[ale] isp questions

Wed Jun 17 08:09:10 EDT 2020

Hi Thompson,

I agree with you.  I see no reason for the complexity of normal 
connectivity except to exploit customers.  Why else would big isp's 
block municipalities from providing connectivity for their citizens.  I 
also agree that once it leaves the carrier's equipment, I should be able 
to use my own equipment if I wish to.

--Bob

On 2020-06-16 10:49 a.m., Thompson Freeman via Ale wrote:
> 
> 
> I am _really_ uncertain I should jump in here - but...
> 
> [Opinion] Why is 'normal connectivity' so complex? IMHO-Marketing. 
> Stirring the water with lots of distracting options, conditions, etc. 
> Normal Connectivity is nothing but a big enough bandwidth for bits in 
> two directions at a sufficient level of reliability. I don't think we 
> should need (normally) to worry about the underlying tech. Video, audio, 
> radio, etc are not part of this basic service - just shuffling bits 
> around. If I want video (aka TV), that should be a different 
> negotiation. If I want audio (radio, phone) that is another negotiation.
> 
> [Opinion] When the bits get to the point of separation from the 
> carrier's equipment, it should no longer matter to the carrier if I am 
> formally renting their equipment or purchase my own.
> 
> [Opinion] Customer service matters. The service center's location is not 
> important to me, nor the nationality. I do want the service tech to 
> belong to the same outfit as I am purchasing the service from as the CEO 
> - and have the authority/support to FIX the damn problem. The executive 
> suite should lose all compensation if the company's product/service 
> isn't up to par.
> 
> As for being cheap - I've been working adjunct academics the last decade 
> - which in this state works out to about $10/hr effective for advanced 
> degree. And I'm better off than the students - many of whom _must_ work 
> on phones with smashed screens, skip meals, face reposession of their 
> transportation, etc as they attempt to better their lives while working 
> potentially 40 hr jobs while in school. (And the adjunct jobs have now 
> dried up due to the loss of foreign students - who were often better 
> prepared...)
> 
> Thank you to the whole group for the use of their bandwidth. I'm now off 
> to attempt to help family deal with children shared with a (thankfully 
> former) cheating spouse. Probably more information than the list wants; 
> so sorry but I need to vent
> 
> On Mon, 15 Jun 2020, SpaXpert, Inc. via Ale wrote:
> 
>> Good God, why is so much of what I call 'normal connectivity' so 
>> complex in
>> this forum??? Are all you folks still trying to resurrect dsl from 1995 
>> and
>> shit.?? What is the point of all of this.?? At 60 years old should I be
>> offended??? This makes no sense.?? To me y'all are tripping over paper 
>> clips
>> to save a few bucks.?? Are we all that broke and can't afford real world
>> internet?
>>
>> On Mon, Jun 15, 2020 at 9:22 PM Raj Wurttemberg via Ale <ale at ale.org> 
>> wrote:
>> ?????????? I think that I have the exact configuration you are looking for.
>>
>> ?????????? - AT&T fiber goes into a U-Verse "modem"
>> ?????????? - Enabled the DMZ feature on one port of the U-Verse modem
>> ?????????? - pfSense firewall plugged into the DMZ port
>> ?????????? - pfSense shows my true IPv4 and IPv6 IP addresses
>> ?????????? - The DMZ passes _almost_ ALL traffic to the pfSense firewall
>> ?????????? - Inbound ssh and other high-ports work fine
>> ?????????? - I think inbound http/https, NetBIOS, and SMTP (tcp/25) are
>> ?????????? blocked by AT&T
>>
>> ?????????? Hope this helps.
>>
>> ?????????? /Raj
>>
>> ?????????? -----Original Message-----
>> ?????????? From: Ale <ale-bounces at ale.org> On Behalf Of Bob via Ale
>> ?????????? Sent: Monday, June 15, 2020 5:18 PM
>> ?????????? To: ale at ale.org
>> ?????????? Subject: [ale] isp questions
>>
>>
>> ?????????? Hi All,
>>
>> ?????????? I currently have internet (adsl2+) and phone line (POTS) from
>> ?????????? att.?? I
>> ?????????? like the old POTS line.?? The latency and bandwidth of dsl seems
>> ?????????? fine for
>> ?????????? our purposes.?? Behind the modem, I have a pfsense box, which
>> ?????????? handles
>> ?????????? routing, firewall rules, and so forth.?? I like the pfsense box.
>>
>> ?????????? Since we're working from home more, I thought I would buy
>> ?????????? another adsl2+
>> ?????????? modem as a backup.?? The last time the modem failed, I bought one
>> ?????????? at best
>> ?????????? buy (netgear DM111PSP v2), and it was inexpensive.?? However, now
>> ?????????? it
>> ?????????? seems that adsl2+ modems are no longer being sold since att is
>> ?????????? phasing
>> ?????????? out dsl.
>>
>> ?????????? At dslreports, some are saying that att might discontinue dsl in
>> ?????????? some
>> ?????????? areas this year.?? (I'm in the Northlake/Tucker area of Atlanta.)
>>
>> ?????????? It sounds like it is difficult to run a pfsense router/firewall
>> ?????????? behind a
>> ?????????? u-verse modem.?? Is that correct?
>>
>> ?????????? If att eliminates dsl in my area, would u-verse or comcast be a
>> ?????????? better
>> ?????????? choice??? (I'd like to keep my POTS line and use my pfsense box
>> ?????????? as a
>> ?????????? router/firewall.?? I have no interest in tv or other services
>> ?????????? from either
>> ?????????? company.)
>>
>> ?????????? Are there other choices than u-verse or comcast that I'm
>> ?????????? overlooking?
>>
>> ?????????? Any thoughts on getting an inexpensive backup adsl2+ modem?
>>
>> ?????????? If u-verse is better than comcast, could I purchase a u-verse
>> ?????????? modem that
>> ?????????? would be able to handle adsl2+ (until dsl is removed)??? (I guess
>> ?????????? that
>> ?????????? assumes that att allows purchasing u-verse modems.)
>>
>> ?????????? Thoughts or suggestions?
>>
>> ?????????? --Bob
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>>
>>
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