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Broadlands - Overland Park & CWC

Discussion in 'Community Broadband & Computers' started by mhughes, Aug 8, 2002.

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  1. rogue

    rogue New Member

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    Heya Bob. What are the advertised speeds? I haven't found anything that gives actual speeds, just literature that gives vague stmts like "50 times faster than dial-up!" and the like. Any ideas? Also, I read that OpenBand caps your monthly traffic. I'm not using Kazaa or Gnutella or anything like that, but I use my connection A LOT... as does my wife. I'd hate to have a really fast rate for 15 days of the month ;). What would you think an avg user's monthly traffic might be? If anybody has any experience with OpenBand, I'd love to hear about it, thanks.
     
    rogue, Sep 15, 2002
    #21
  2. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    Rogue, if you're thinking of moving to 'Broadlands South', then your broadband options will basically only be OpenBand. When we started this project, our mission was to bring affordable, high-speed internet access to all of Broadlands North, since South had the OpenBand option...

    If the CWC signal can get to where your house will be, then by all means, you are welcome to join in! CWC will not be turning away customers in Broadlands South that have a strong enough signal. But I would bet that the signal could be rather weak by the time it reaches the inner areas of the new development...

    One thing you might want to make sure before you do anything; Since OpenBand has all the easements for South, I don't think you have a choice as to getting the Internet service or not. I had heard in the past that it came as part of the house and was going to be included in the dues. I might be wrong on this one...

    As for speeds, they are basically like DSL for 'Internet' access, but HIGH-SPEED on the internal OpenBand network. That means that if you are 'communicating' directly with another Broadlands South resident (playing a game, etc), you will be on the 100Mbit network. If you are communicating with an 'outside' party, such as the Yahoo website, etc, you will be at the regular speed, which I believe is 1.5Mbit, which is still very fast. Be careful with their marketing hype; the 100Mb is only internally.

    I'm not sure about what OpenBand plans on offering in regards to IP's (static/dynamic), as well as what their policy is regarding running servers, or bandwidth caps/quotas.

    From the start, the Broadband committee made it part of the 'requirements' that the provider offer the option of static Ip's, that they allow users to run servers on their home networks, etc. This was one of the reasons the CWC proposal was appealing to us...

    So, ask many questions and then ask them again to whomever you talk to regarding Broadlands South and Openband. Talk to OpenBand directly if possible.


    ------------------------------------------------
    Got Broadband?
    Yea, REALLY SOON now!

    Edited by - Vapor8 on 09/16/2002 16:36:52
     
    Mr. Linux, Sep 16, 2002
    #22
  3. rogue

    rogue New Member

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    Thanks for the notes. Who might I talk to at CWC about tower location(s) and signal strength? I'm looking at lots right now in Broadlands South, and I might have some say over where my lot is with relation to the tower... I guess I'll have to call OpenBand about the actual Internet speed and how wide the pipe is going to be to the outside Internet. I understand the 100MB aspect, my house is all 100MB as is my office... I just wonder with a static pipe to the Internet how many houses they plan on supporting and if they have ANY kind of service level agreement w/ their customers.

    You're right about the OpenBand requirement, it's a part of the home. It services your cable, phone & Internet capabilities and is "included" in the HOA fees. Do you know of any other parts of Broadlands (perhaps in the North sections) that are still being built? Do you know who I might contact with regard to that question?

    Thanks for all the help, I really appreciate it!

    _smd_
     
    rogue, Sep 16, 2002
    #23
  4. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    Rogue, check CWC's website at www.my-cwc.com . Please keep in mind that this site IS NOT FINAL AND IS STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION. Information contained on their site will probably be changing based on the agreement we finalize with them. Either way, I'm sure you'll be able to find an email address and/or telephone number where you can contact them for more information.

    For your information, the tower is located at the Belmont Ridge exit of the Greenway. If you're familiar with where the new hospital will be built, that's the area of the tower. That might give you an idea of your options... One thing you might want to look at is a home in South on a 'high' lot. The higher your home, the better your chances of getting something from the tower. Once again, keep in mind that CWC is engineering the propagation of the signal primarly for Broadlands North.

