[LINK] Line quality in rural areas

[David Boxall]

Greetings Linkers

For a bit of history, see:
http://www.anu.edu.au/mail-archives/link/link9606/0055.html

I've just completed a depressing phone call with a Telstra technician.

For a while the lines in my area had been delivering 28800bps pretty reliably.  
There was the occasional 26400bps session. Dropouts were very rare.

A couple of months ago, I noticed 26400 becoming more common.  Three or 
four weeks ago that dropped to 19200, then 16800.  In addition, dropouts have 
become very common.  Overall, performance is now about what it was in 1995.

For the past couple of weeks, I've been doing battle with Telstra staffers.  At 
first I was told: "That's all you can expect.  The equipment is only designed to 
support 14400."  To which I responded that it isn't all I can expect; it's less that i 
had.

After much hassling, a technician agreed to organise a MOLDS test (someone 
on the list might know what that is, I certainly don't).  I was instructed to phone 
132203 while seated at my computer, with HyperTerminal running.

I did as instructed, only to be informed that there were no testers available.  On 
phoning again this morning, I was told that the fault had been closed and I 
should report another fault so a test could be arranged.

On doing so, I was fobbed off to a technician at Newcastle.  He gave me the 
"That's all the equipment is designed to deliver" line.  He also leaned heavily on 
the contention that the network is for voice only.

Taking the last point first: given that data is increasing as a proportion of total 
traffic, is Telstra deliberately creating a dinosaur?

The most interesting point to me was the technicians assertion that line speed 
is degrading as Telstra connects more clients to the existing copper.  It almost 
seemed that he was blaming the customers for the poor service.

A couple of observations:
-In 1996 Telstra guaranteed 2400bps.  Today the equipment is designed for 
14400, but that's no guarantee.
-Telstra staff are much more adept at stonewalling than they were in 1996.

And a quote:
"Since the commercial advent of wave division multiplexing in 1996, bandwidth 
has been increasing at least four times as fast as Moore's Law, if not faster, 
and promises to continue to do so for at least the next several years."

                                     George Gilder
                                     Forbes interview,
                                     August, 2000
                          http://www.forbes.com/asap/00/0821/097.htm

Not in this part of the universe.

<SARCASM>
Gold to Telstra in corporate arrogance.

Who's a clever country then?
</SARCASM>

I'll crawl back under my rock now.


====================================================================
David Boxall                     |  I have seen the past
david.boxall@hunterlink.net.au   |  and it works
                                 |             TJ Hooker