# Cable Modem.



## arnisador (Jan 24, 2003)

I have to switch ISPs and am considering RoadRunner. (We have very few options in my small town.) I used to hear bad things about cable modem--does anyone have any current experience with it?


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## Michael Billings (Jan 24, 2003)

I am located in Austin, Texas and have been on it a couple of years.  It is far superior to any dial up or DSL I have used in the past.  If you can't afford your own T-1 line, it is the next best option, especially if you upload or download a lot from the web.  

I use ZoneAlarm Pro as a firewall between the "always connected" and my box.  I used the free version for a year and it worked fine, but I also keep my virus definitions up to date daily ... just in case.  But I have had only one down time in a couple of years, and they credited my account.  I had a dial up for emergencies, but have since let that go.  Note: I live in a sorta interesting area of town, downtown Austin, so services are extremely good, where I hear some suburbs have more network issues with the "shared" servers or bandwidth.

Over all it gets 4 stars.

-Michael 
 AKTS


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## Bob Hubbard (Jan 24, 2003)

http://www.broadbandreports.com/

type in your zipcode and get reports on all options in your area, pro and con reviews.


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## RyuShiKan (Jan 25, 2003)

> _Originally posted by arnisador _
> *I have to switch ISPs and am considering RoadRunner. (We have very few options in my small town.) I used to hear bad things about cable modem--does anyone have any current experience with it? *




I had Cable from Road Runner Kansas City and it sucked big time.
The techs were always blaming my location for bad or no connectivity which seemed like BS since I was only about 2 miles from their main cable center and was of the first people on that Node. 
It didn't work well for the whole 3 months I used and it........in fact they said I didn't have to pay for it because there was so much trouble with it. 


I now have ADSL here in Japan and it runs like lighting, in fact the only thing faster here is T3.


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## Rich Parsons (Jan 25, 2003)

Arnisador,

I Have had Comcast for a few years now.

The issue here is perception.

On Dial up you conenct say around 28.8.

DSL runs 128 thru 512 and the speed you get is always constant.
So if your speed is 512 then it should always be near 512.

As for Cable, I range from 512 on peak times to 2,000+
So if you get used to 2000+ at certain times and locations then go on at a peak time and get 512 then it will seem slow. All a perception.


Now the issue I have found from talking to my friends in the cable industry is to get the Cat5 with network card Cable modem and avoid the USB modems. The installer have the greatest rpoblems with, they replace more of them and the speeds are never as fast as the Cat5 network cable modems.

I have had an RCA for over 16 monthes with no problems.

As for the firewall I have used the Zone Alarm Pro which is free and a good installer will download it for you or tell you where to get it.

Good Luck


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## Cthulhu (Jan 25, 2003)

I use RoadRunner in their Central Florida market.  The first 3 weeks or so were utter hell...I was getting 14.4kbps access speeds.  Horrible.  After many many phone calls, I got them to trace the lines backwards, where they found multiple line condition problems, which they repaired.  Smooth sailing ever since.  

Moved to a new home in the same city.  Only problem I've had in the new location is that the cable lines run underground and the A/C repair people nicked them.  Got that fixed and all was well.

In general, negatives about cable service:

1) Bandwidth is shared across your 'neighborhood node/network'.  More people in your area with RR connected or in use, the slower your speed can be.  If you're in a very rural area, shouldn't be an issue.

2) Unlike xDSL, bandwidth is not constant.  Lots of variation in latency.  Not really noticeable for casual Internet users, but can be a PITA for Internet gamers.

Positives:

1) Almost always cheaper than xDSL, and usually offers faster download and upload speeds.

2) Installation fee is usually negligible compared to xDSL, or even wiaved altogether.

3) If you're a customer of the local cable company supporting the lines (in my case, Time Warner), then you can get a slightly reduced rate (around $10 off the montly price).

The best bet is to get it and try it for a month or so to get time to work out any bugs if present.  I don't think any of us live in your area, and RoadRunner's service is highly dependent upon the hosting cable company.

Cthulhu


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## bdparsons (Jan 25, 2003)

I've had Roadrunner for about a year and a half in the Triangle area of North Carolina.  No problems to speak of.  My response and download times have always been great.  No experience with DSL, so I can't speak to that.  Do get a good firewall program, it'll be worth its weight in gold. Another nice thing is the Roadrunner email service allows 10mb messages, great for swapping photos and what-not with family and friends.

Bill Parsons


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## Elfan (Jan 25, 2003)

I have AT&T cable modem service.  As its the only broadband short of a T1 line available here I have little to compare it to.  I had serious issues setting it up that took lots of calls to stupid tech suport people to fix.  AT&T set up an unusual number of users per node (I think almost twice Comcast) and I live in a suburban area with lots of peopel using it so as broadband goes its not that fast, but obviously still far better than dialup.


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## RyuShiKan (Jan 25, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Rich Parsons _
> * DSL runs 128 thru 512 and the speed you get is always constant.
> So if your speed is 512 then it should always be near 512.
> 
> ...



ADSL here in Japan is up 1,800 to 2,000 depending on where you live.
The through put is supposed to be fairly constant but after checking mine several times I have found it isnt, but it still hauls *** at about 1,500 to 2,000.


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## RyuShiKan (Jan 25, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Cthulhu _
> * Positives:
> 
> 1) Almost always cheaper than xDSL, and usually offers faster download and upload speeds.
> ...



This is one area Japan is waaaaaay behind the U.S., Cable TV is almost nonexistent here.
Which explains why TV sucks in Japan.
Because there is almost no Cable,  ADSL and Fiber optic are more common.