    As for homes in Broadlands North, I'm tempted to say that they're done will all construction up here. Your best bet is to talk to someone at the Visitor Center. Another option is to purchase an existing home; there are quite a few for sall, but they tend to get purchased rather quickly...

    Either way, good luck with everything. Hope to have you join our Broadlands community soon! We're pretty nice folks here... <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

    ------------------------------------------------
    Got Broadband?
    Yea, REALLY SOON now!

    Edited by - Vapor8 on 09/17/2002 09:11:39
     
    Mr. Linux, Sep 17, 2002
    #24
  5. Dan

    Dan New Member

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    I was just on the CWC website checking out their monthly rates. Does anyone know what the negotiated monthly rates for Broadlands will be? Their single user rates seem to be a bit steep.

    Since I will be living in the Overpark Park section, I hope the tower can reach us.

    Dan
     
    Dan, Sep 17, 2002
    #25
  6. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    Dan, the rates you see there are pretty much the right ones. The range is $35-$90, depending on how much bandwidth you need.

    I'm interested to know what your concerns are. We did our best to request fair pricing from the various WISP's we approached. What price seemed high to you in regards to what you would get?



    ------------------------------------------------
    Got Broadband?
    Yea, REALLY SOON now!
     
    Mr. Linux, Sep 17, 2002
    #26
  7. bglass

    bglass New Member

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    I think the pricing is a little on the high side myself, but not by much. I think the problem is that most people have come to expect high-speed or broadband service to mean 1.5mb or better download. They compare to that at the general pricing of $50/mo and see that the wireless equivalent will cost them nearly twice that. Few fail to realize though that your upstream is much less than your downstream generally. It appears that the services provided by CWC are for down and upstream with a minimum guaranteed. I would expect a minimum service level of 512k up/down for the $50-60 target range.

    I am new to this area and am interested in this service. I live at the end of Arbor Glen Ct and would like to know when service is available.

    Bob Glass
     
    bglass, Sep 18, 2002
    #27
  8. Mr. Linux

    Mr. Linux Senior Member & Moderator Forum Staff

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    You're very correct, BGlass. That's one thing we get with CWC; there is an SLA (Service Level Agreement) that says if you pay for Bandwidth XYZ, you GET Bandwidth XYZ.

    Compare that to cable modems, which don't guarantee any speeds. They simply state "up to XYZ". In reality, your average speed is much less...


    ------------------------------------------------
    Got Broadband?
    Yea, REALLY SOON now!
     
    Mr. Linux, Sep 18, 2002
    #28
  9. Dan

    Dan New Member

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    You both made a good point. I currently have a cable modem and get d/loads speeds from 850k to 1.5mb and my upload speeds can be as low as 56k or high as 500k. I occasionally do online gaming and it's almost impossible to play sometimes due to the lack of consistency. I'm currently paying $50 a month for this service and would like to keep my monthly expenditure to the $50 range.

    After reviewing CWC's rates:

    192 kbs $45/month

    256 kbs $50/month

    512 kbs $65/month

    1,000 kbs $90/month

    I'm sure if I'll be happy spending $50 for 256k. I'd be happy with $50 for 512k.

    Dan
     
    Dan, Sep 19, 2002
    #29
  10. bglass

    bglass New Member

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    didn't mean to sound like a commercial for you ;)


    Bob Glass
     
    bglass, Sep 19, 2002
    #30
  11. Dan

    Dan New Member

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    You didn't sound like a commercial. I just want the most bang for my buck. I'll be happy with any broadband solution as long as it's not Cable!

    Dan
     
    Dan, Sep 19, 2002
    #31
  12. bglass

    bglass New Member

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    I meant as a commercial for CWC ... I have no affiliation with them. I am, however, affiliated with a cable internet company...just not one that services this county :-/ But I agree, ANY -reliable- broadband service in Loudoun is eagerly awaited

    Bob Glass
     
    bglass, Sep 20, 2002
    #32
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