Not exactly a virus but, http://www.usatoday.com/story/money...hone-ring-just-once-do-not-call-back/5280047/
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30% of U.S. Households Stuck in Dial-Up Hell
- Thread starter CommanderFrank
- Start date
Not exactly a virus but, http://www.usatoday.com/story/money...hone-ring-just-once-do-not-call-back/5280047/
AOL isn't free. you can connect to it via broadband for free with an account but dialup ranges from $7 to $26 a month depending on features.
Anyhow, I'd imagine that a lot of the people who still have dialup may not know any difference in speed. I know this one woman who had dialup up until 5 years ago which she replaced with DSL Lite. Better than dialup yes, but let's face it 768k isn't too much better She was content with that until she finally saw a system on cable. This was despite at least 5 different people trying to get her to pay more for faster speed for years.
Cerulean
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Math is right, but realistically speaking -- wrong. Your dial-up subscription would be terminated for violating terms agreements. Find me a dial-up provider that doesn't have something in their terms of service that prohibit you to be connected longer than 8-12 hours per day every day. We actually got the boot from one ISP because I was actively using the internet for 14-16 hours per day to the maximum on a daily basis.
On average you'll get around 2-3 KB/s per second (2.5 KB/s average) + factoring in you're lucky and won't get any connection drops (ever).
If you're extremely super lucky (aka this is rare and uncommon), you'll get around 4-6 KB/s (average 5 KB/s). I've never seen this myself but from my research it is out there and exists. I heard a rumor that if you live in Dallas, TX dial-up speeds are around this (if not some higher).
So if you're trying to not get your subscription terminated by your ISP and max on bandwidth in downloading, the most you'll be able to download on the common 2.5 KB/s average would be 105.46875 MB per day (12 hours); on rare 5 KB/s average it would be 210.9375 MB. That is, if they won't get strict and boot you off for 12 hours per day or usage. At 8 hours per day, you shouldn't have a problem with the ISP, which with this usage you would be doing 70.3125 MB or 140.625 MB per day.
@ 2.5 KB/s average for 12 hours per day
Per week that would be 738.28125 MB
Per month that would be 2953.125 MB
@ 5 KB/s average for 12 hours per day
Per week that would be 1476.5625 MB
Per month that would be 5906.25 MB
@ 2.5 KB/s average for 8 hours per day
Per week that would be 492.1875 MB
Per month that would be 1968.75 MB
@ 5 KB/s average for 8 hours per day
Per week that would be 984.375 MB
Per month that would be 3937.5 MB
Source: me. I grew up with cable internet or better all my life until around my mid-teens, where in a dramatic turn of events I wound up living in the rural countryside where there is only dial-up and satellite internet; I've had my fair share of experience with both connections with around 6-7 years living on dial-up. For me, it was a nightmare of an experience trying to get use to this, but eventually I learned to accept it and live with it. You won't find a dial-up ISP that doesn't give you this kind of bullocks in their terms of agreement unless you are your own ISP and operate your own dial-up server at a nearby colo. If you do, please let me know. Also: ISDN is dead (unless you're willing to pay several hundred to thousands of dollars per month for a measly 12-18 KB/s).
D
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Now look at the cost of those services, and they do not cover 100% of the US. There are plenty of areas here in MN that the satellite or cell services will not work.
Cerulean
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Dial-up ISPs effectively impose worse quotas than do cellular service providers on data plans; and are also drastically more expensive per 1 GB of data transfer than cellular service providers. Dial-up ISPs make an INCREDIBLE profit off of their customers.
Cerulean
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Yep. Get this -- where I lived, I was surrounded by some of the world's tallest antenna towers (4-5 of them). What do you think my cellular signal strength was?
NO SERVICE
*hahahah*
My old uncle is like that. He refuses to get broadband and prefers dial-up. /me facepalms. Whatever.Wow I figured most people in the states had FTTH these days.
