[Gloucs] broadband (was New member)

[Mark]

for leased lines i tend to use Kingston communication down in bristol, ni=
ce=20
friendly folks (imho) and very few muppets (except the odd 90 year old=20
"engineer" who asks you for the manual...)



> Re telewest/BT another rant
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> They do suck big time
> We wanted a 2Mbs leased line and aprox 20 phone lines in Hardwicke oppo=
site
> BP garage (Their main lines to Bristol run aprox 1/2m away from propert=
y.)
> they said they would send a surveyor round to look at the job.
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> 2 months later after about 20 calls they said it would cost them in exc=
esses
> of 50K to do the job so no way?
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> How much can it cost to stick a bit of fiber / copper down the pipes?
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> BT also came round offering us DSL then when we said yes they said sorr=
y the
> exchange isn't being upgraded.
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> No win
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> Tim
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> -----Original Message-----
> From: Guy Edwards [mailto:guy_j_edwards@hotpop.com]
> Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 12:59 AM
> To: MAILING LIST
> Subject: Re: [Gloucs] broadband (was New member)
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> On Thu, 2002-10-10 at 00:21, steve@stevesearle.com wrote:
> > > I'm having Telewest installed next weekend and was meaning to ask o=
n the
> > > list whether the 486 would process packets fast enough. (I have no =
idea
> > > of the processing power required). Guess if it's working for you on=
 a
> > > 486 then it should be fine.
> > Don't rely on it.  I live in Abbeymead and broadband isn't available
> > (cable or ADSL on our street).  I am still on a dial up modem. <Blood=
y
> > BT, rant, rant, rant>
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> You think BT's bad? (BIG moaning rant follows, skip to ---- for the end=
)
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> <rant>
> I used to live in Croydon, I signed up to Telewest for the broadband
> service and would have been able to work from home instead of having to
> commute 1.5 hours to work and the same back.
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> After 2 weeks a guy came round to install it, he got the hole in the
> wall wrong the first time and had to drill a second, ripping all the
> wallpaper and loosing me my deposit (rented). Then when it came to
> connecting the wiring in the house to the hole in the road there was no
> cable in the pavement, and we would have to wait for that to be done.
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> We didn't hear anything for ages and when I eventually got through to
> speak to someone on the phone (40mins each time listening to Robbie
> Williams "Millenium") turns out that the hole under the pavement that
> the cable goes through is blocked and because it was a "traffic
> sensitive area" we would have to wait a month while the gave notice to
> the council of road works.
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> A month later a guy comes round to install the cable, I point out that
> the house is already wired up, which is news to him. He says he will
> send round the cable team to connect up the house to the pavement.
> He tells me that the pavement is blocked and that it will take a month
> to unblock it as it is a traffic sensitive area.........
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> (Continues in a loop for 6 months until I'd had enough and cancelled)
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> Rules I learnt:
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> * It usually took about 30 minutes to get through, although it is less
> is you ring during the day.
> * At 8pm they all go home, so your phone call is liable to be cut off
> * If they say they are going to ask a manager, you will be on hold for
> around 10 minutes extra (not a joke)
> * Manager will agree to everything you say but nothing will be done.
> * Telewest will put lack of communication down to not having your
> contact number, even after you've given it them more than 3 times.
> * Random installers will turn up mid week, around 11am-3pm claiming to
> have agreed an appointment with you but not knowing that the house is
> already wired.
> * Telewest will start billing you for use of the internet, despite you
> having no possible connection.
> * When you finally get a manager round to see the damage the install gu=
y
> did to the house, he will agree to do something about it, then will
> disappear. His phone will not answer, Telewest will have no record of a
> manager coming to visit or agreeing anything.
> * You will receive at least 3 threatening letters for each Telewest
> bill, no matter how prompt you pay.
> * When Telewest owes you money, it will take over 2 months to come
> through.
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> </rant>
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> --------------------
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> Telewests service sucks but there's no way I'm putting my name on BT's
> ransom list while I wait for them to decide whether or not the want to
> upgrade the exchange in Hardwicke. BT have it completely backwards, if
> ADSL isn't available then why are people going to wait if the cable
> companies run a line past the house?
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> I'm going to measure out exactly where I want the holes drilled in the
> walls in advance and have a windows machine setup ready in case the
> installer is clueless just to get rid of him. This is by the
> recommendations of the Telewest guy I spoke to on the phone, as he
> warned me about some of the installers. I didn't tell him about my past
> troubles with them.
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> Guy
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