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## JDenz (Jan 25, 2003)

I have cable modem and I love it.


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## Cthulhu (Jan 26, 2003)

> _Originally posted by RyuShiKan _
> *This is one area Japan is waaaaaay behind the U.S., Cable TV is almost nonexistent here.
> Which explains why TV sucks in Japan.
> Because there is almost no Cable,  ADSL and Fiber optic are more common. *



I haven't been in Japan since '86, so my memory is a bit shady on the cable TV service, particularly since I lived on Yokota AB.  We had the regular TV channels from the area and a few channels specific to the base (Far East Network, DoD TV channel).

I have no clue on Internet access in Japan, broadband or otherwise.  From what you've posted, it seems their xDSL speeds aren't capped as low as the U.S. providers.  What is your monthly charge (in nearest USD) and what's your upstream rate?

Cthulhu


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## Michael Billings (Jan 26, 2003)

I ran Kaith's bandwidth test and used the LA location.  Once again, I am sure my location is why my speed is so good, 

1704 kbps Down   (Which is faster than my shared T-1 at work)

360 kbps   Up   (Road Runner has it throtled back here in Austin) 

I have heard it is bad in the Burbs, now I know it is true from what I am reading here.  I had such troubled getting DSL plus in here I got fed up with Sprint, and I ended up on cable by default, now I am glad I did.  Hmmmm, maybe Time-Warner should pay me for the advertising.  I am the one happy customer.

-Michael
 AKTS


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## Rich Parsons (Jan 26, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Michael Billings _
> *I ran Kaith's bandwidth test and used the LA location.  Once again, I am sure my location is why my speed is so good,
> 
> 1704 kbps Down   (Which is faster than my shared T-1 at work)
> ...




Ok, I am lost again, where do you get the bandwith test link?

Thanks


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## Michael Billings (Jan 26, 2003)

Kaith posted it above:

Bandwidth Test 

From there, click on "Our Tools" then go to "Speed Test" in middle of page.  and follow the directions.

Or go to http://www.broadbandreports.com/stest?loc=2 and halfway down page, when applet loads, press "Start Test".  

Hope this helps and that it is readable.
-Michael


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## Rich Parsons (Jan 26, 2003)

Thanks

THat site is sooo busy I had a hard time trying to find where to go  

I am so glad you gave me detailed directions. :rofl: 

I got 1.36 M Download and only 95K upload. I know my ISP throttles uploads.


Thanks Again


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## RyuShiKan (Jan 26, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Cthulhu _
> *  I haven't been in Japan since '86, so my memory is a bit shady on the cable TV service, particularly since I lived on Yokota AB.  We had the regular TV channels from the area and a few channels specific to the base (Far East Network, DoD TV channel). *



I was on Iwakuni for a while and the TV was great compared to what you get off base. We are still getting re-runs of Little House on the Prairie.  
All the Military/SOFA sponsored instillations have cable or the special decoder for satellite DoD TV. Those of us living on the economy (non-SOFA) don't get any of it.




> _Originally posted by Cthulhu _
> *  I have no clue on Internet access in Japan, broadband or otherwise.  From what you've posted, it seems their xDSL speeds aren't capped as low as the U.S. providers.  What is your monthly charge (in nearest USD) and what's your upstream rate?
> Cthulhu *



The speeds do seem a bit higher and it may be due to competition with fiber optic companies. They were going to lay millions of miles of cable but then fiber optics came out and they shelved the cable figuring they would just have to go back in a few years and do the whole thing over again with fiber optic.
I think my monthly bill comes to about US $15.


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## arnisador (Jan 26, 2003)

Thanks for the advice everyone. I think I'll try it and see. The variability does worry me a bit but my options are few.


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## arnisador (Apr 5, 2003)

The RoadRunner cable modem actually is faster and more reliable than the EarthLink DSL was for me.


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## Cthulhu (Apr 5, 2003)

Usually, for the same service price point, cable has a higher top end for download speed than xDSL.  However, as I believe has been previously mentioned, it isn't a constant thing, being dependent upon how many people in your area are using the service.  On the other side of the coin, while xDSL download speeds are usually slower for the same price point, they tend to be consistant.

Cthulhu


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## arnisador (Apr 5, 2003)

I've seen all of what you say--but to my pleasant surprise, and possibly because I rarely upload things, the variations have been small and the speed for cable has remained noticeably better for me. The price is something like $5/month less for cable as well.


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## JDenz (Apr 7, 2003)

It is a little cheaper here as well as long as you have cable.


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## Bob Hubbard (Apr 7, 2003)

I switched to cable about 3 weeks ago....

so far, the download speeds are incredible... 3.1MBit. GO ME! 

The upload speeds however..well....they suck.... I think they average out around 56k.... definately crap.


The DSL was a consistant 270+KB both ways....when it worked.


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## Michael Billings (Apr 8, 2003)

... are usually throttled down.  That is the only way they offer the business customers anything significantly different from the home subscriber.  My download rocks, 3.2 megabits per second - better than my T-1 at work, consistantly.  

Per http://bandwidthplace.com
The upload seldom gets above:
Communications - 252.4 kilobits per second;
Storage - 30.8 kilobytes per second;
and a 1MB file upload takes 33.2 seconds.

Geez I am glad I got cable.  I hated DSL.

-Michael


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## JDenz (Apr 17, 2003)

Ya I have also have a few problems with the up load speed being drastic low at times.  I never had a constant anything with the DSL it was all over the place for us when we had it.


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