I remember dialup, the biggest thing was not just how slow it was, but how unreliable it was and the fact that it tied up the phone line. We got ADSL in the early 2000's, it was the most awesome thing. A whooping 1mbps, and always on! Though a lot of people turned off their modem at night because they were scared of hackers.Speaking of hackers, anyone remember dialup viruses? It would use your modem to dial oversees calls and rack up a huge phone bill. I'm actually surprised there arn't such viruses for cells yet.
GotNoRice
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How would satellite services not work? No clear view of the sky?
My Uncle lives out in the middle of nowhere in AZ. He has solar power, and has his own well for water, no connections to the outside world whatsoever and probably an hour drive even to get to the nearest store. He has satellite internet that, other than the obvious latency issues, isn't really all that bad. Certainly better than dialup.
Correct, how it works is telephone companies fill out a form every year for the FCC, think it is due the end of April if I recall correctly. In that form they state what the max rate is that they can offer for a census block and what speed rates customers are actually getting. Without looking it work and grabbing our form to look I want to say it is labeled as up to 1.5, up to 3, up to 6, up to 10, Up to 25, up to 50, up to 100, 100+. they then use this to say what is available in an area. Could be that only 1 person can actually get it but it is still possible in that area.
You have to look at a few things. This is only saying that 70% of the population has internet service faster than dialup. Of the 30% some are still using dialup, either by choice or due to no other option, others just don't have internet access. I could see 30% of people either not having internet access or having dialup. How many people are in nursing homes? they aren't going to have internet. Depending on their conditions they might be able to get online, but other's are too far gone mentally to be able to do anything online even if they did have access. Then you have various low income projects, I could see a lot of them not having internet service. Or at least not something that they actually pay for and thus wouldn't be reported.
It is regulated in some cases. The FCC and NECA set the base line rates that you pay. Telcos don't get to set their own base prices. They can add stuff like overages or jack the price up some, but they are told that 4Mbps DSL service has to cost at least $30+ per month, . I can give you a link to a nice 464 page document that explains how much you must charge for internet service based on if it is dsl, metro Ethernet or fiber based on distance from the DSLAM and what region that you are in, how much for a PRI or T1. Great read if you want to fall asleep or just go crazy. For example you want an OC3 (155mbps)? if you are in rate band 1 the price has to be at least $110.18 per month, if you are in rate band 23 (whoever those poor bastards are) if will run $1928.08 per month. for DSL. rate band 1 for 5 mbps (normally 4 down / 1Up) rates are $22.90, band 2 is $34.60 and poor bastard band 23 is $400.68. 10 Mbps is band 1 - $26.40, band 2 - $39.96 all the way up to band 23 - $462.70.
Wow I figured most people in the states had FTTH these days.
I remember dialup, the biggest thing was not just how slow it was, but how unreliable it was and the fact that it tied up the phone line. We got ADSL in the early 2000's, it was the most awesome thing. A whooping 1mbps, and always on! Though a lot of people turned off their modem at night because they were scared of hackers.
Fiber is very expensive and doesn't have a very good return so those having to pay out of pocket aren't willing to deploy it very quickly. Smaller rural areas that have gotten either government grants or low interest loans have jumped on that fiber wagon and put fiber in the ground. However even with fiber some still only offer 1.5Mbps or 3Mbps service. What a lot of people on here don't understand is fiber means jack shit if you don't actually get high speed along with it. You can get 20Mbps with ADSL2+ or up to technically up to 150Mbps with VDSL2+ (although given the distance limits most only actually try to go as high as 40 or 50Mbps as an offering). But you don't see even that being offered. So it isn't a mater of what transport you have going to you but what your provider wants to actually give you using it.
The higher north you are the more the line of sight of the satellite is near the horizon so it's more likely to be obstructed.
D
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Trees. If you can get above them, sure you can get hughsnet or another dish-based service with crazy data caps and use limitations. It is worse that shitty motel wifi.
