[quote="Nil_Einne"]I original contacted Ihug about Wired Country mentioning my location on late Mon and received reply on Tues to fill out the online form. Did that and then Wed was told was outside coverage area... Asked them about it and this was the reply...
Quote:
For you to have wired country from the sky tower you need line of sight for the tower and be able to see the black belt around the tower to recieve the connection. At the moment they have decided to postpone wired country out west and have delayed it for another month. currently all testing groups are closed
I just spoke to Todd (Marketing Manager at Wired Country) about this story. The decision was "load of bollocks". Wired Country are not delaying service to all sectors. You say WC told you to delay. Was it them or a retailer? Todd wants 500 new customers on the Skytower a.s.a.p.
Just to clarify it was Ihug which said that it was delayed... It was a bit odd since at first Conrad H told me to fill out the form even though I did mention my location. Then when my application was rejected due to location and I asked again about 2 days later he said the service was delayed in west Auckland so I assume this decision is recent...?
I haven't contacted other ISPs/retailers (listed on the Wired Country page) since I don't really find their plans so good...
Assuming it's not a misunderstanding and Ihug has decided not to sell service in the West perhaps John Burns has some idea why and he could share it with us? Maybe it has to do with installers since I'm guessing the ISPs are the ones which contract them as the price seems to vary somewhat between ISPs. Or maybe they're going to do a general survey of the area to get an idea of what parts have LOS of Sky Tower and what parts don't so they don't waste to much on installation that can't be done...
Assuming it's not a misunderstanding and Ihug has decided not to sell service in the West perhaps John Burns has some idea why and he could share it with us? Maybe it has to do with installers since I'm guessing the ISPs are the ones which contract them as the price seems to vary somewhat between ISPs. Or maybe they're going to do a general survey of the area to get an idea of what parts have LOS of Sky Tower and what parts don't so they don't waste to much on installation that can't be done...
Nil_Einne> Take the media as gospel at the moment. The North and South sectors are operational, these are each 60 degrees wide.
As for the other 4 sectors, last thing I heard is that they are being installed and tested - I don't know when these will be fully operational and if I did know, I would rather wait 'till you hear it through a press release.
don't like the look of the ihug plans personally
Looks like a cheap nasty shot at a pricing plan
All Flat rates not unlimited.
When you get to the limit you just become a dialup dropout again..
Dont really know why the Kiwi mentality goes towards crafty Plans like traps just seemingly not really wanting to give others what they really want i.e unlimited broadband
While I'd obviously like unlimited, I find the Ihug plans are currently the best. I think their page is clear on how the terms of their plans and they aren't being crafty.
All others with data charges have lower limits for higher prices. And extra bandwidth is too expensive to be worthwhile. Those with unlimited currently only ICONZ/EzySurf are quite a lot more expensive and I'm a bit confused about whether they do traffic shaping etc on international bandwidth. Someone said they have bad international latency. Bear in mind international data is all that is important since all WC ISPs (Well not sure about Packing Shed) seem to have unlimited national although one disadvantage with Ihugs model is national will also be limited if you go over your limits
And the limits IMHO on Ihug plans are fairly reasonable. I would like slightly higher peak period data for the 1mbit plan but on the whole it's good for it's price. And the 2mbit plan with 20gb is about the same price as the ICONZ/EzySurf 1mbit planwhich will be enough for the very vast majority of users at the moment IMHO.
I suppose what I'm saying is yes I would like unlimited data but Ihug's plans are a step in the right direction and better then everything else out there including the 'unlimited' ICONZ/EzySurf ones.. It might be good if they allow you to purchase more data at decent prices like with TC cable tho. I think one of the key problems is currently data is so expensive and plans with decent data (e.g. JetStream Surf) are so slow (256kbit) Kiwis don't use much and therefore it stays expensive. With Ihugs plans IMHO, people wll start to use more and data prices will hopefully slowly start to come down.
Actually does anyone have more info on EzySurfs 1mbit unlimited package? Someone said that have bad international latency and do traffic shaping. Also, they say it operates under a shared international bandwidth model but I think this is just for their business customers since all residential packages have shared international bandwidth? Or to put it simply, anyone know if there is really anything different between Wave, Packing Shed, Ihug residential connections with data limits and ICONZ/EzySurf unlimited residential with regards to how they handle international traffic and what kind of speeds you can expect, especially at peak times?
