castledoom.com

[skeeber]

I'll be stepping into new personal territory here in the next 2 weeks as Cox Communications, my current broadband and digital cable provider, are going to swap out my Motorola 5120 cable modem for a cable/voIP internet and telephone modem (as of this moment I don't know the manufacturer). Through the research I've done over the last 24 hours or so, it looks like the national average for this kind of service for uptime is around 92%. Unfortunately, it looks like a lot of the areas that have had this service the longest weren't included in the survey (case in point my home town of Omaha, NE). As I learn more I'll post more, but I'd also be interested in hearing of anything that you all know about this type of service.

Knowledge is power after all! :!:

[JuntaJoe]

Only one thing to be sure of before you switch.

Triple check with them that you have full and complete 911 service.

For a while there, it was actually uncommon to have 911 service until a few people had emergencies and the companies had a PR nightmare. But even after that, they didn't fully implement the program and it was like cell phone 911. You could connect, but there was no locator function.

911 can save your life and there is simply no reason to save a few dollars and risking your life by dumping your conventional phone service if the VoiP doesn't work properly in an emergency.

[skeeber]

That's an excellent point that I had actually overlooked. I think a few phone calls are in order to insure this problem won't be one that I experience. Less than a month ago, I needed 911 as I was alone when I needed to make my trip to the emergency room.

The only good thing is that I'm not dumping existing service so if this is a problem here, it's easily rectified by calling SBC and cancelling my Cox order for phone.

Thanks for the reminder Joe!

[JuntaJoe]

Yeah, make Cox give you the full sales pitch and compare services side-by-side. Make SBC do the same.

Of course, you could instead dump Cox completely and look into the $15 one year price for DSL they are offering. That's dirt cheap if you ask me.

SBC has decided to go into full war mode with the cable companies to knock them off their turf and even encroach on the tv portion of the cable turf. This kind of price war can only benefit you, the consumer, and you should take advantage of it.

The great thing about the $15 DSL is that it isn't a "leader" that eventually turns into full price, like the cable companies do. You get the same rate for the entire contract. And it's quite probable that if successful that SBC will offer it up again next year. The other baby Bells are watching the success rate of this venture to see if they should give it a try. This may signal a new benchmark for high speed internet pricing.

Do your homework, bubba. :wink:

[skeeber]

Oh believe me I did. Having worked for one of the Baby Bells and for Cox themselves (both in Omaha) I learned early that the best deals could be had by playing both companies. I called both twice before deciding on the gear for my new apartment.

Here are my basic reasons behind it. First my phone service is only 4.95 a month for the first year including caller ID, call waiting, call waiting ID etc etc. giving me digital cable, phone, and internet on one bill for under 100 a month before taxes. Second, having had service with Cox before, I didn't need any deposits, as my credit is good with them, but not so stellar in other places.

Also, I own 3 additional cable modems that work on Cox's network, so if this Moto 5120 jacks up, I'm covered immediately. Not to mention I know their network pretty well.

Besides, I like having new toys to play with and this modem/voIP unit intrigues me! :wink:

[JuntaJoe]

Did you know SBC also offers the phone/tv/highspeed internet combo for under a hundred as well?

And the price is good for the entire contract.

[skeeber]

Can't get the TV in Tulsa, they stopped working with Dish Network here for some reason I was told :x

[JuntaJoe]

Then just keep watching for it to happen at some point. SBC is out for blood and will find a way sooner or later.

We've had Time Warner here for ages and they totally chap my ass. They have relied on the "take what we offer and you had better like it" mentality for far too long. Service is attrocious here.

That SBC is taking them to the woodshed just fills my heart with glee.

Time Warner had better wake up and clean up their act as this baby Bell has some serious teeth.

[skeeber]

That's good to hear as Cox seems to be quickly gaining here, although there are a lot of minidishes in town for independent service right now. I'll definately keep my ears peeled for any further developments as I'm not locked into any kind of contract or other bull by Cox.

[skeeber]

Well the telephone is up and working, with no adverse effects to my internet. The modem is an Arris Touchstone Telephony modem, and although about triple the size of my Motorola 5120, it's not all that inconvenient. The modem hooks up to my cable line and then to both my computer and a double phone jack. For the phone to work it has to stay into that jack.

I do have full 911 service, caller ID, call waiting ID, etc etc and the sound quality on my GE cordless 2.4 mhz is crystal clear.

So far so good I'm thinking!

[JuntaJoe]

Sounds good.

But do you have the GE 2.4 like I have?

Only GE makes these. They have a normal phone base with wired handset and message machine. Then it has another wireless base with wireless handset. That two handsets on one phone. One of each. The wired handset comes in handy when the power goes out or the wireless is on low battery. I always have access to a working phone.


