08-13-1999 – California dreamin’, my cable modem sucks!


I decided to try the news server last night. I used a utility called DU Meter to track my download speed. This was between 7pm and 9pm so pretty much peak hours. My connection spiked at 164k/sec (very briefly) and over all averaged 24k/sec. Not bad considering Madison only has 3 T1’s and it was at peak time. Thinking that maybe my connection was fast, I decided to try and download something off MP3.COM again. I didn’t let it go very long as it was only getting up to about 1.24k/sec. Unfortunately by this time the 1-hour trial on DU Meter expired so I wasn’t able to see what my transfers maxed out at.

Maybe I was a bit rash earlier. 24k/sec is about average from what some of my friends have told me for this area. Maybe It is a router that connects my node to the rest of the world. You’d think that if it were, the NOC in California would have detected that. Or better yet, the sys admin in Madison would have detected that.

The cable regulatory coordinator sent me another e-mail, basically telling me that more bandwidth was going to be installed. I don’t know if I’ve covered this yet, but I really don’t think that’s going to solve my problem. If I have covered this before, I’ll edit it out later, otherwise it’ll make a good side note about how this whole incident is blending into one long drawn out incoherent thought. If it were a bandwidth issue, then I would be getting the same transfers as everyone else in Madison. Unfortunately, from what I know, my area is one of the worst in the city of Madison for transfer speeds. That indicates that there is a problem with my gird, node, router or server. From what I also know, none of those have been replaced.

At this point I’m up against a wall. The only thing I can think of is having Bresnan come back out and possibly wire me a new cable jack in the room where the computer is. At this point there is only one jack in the house and that goes to the living room. My computer is in a bedroom with about 100 feet of coax running to it. Don’t worry, I’ve tried putting the computer right next to the cable jack, but to no avail. I don’t think that a new jack would help, but at least there would then be one in the computer room.

Hopefully I can control myself today and not call in. There really isn’t anything left to day or do on m y part. I want to try and wait until Monday when it will have been two weeks with very poor service (and that David Snodgrass fella will be in the office).

Melanie called me mid morning to give me what little update she could. She had left a message on my voice mail as I was away from my desk when she called. Basically she said that she had told Matt to get in touch with California (as this is a really high priority) and find out what’s going on and that she was going to speak with her boss (David) first thing Monday morning regarding this issue. She did say she would give me a call Monday morning to let me know what she could find out. I guess that cinches it, I won’t be needing to call until Monday.

I got a reply to my e-mail to @home. It was a form letter detailing how @home would be adding more T1’s to this area. I replied saying that I wanted a real person to send me an e-mail and give me a real response. A tech support person must have intercepted that because he e-mailed me back saying that the form letter was the best information they had. What a load of crap. I highly doubt anyone read the e-mail I sent detailing the terrible technical support I’ve received. The run around I’ve gotten and the fact that my problem isn’t bandwidth related. So now I’m wondering if the e-mail I got from the tech support guy was a form letter as well. I’m debating whether or not to send e-mail from a yahoo account saying, "my mom is a sheep" just to see if I get that same form letter. I did end up giving the URL to my site to the tech support guy who e-mailed me back, and I am hoping that may cause a stir at the technical center.


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