Nil_Ennie i agree with your perspective really in that things will improve
it's just that along with the "restricted" plans with set traffic plans and a soul destroying return to dial up speed til you are allowed a bit more speed seem to me to be a recipie for great dissatisfaction. for the customer.
the reason i suggest that it is a cheap shot at a pricing plan is
a, that there is no unlimited account (although the public are interested)
b, it is the first of thier plans (and arguably then the best and the worst)
c, they wil i submit offer unlimited at a later date in order to maximise the initial return from tying customers into these initial plans.
d, the reason they do not offer the unlimited plan already is because they know it is highly desirable and although competant statistics have been collated on data tranfer averages overseas they choose to shelf/ignore/withhold plans until ideally they have at least transferred the financial risks they percieve in thier poor bussiness plans onto what i guess at this stage they consider to be a captive audience
, i have been watching the industry for 20 years now and this is my opinion
Oh.. and The essentially needless restriction of bandwidth is not a new thing as we know. Telecom will been considering allowing/facilitating greater use of it's copper cables sooner or later for years now while holding it back as long as possible i reckon . That is just the nature of the bussiness as it exists here (Saturn/telstra/Clear) want to be Telecoms biggest customers now and so now i have empty cable outside on the street. The industry is a mess and i hope that breaking free thru unlimited wireless may be salvation for some of us. It's only fair and about time. there is always a reason not to do something.
In Hamilton, and on the 1000kbps plan. My best ping to www.gameplanet.co.nz is 17ms - but usually averages 18ms.
Also, it is essential to modify the registry/windows settings in order to utilise the speed - I could not get above 92kB/s, but after changing a few settings I consistently get over 104kB/s with downloads.
In Hamilton, and on the 1000kbps plan. My best ping to www.gameplanet.co.nz is 17ms - but usually averages 18ms.
Also, it is essential to modify the registry/windows settings in order to utilise the speed - I could not get above 92kB/s, but after changing a few settings I consistently get over 104kB/s with downloads.
What are you changing? The MTU?
Could you tell me what you have changed it to?
In Hamilton, and on the 1000kbps plan. My best ping to www.gameplanet.co.nz is 17ms - but usually averages 18ms.
Also, it is essential to modify the registry/windows settings in order to utilise the speed - I could not get above 92kB/s, but after changing a few settings I consistently get over 104kB/s with downloads.
That's interesting, what's your ISP and what's your US ping times like (first hop when it reaches US)?
not that it would matter, as all NZers still have to go through the 'global-gateway.co.nz' which is where the bottle neck is.
You're right, it's impossible for your ping to the US to be better then a certain limit (which I can't be bothered working out) due to physical limitations (the speed of light) and even this will never be achieved... However, it is still easily possible to have worse latency then one would expect. One previous poster has suggested ICONZ has bad international latency but this is unconfirmed. Also, jb's US ping is average 247ms for JS Starter and since JS Starter average national ping is about 40ms or so, this cannot be solely accounted due to difference between ADSL and Wired Country's wireless but must be something further long the link...
Also, if I'm not mistaken 1500 is the default MTU so it isn't really a tweak as such, just fixing what was done before *grin*
BTW, are you sure 1500 is the best for your connection? From what I read, 1492 (or lower) is better for PPPoE connections which I believe Wired Country is http://www.dslreports.com/faq/695
Most ISP's would connect via global gateway which is hardly a bottle neck although not every ISP is equal.
Each ISP pays for a link to a national and international gateway, to be efficient and provide a profit these links are somewhat over sold to a std ratio however some are also over zealous in this ratio.
Then ping traffic has the least amount of importance asigned to it so more than often is dropped.
Also 247 ping would be deemed excessive I recall 210 on a JS connection to USA which is about standard.
As for ICONZ they do port shaping on most p2p international traffic i.e (Kazza,BT) so i guess the esysurf is the same.
but it is not stated in their TOS.
most of the time i get 27-30 kb from http transfers. ftp transfers seem to be all over the place but usually 12-17kb.
from the jsg ftp i get the full 32kb when dling.
Does ihug port shape there international traffic. i checked the TOS but it does not state it or i am just blind.
"ping p1-3.sjbr1.global-gateway.net.nz"
Wired Country Turns One and Brings More Broadband Competition to Auckland
The Pukekohe based broadband company, which celebrated its first birthday last week, is now offering Auckland City Residents and Businesses access to its innovative network to its innovative network.
A subsidiary of the power lines company, Counties Power, Wired Country is proud to have one of the largest, fixed access, wireless Broadband networks in New Zealand. Wired Country provides services through Internet Service Provider (ISP) partners, which currently include ConceptNet, DTS, ICONZ, Ihug, The Packing Shed, Watchdog, Wave Internet, and WorldxChange. Wired Country’s network already covers tens of thousands of homes and businesses in Manurewa, Papakura, Pukekohe and Hamilton.
And thousands more, from Takapuna to Penrose South and out West to Henderson, are now able to access the network thanks to a Wired Country antenna on Auckland's SkyTower. Counties Power CEO Neil Simmonds says the launch of Wired Country in Auckland will offer huge benefits to customers.
Simmonds says people tapping into Wired Country’s network in Auckland will enjoy the same competitive pricing levels that the customers in Franklin and Hamilton receive. A great opportunity for a small town technology business, showing true entrepreneurial flair whilst, making its mark in the big city.