Btw, don't forget to ask if your 911 has the locator function. Without it, 911 is barely useful.

[skeeber]

I looked at that model but opted for the single handset and base combo with the digital answering machine as finances are still tight. So this one was only $30 at Wal-Mart.

We do have locator service with our 911, which is why I went ahead with the order. Hopefully we'll never need it.

We also have a simple corded phone that is jacked in Terra and I's bedroom.

The only drawback is that as the modem requires electricity, if the power goes, so goes the phone...

[JuntaJoe]

Mine only cost me $50.

Which is less than retail. Where? The VA hospital commissary.

If you are a vet then you need to visit the hospital stores. Great buys on food, clothes, kitchen supplies and electronics.

[skeeber]

that's not a bad idea, thanks!

I've been reading on my Arris modem and find that it can carry two phone lines. It is a bit bigger though then my Moto 5120, being about 3 times the size.

I'm also getting better results when I run speed tests on my connection.

I'm not totally convinced that this is 'all it's cracked up to be' but, I'm impressed so far, and am keeping my fingers crossed!

[JuntaJoe]

FCC Delays Cutoff of Internet Phone Users

August 26, 2005 8:56 PM EDT

WASHINGTON - A deadline has been extended that could have left tens of thousands of people without their Internet phone service next week.

The Federal Communications Commission said Friday it would delay a Monday deadline for providers of Internet-based phone calls to obtain acknowledgments that their customers understand the problems they may encounter when dialing 911 in an emergency.

Providers of the phone service, known as Voice over Internet Protocol or "VoIP," had been told by the FCC that they should disconnect service by Tuesday to people who had not responded.

The agency extended the deadline to Sept. 28. If by that time a provider still has not received confirmation, then the company should disconnect a customer's phone service, according to the FCC order.

The agency gave companies the option of turning off regular Internet phone service to a client but still allowing emergency calls to 911 to be made. As part of this so-called "soft" disconnect, a provider could also allow customers to place non-911 calls that would automatically be sent to the company's customer service center.

The VON Coalition, a group of VoIP providers, was pleased with the extension but still worried about having to cut a client's service next month.

"You've got to think there's some portion of the population that's not going to return these things," said Glenn Richards, legal counsel for the coalition. "I just question whether the best result is to turn those people off."

The deadline extension followed complaints from the coalition, which includes AT&T and MCI, that customers would be left stranded in an emergency. Rep. Bart Gordon, D-Tenn., Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and other lawmakers also wrote FCC Chairman Kevin Martin to express their concerns.

Anywhere from 75,000 to 100,000 people could have been left with no service, according to industry estimates. There are about 1.7 million VoIP subscribers nationwide.

The FCC issued its initial order in May after tearful testimony from a Florida mother who told the commissioners about how she was unable to summon help to save her dying infant daughter.

The commission ordered the companies to provide full emergency 911 capabilities by Nov. 28. The acknowledgments were a first step in that process.

Unlike traditional telephones, where phone numbers are associated with a specific location, VoIP users can place a call from virtually anywhere they have access to a high-speed Internet connection. That can make it difficult to connect VoIP accounts to the computer systems that automatically route 911 calls to the nearest emergency dispatcher and transmit the caller's location and phone number to the operator who answers the call.

Power outages can also be a problem, leaving users unable to dial 911 because the high-speed Internet modems, phone adapters and computers needed for VoIP rely on electrical outlets.

Vonage Holdings Corp., the biggest VoIP carrier, with more than 800,000 subscribers, said Friday that 97 percent of its customer base had responded to the company's notices about 911 risks. That leaves 23,000 subscribers the company is still trying to reach via e-mail, phone and mail.

---

On the Net:

Federal Communications Commission: http://www.fcc.gov
Copyright 2005 Associated Press.

[skeeber]

Gee, for once the government seemed to do something that made sense....

I have begun to notice with this phone service, a tendency for a back echo when I speak. It can't be heard on the other end, but it's darn annoying at this point. I may be calling SBC sooner than I thought, as our caller ID is sporadic also. Besides, any of you that know me well, know that I'm a much bigger fan of DSL than cable service.

I'll keep you all posted.....

[JuntaJoe]

At elite product show, voice over Internet both simple and complex


HUNTINGTON BEACH, California - We have more ways than ever of communicating, but trying to keep up with family and friends can be exasperating.

Our overlapping free time seems to shrink. We constantly play phone and voice mail tag. And e-mail, in its tone-deaf impersonality, barely helps.

