[HLUG] Slightly Off Topic - Looking for new Linux Friendly BusinessISP

[Paul Stenning]

One of my work colleagues is with Zen.  We signed him up recently and 
his connection speed has been bad from day one.  He should be getting 
around 6Mb but is getting 1.2Mb on a good day.  It's still being sorted 
out but Zen are working with him and BT to get it resolved, and I'm 
confident that it will be.  It is obviously a BT issue but Zen are not 
passing the buck as some ISPs would.  We are dealing with people in 
Rochdale who know what they are talking about, not script-readers in India!

One of the work line installations was a bit of a faff as the line we 
wanted to use it on was DACSed (had a BT line sharing thing on it).  Zen 
kept us informed, kept chasing BT etc until it was sorted.  I had one 
particular person at Zen Tech Support on the case who stayed with it, 
which saved a lot of time and frustration.

Another work line at a different office is on the limits of distance for 
ADSL and keeps dropping when the fax on that line rings.  Zen got 
figures for noise etc from BT, and got BT to do the usual tests, and 
were straight-up about it when they said that there was nothing that 
could be done, it was due to distance and line conditions.  None of the 
messing around trying this and that which would not help.  I like that 
level of honesty.

So although they have not been flawless connections and installations, 
they have been properly and professionally handled by Zen.

My home line has been faultless.  The speed is good, not just the synch 
speed (normally around 7Mb) but also download speeds.  I am currently 
downloading Mythbuntu ISO at around 580kB/sec.

Paul


Julian Robbins wrote:
> On Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:10:40 +0100, "Paul Stenning"
> <paul at vintage-radio.com> said:
>> At home and at work we use Zen - www.zen.co.uk
>>
>> Reliable, fast, good tech support etc.  Highly recommended.
> 
> Yes, Zen were/are one that we were considering. 
> 
> Have you any direct experience of when they were particularly helpful,
> or good ?
> 
> We've also got BT on the list, but theres always something I find quite
> off putting about them.
> 
> Julian
>> Paul.
>>
>>
>> dicegeorge at hotmail dot com wrote:
>>> i use headweb / entanet
>>> http://www.headweb.co.uk/
>>> theyre on the phone and in kidderminster
>>> and friends of the big green gathering
>>>
>>> Headweb,
>>> 29 sutton road,
>>> Kidderminster,
>>> DY11 6QN.
>>> Tel: 0870 76 55 321
>>>
>>>
>>>                    [george]
>>>
>>> ~                      [g]                         ~
>>> ~        george at dicenews.com      ~
>>> ~               07970 378 572            ~
>>> ~         www.dicegeorge.com        ~
>>> ~                     (c)2008                  ~
>>> ~                                                   ~
>>>
>>>
>>> --------------------------------------------------
>>> From: "Julian Robbins" <joolsr at fastmail.fm>
>>> Sent: Thursday, October 02, 2008 4:46 PM
>>> To: "Herefordshire Linux Users Group" <herefordshire at mailman.lug.org.uk>
>>> Subject: [HLUG] Slightly Off Topic - Looking for new Linux Friendly 
>>> BusinessISP
>>>
>>>> Hi
>>>>
>>>> I am mailing to ask what business ISP's people recommend.
>>>>
>>>> We need ADSL/SDSL connectivity, ADSL Max, VPN friendly, ie using OpenVPN
>>>> and it must be reliable, friendly, experience, helpful ISP.
>>>>
>>>> Net connectivity is important, likewise DNS of which we've had more
>>>> problems than we would like to have had recently.
>>>>
>>>> We are a company of 30 staff, at one location, with the possibility of
>>>> satellite locations requiring connectivity.
>>>>
>>>> We don't need web hosting, this is taken care of, nor email.
>>>>
>>>> Just a good reliable, open, flexible ISP for Net connectivity.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Julian Robbins
>>>>
>>>> -- 
>>>> Herefordshire LUG mailing list
>>>> Web:  http://www.herefordshire.lug.org.uk
>>>> List: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/herefordshire
>>>>
>> -- 
>> Herefordshire LUG mailing list
>> Web:  http://www.herefordshire.lug.org.uk
>> List: https://mailman.lug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/herefordshire
>