiences.
Just to make things clear.. I am not trying to
instigate a flame war here... I am interested in an
honest technical discussion as to which technology is
better, though... who knows I might switch over and
give roadrunner another try :)

(http://srd.yahoo.com/S=2766679:WS1/R=1/K=dsl+vs+cable/H=0/T=1046391952/F=2278263e98992d748e333ae4b4deec2c/*http://www.cnet.com/internet/0-3762-7-2643119.html)

--- steve <steve@itcom.net> wrote:
> On Thursday 27 February 2003 06:37, Maureen L.
> Thomas wrote:
> > I was called by Verizon and offered DSL for 29.99
> a month. Free
> > modem and cable. All I have to do is supply the
> ethernet card.
> > How easy is it to hook up for someone like myself
> who is still a
> > relative newbie
>
>
>
> In the early years of cable it was grossly oversold.
> They simply did
> not know what they were doing. These days they know
> DSL is theirs
> to take and so seldom oversell cable.
>
> For $40 you have a minimum of 768K down and 384 up.
> Compare that with 384k down on DSL for the same
> price.
> Today I know of no one who does not have a good
> connection. Plus
> many end up with about 2Mb down connections.
> When I got my cable they supplied the network card
> (3Com no less)
> but that may have changed.
>
> > How hard is it to secure - I use Bastille for a
> firewall but
> > don't have any of the other stuff I read about on
> the SLUG list.
> > Can I turn my machine off on the two days that I
> work, and if I
> > can will I have to reset anything to get it to
> work. I'm using
> > Mandrake 9.0 on an AMD 850 Duron.
>
> Securing is another issue. It's not just a matter of
> installing a
> firewall as many amateurs think. However it is the
> first step in
> securing your LAN. (I think I saw someone explaining
> how to do that
> on this thread.) It should be a dedicated box, not
> just your own
> computer as any failing app you use could become the
> entrance to
> your network. But by using a dedicated machine you
> can keep the
> number of potential holes down. Then each machine
> needs to be
> reviewed. Applications you use play a huge role.
> F.ex. using chat
> and things like ICQ etc, leaves you very vulnerable
> as they are
> easy to hack, and then install malicious code on
> your machine.
>
> It's not a friendly world online.
>
> Offer no services to the outside, be very aware of
> what is going on
> as few software developers have a clue about
> security.
>
> Also realize that you can never FULLY secure ANY
> computer network.
> But you can make it too hard to be worth it and if
> you pay very
> close attention to your logs you can potentially
> catch most or even
> all attempts.
>
> Now, that's a pretty good scare!
>
> It is entirely possible that you will never ever be
> attacked. You
> have to weight in the pro's and con's of how much
> effort you put
> into security.
>
> Hackers f.ex prefer to leave their tools on other
> peoples computers,
> so as to leave evidence elsewhere. Once they have
> hacked someone
> they often don't do anything to that machine so they
> can have their
> tools safely there. Plus when they attack someone
> they always use
> several other peoples identities, as in a chain of
> identities, to
> do their dirty work. Your computer could be the one
> used to break
> in someplace. Or the one the FEDS decide is involved
> for whatever
> reason.
>
> So it's not a matter of not having anything valuable
> on your
> computer. You always have something valuable.
> Someone elses
> identity.
>
> I'm telling you so that you can at least make
> somewhat educated
> decision of what you are up against.
>
> The majority of people get's away with very poor
> security for long
> time. Unfortunately you having a permanent
> connection is really
> valuable to a hacker as he can then always get to
> your box.
>
> Ultimately, you are effect to the degree you don't
> know. Install a
> firewall, don't offer any services to the outside,
> read up on the
> subject. Use and understand ZoneAlarm (on Windows
> machines) it's
> free too.
>
> Install something called Tripwire which will alert
> you if any of
> your program and configuration files are changed.
> There are
> software that will help you monitor the log files
> and alert you to
> those entries that look bad (LOGDIGEST) thus saving
> you time when
> it comes to monitoring log files.
>
> Finally always minimally backup any documents and
> files that you
> create.
>
> The good part is that is you are here you are using
> windows less.
> Which unfortunately cannot be secured, even the Dept
> of Defense
> have realized it. Microsofts approach to security is
> through the
> use of Public Relations, not programming. They
> prefer not to let
> anyone know about any bug. Under OpenSource (like
> Linux) you at
> least get the truth.
>
> Now don't let my tirade stop you from using
> computers or the
> Internet, it can be done quite safely and by being
> prepared
> (backups and improved education) you can recover
> nicely if need be.
>
> > Is Verizon DSL any good. I had there dial up
> until they had so
> > many people on one line that it became unusable.
> Any if all the
> > answers are good what ethernet card would you
> recommend ?
> >
> > TIA for you wisdom, Maureen
>
> Verizon does not do their DSL, it's outsorced to a
> company in Texas,
> that is highly incompetent. Actually according to my
> inside
> contacts, they have been trying to get out of using
> them for some
> time now. It apparently is only doable at the end of
> the year as
> that is when the contract is renewed.
>
> I use Time Warner and love them. At the office I
> have 5Mb bursts and
> it is my main connection there for about 40 people.
> I use a DSL
> line as a backup.
>
> The best manufacturer is 3Com bar none in my
> professional opinion.
> Lifetime warranty and really good performance when
> the going gets
> tough. They have ruled for decades by making really
> good cards and
> great service.
>
> --
>
> Steve
>
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>
>
=== message truncated ===

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