One of the most unorthodox and intriguing among 32 new products launched onstage at this week's DEMOfall conference, a showcase of tech innovation, was a Web-based tool with a mission: to encourage emotional connection via audio messages.

Not two-way conversations, mind you. Just me telling you my news. Click, talk and send.

The product is called YackPack because the user creates groups, or packs, of people who can be audio-messaged individually or collectively. Each member of your pack gets an icon with his or her picture on it. An e-mail notification tells you when a Yack has arrived.

"It turns out that asynchronous audio is the secret sauce for what keeps relationships alive and fresh," said B.J. Fogg, the company founder and chief executive. Much of YackPack's recipe came from the year Fogg spent with a focus group of women over age 50.

Unlike Fogg, the typical tech startup CEO will bend your ear with metrics on market potential while spouting technobabble that would befuddle all but us geeks.

Such people abounded at DEMOfall, where other promising products pitched to an elite crowd of investors and press also sought to better manage relationships: by turning a cell phone into a conference-call manager, helping eBay users place bids wirelessly, protecting the privacy of online consumers.

Fogg, on the other hand, was more apt to be accused of psycho-babble. He is, after all, a Stanford psychologist in addition to being a computer scientist.

"We're helping people connect emotionally, and that leads to happiness," he said.

Santa Rosa, California-based YackPack goes live in mid-October and will be free while in beta, then cost well under $10 (euro8.25) per month, with a free ad-based version, Fogg says.

There's no software to download, and Fogg says YackPack even works with dial-up connections. All you need is to get a microphone working with your computer.

"Three-year-olds can do it. Grandmas can do it. People who can't read and write can do it," said Fogg.

He sees the product as benefiting circles well beyond families - cancer support groups, for example.

DEMO's semiannual shows have been springboards for such industry standouts as TiVo, the Palm Pilot and the Danger HipTop. After six years under the DEMOmobile moniker, this year's fall show got a name change in recognition of our ability to finally go online wirelessly with increasing ease.

DEMO show producer Chris Shipley says the legions of ultra-productive but also constantly reachable and thus often harried "always-on people" are driving today's tech market. Shipley calls it the dawning era of "ultrapersonal computing."

Software and services thus dominated DEMOfall, with a number of products appearing poised to humble industry giants, especially in telecommunications.

One was Mobile Call Manager from Menlo Park, California-based TalkPlus Inc., which uses Internet phone technology over the traditional cellular network. It makes cheap calls available on cell phones while adding such features as the ability to have multiple phone numbers ring on a single handset and on-the-fly conference calling with up to 10 participants.

That's something no wireless carrier now offers.

CEO Jeff Black claims he'll be able to offer low, low rates - 2 cents a minute for calls within the United States and Canada - and he's lining up multiple carriers internationally for a Jan. 1 launch. He wouldn't name the partners.

Jingle Networks Inc. of San Francisco sees directory assistance as another huge market - worth an estimated $8 billion (euro6.6 billion) a year in the United States - that's ripe for the plucking.

To bypass the traditional carriers, Jingle connects callers for free to the business, government office or residence of their choice. Jingle's success will depend on its ability to sign up local merchants. When I called the service to get my home phone number, the pitch I heard, after following the voice prompts, was for Jingle itself.

The cell phone is also the key for Camden, New Jersey-based Smarter Agent Inc. Its first service, expected next year, will deliver real estate listings to mobile handsets based on a user's location.

If you like a neighborhood but are nowhere near a computer, you'll be able to use a map on your cell phone screen to see what nearby houses are on the market, the asking price and other details. You'll even be able to search to see recent selling prices for comparable homes in the neighborhood. Smarter Agent, a registered Realtor, draws on the Multiple Listing Service used by agents across the nation on their Web sites.

Safeguarding privacy online has become an ever more serious concern with identity theft a mounting problem. That was reason enough for a company called UniPrivacy Inc. to build a business on protecting consumers proactively.

The company's newly launched DeleteNow product will, for $2.99 (euro2.47) per month, remove information about you from more than 100 online sources - search engines and databases including Google Inc. - and check those sites daily to make sure the information stays off.

---

On the Net:

http://www.demo.com/DEMOfall

http://www.yackpack.com

http://www.talkplus.com

http://www.free411.com

http://www.smarteragent.com

http://www.uniprivacy.com
Copyright 2005 Associated Press.

[skeeber]

Well, caller ID has simply failed at this point, the 'back echo' is becoming more consistant, and I want DSL anyway. Not to mention, SBC got DishNetwork back on track here.

Guess what I'm going to do? :P

I should have never trusted Cox, been there and done that. You suck in one town, why won't you suck in another....