Umm satellite covers 100% http://fortune.com/2011/10/17/a-very-different-kind-of-dish-network/ that's like saying gps won't work. And the price isn't that bad $50 for 10gb Mo, unlimited between 12am-5am. 12mbps DL, 3up. Hell of a lot better then dial-up. 10gb is plenty for web and email, and torrent movies and music when you sleep.
GushpinBob
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I'm pretty sure a big chunk of that 30% are AARP members that need "muh AOLs," long after getting broadband or a cellular data plan.
I actually do know people that haven't been able to get certain satellite tv services due to trees. HughesNet always had in their commercials that you needed a clear view of the southern skies. So there are going to be places that yes if you build really tall towers you might get a clear view, there are going to be people that for all intensive purposes can't get the service. And actually in some places, like downtown in some large cities GPS doesn't work very well as it has trouble being able to get through buildings to pick up enough satellites.
MNKyDeth
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Heck, where my dad live, on the edge of a major city in Michigan. He can't even get dial-up anymore. All the dial-up isp's have closed in his area unless he wants to pay for long distance charges.
Literally ATT and the cable Co's go one block around his neighborhood and won't supply internet to that small area location.
My dad won't pay for a phone dongle as all he could get is Verizon and they charge like $150/mo for 20gig data cap.
The other wireless providers like sprint, etc don't have a signal in his area.
I have no idea why they won't run land lines to his area as it is decently populated as well. They always send him notices that there is net available to his area but whenever I call them to come hook it up they can't ever find the cable box within range.
Literally ATT and the cable Co's go one block around his neighborhood and won't supply internet to that small area location.
My dad won't pay for a phone dongle as all he could get is Verizon and they charge like $150/mo for 20gig data cap.
The other wireless providers like sprint, etc don't have a signal in his area.
I have no idea why they won't run land lines to his area as it is decently populated as well. They always send him notices that there is net available to his area but whenever I call them to come hook it up they can't ever find the cable box within range.
shspvr
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You are off rocker 10GB goes by really fast and there the lag so you can for get any hardcore games.
shspvr
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You could look into Point to Point system know as Fix Wireless Providers which use device like the Motorola Canopy system what about DSL? or ISDN he should be able to get AT&T Unlimited Long Distance Calling.
We are talking about an alternative to slow dial-up not gaming or streaming HD video. 10gb is plenty for e-mail and web browsing and worth every penny compared to waiting 10minutes for a webpage to full load via dial up. Plus like I said you have unlimited overnight to download large files.
shspvr
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But he had the word Movie that why I said he was off his rocker then yes that plenty for e-mail, web browsing, antivirus, java, flash, misc apps and all windows os update that are need.
And you know all of them have cell phones with 3/4g... if they could just figure out how to tether their phones or turn them into hotspots...
Last dialup I had was in 98 and I used TWO count 'em TWO 56k modems in Shotgun mode. Screaming fast! Until someone called and the call waiting kicked off one of my connections. Then in 99 I moved out of the sticks into a real town and got 768k DSL and it was like a whole new world. Now 768k is a joke, single CNN tab with all the flash popup crap would kill it.
Last dialup I had was in 98 and I used TWO count 'em TWO 56k modems in Shotgun mode. Screaming fast! Until someone called and the call waiting kicked off one of my connections. Then in 99 I moved out of the sticks into a real town and got 768k DSL and it was like a whole new world. Now 768k is a joke, single CNN tab with all the flash popup crap would kill it.
Think about it this way, 100+ million people in the US have crap internet. That's gotta be great for our country's economic engine in the long run, right? And that money put in place to help this problem is (and has been) just being absorbed as profits so those ISP CEO's can buy bigger yachts next year.
Red Squirrel
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Too bad cellular data has absurd data caps. Using the internet would be like watching a gas pump while filling up, and go about the same speed.