[SWLUG] Switching to a BT line. Effects?

[Steve Anderson]

2008/6/25 Neil Jones <neil at nwjones.demon.co.uk>:

> I am considering taking the plunge and signing up with Andrews and
> Arnold who Alan Cox recommended to me. It appears they actually employ
> people who understand how the internet works.

It is fair to say that Andrews and Arnold are probably the geekiest
ISP there is. To say they understand how the internet works is an
understatement - they've developed bespoke hardware firewalls and all
sorts. I'd love to see a Virgin grunt do that!

You do, however, pay a premium for their expertise. I couldn't afford
them and went with Zen and then Plus Net instead, both of whom have
been really very good.

> However that would mean installing a BT line for the internet.
>
> Are there any consequences as regards speed and reliability that I
> should be concerned about?
>
> What about downtime?

The obvious trick would be to make sure your DSL is up before giving
Virgin the boot. Traditionally the first couple of weeks with DSL sees
the line speed fluctuate as the hardware in the exchange finds the
most reliable rate between you and it. You'll probably lose some of
the speed you could expect from Virgin, but in my office in Cardiff
we're getting around 7Mbps, and back home in Trefforest closer to
5Mbps.

Reliability won't be an issue if you're getting a new line installed.
I had a problem with mine at home but it was as a result of corrosion
on the 30 year old contacts in the junction box - a BT engineer
replaced that and all was well again.

Steve

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