“We’re thrilled to be working with our partners to offer people in Auckland a greater choice when it comes to broadband services, as well as innovative and competitive pricing options,” Simmonds says. “Our decision to expand into Auckland was timely given yesterdays announcement by the government not to unbundle the local loop. Our partners can use our network to offer much more than the crippled internet service called bitstream Telecom is proposing."
The Wired Country Broadband network is true open access, which enables Telecom’s competitors to offer real broadband, voice, Fax, EFTPOS and all the services available on a modern broadband telecommunications network. We have customers today using our wireless network at 5Mbps, sending many Gigabytes of traffic, something not possible with the bitstream offering that Telecom is proposing”. The Wired Country network coverage will not stop with greater Auckland, as Wired Country have been named as the preferred supplier for the PROBE rollout in the Auckland Region. This will see coverage extended from the North of Rodney and to the South of Franklin.
Wired Country is looking forward to the next 12 months and clocking up more milestones in providing cost effective innovative ways for consumers to enjoy broadband connectivity.
My comment was a bit tongue in cheek!
I have known about Wired Country running off the Sky Tower
for a while now.
I'm currenty running 128k Jetstart 10Gig cap (total cost $60 odd dollars /month)
With Wired Country and Ihug, I can get 1 Meg, unlimited national traffic
and a total of 10 Gig of international (split into off and on peak traffic quotas)
all for $64.95.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what i'm gonna do!
I'll be moving ASAP just to get away from Telescum.
I'll probably move my tolls to Ihug as well. You can get a 10% discount
on either tolls or Internet access if you get both, so if I choose the internet
option then the monthly cost is only $58.50! Even better!
Hmm.. I'm just on the edge of the red circle, but I have clear line of site to the tower. Might talk to Ihug about getting it. Has anyone noticed degredation of service, especially on cold rainy nights? What kinda of equipment do they install - any pics?
According to their FAQ, strong rain can you to lose signal quality in some conditions. However, I would assume they set their minimum limits high enough such that you should be able to get service as expected in all but the most extreme of conditions. However, this is just an assumption.
If you are at the edge of the red circle, I suspect you will have no problem. In my case, I am somewhere in the middle of the area between the red circle and the dotted circle.
I think that the equipement that they install however I've never actually seen it myself (forgot to look when they came around) so it would be good if someone with it could confirm http://www.remec.com/PDFs/ExcelAir70CPE.pdf
water molecules chug along at 2.4GHz.. that means the 70% or whatever of your body that is water is doing the same. This is how microwaves work - they excite the molecules (lol you've gotta download some Saturday Night Live - Ambiguously Gay Duo to get that)
If your link has no obstacles then rain between the two antennas should provide extremely minimal variance from the norm.. extremely heavy rain will bring a variance dependant on what particular setup you've got.. a stronger transmitter should handle rain fade a lot better for example...
If you are blasting your connection through a tree or have large obstacles in the way (or in your fresnel zone) when it rains those obstacles get wet, and the stationary water becomes a sponge for your radio waves.
So rain fade technically is minor, wet obstacles - a side effect of "rain fade" can potentially be major
I think that the equipement that they install however I've never actually seen it myself (forgot to look when they came around) so it would be good if someone with it could confirm http://www.remec.com/PDFs/ExcelAir70CPE.pdf
Yes this is the equipment that they are installing (at least it matches what is on my house)
Pinging gpforums.co.nz [202.20.92.134] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 202.20.92.134: bytes=32 time=16ms TTL=58
Reply from 202.20.92.134: bytes=32 time=10ms TTL=58
Reply from 202.20.92.134: bytes=32 time=12ms TTL=58
Reply from 202.20.92.134: bytes=32 time=12ms TTL=58
Ping statistics for 202.20.92.134:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 10ms, Maximum = 16ms, Average = 12ms
Download speed test:
Your line speed is approximately 885 Kbps or 108.5 K bytes/sec
tracert
Tracing route to gpforums.co.nz [202.20.92.134]
over a maximum of 30 hops:
1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms ***.mshome.net [192.168.0.1]
2 28 ms 8 ms 9 ms ***-**-***-*****-*-***.ihug.net [203.***.***.*]
3 10 ms 10 ms 11 ms 203-109-156-201.ihug.net [203.109.156.201]
4 17 ms 9 ms 9 ms 203-109-156-98.ihug.net [203.109.156.98]
5 11 ms 10 ms 10 ms kccs.ape.net.nz [192.203.154.78]
6 11 ms 22 ms 11 ms f-1-0-c7204.kc.net.nz [202.14.102.8]
7 21 ms 10 ms 24 ms 202.20.92.134
Re: Reply from Ihug 
. That is just the nature of the bussiness as it exists here (Saturn/telstra/Clear) want to be Telecoms biggest customers now and so now i have empty cable outside on the street. The industry is a mess and i hope that breaking free thru unlimited wireless may be salvation for some of us. It's only fair and about time. there is always a reason not to do something. 
ocuments and Settingsnico t>ping gpforums.co.nz
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