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December 19 Thank God for VerizonI am at home today ... with the flu. But I'm also home to meet the Verizon workers who installed FiOS. FiOS is Verizon's fiber optic connections. I'm now adding this entry through a connection that is usually faster than what I get at work. At work (ICI Systems, Inc., Washington, DC) we have DSL that is shared by 4 classrooms, the instructor's workstations in the back, and the sales department. At home we have one DSL-speed line over fiber.
Previous to today I have been on dial-up. The phone lines in my neighborhood are underground, so when it rains my dial-up speed drops to around 40. On a good day I might get 50.
Why didn't I go to cable modem? Three reasons. Everyone else in my neighborhood is on cable modem, which is shared. The first ones on cable now wonder why access is slower after dinner when they get on. Second reason: the cable company. Our cable company, known as *&$@#^+#!, gives lousy service. The only worse service I have ever received has been from people or organizations that have set out to cheat me. Third reason: cost. Cable costs too much. Fiber optic is costing me about the same as adding another phone line. Since I already have a second dedicated line for the computers ... I will drop that second line now that I have fiber ... and the cost will be a wash!
What's next?
Turns out some states (notably Texas, and soon New York) have set up statewide agreements with phone companies like Verizon, to offer TV over their fiber. Our local cable supplier (starts with "C", rymes with 'bombast') insists that Verizon must contract individually with each locality before offering TV. That means well over 100 in my county alone. Fortunately *&$@#^+#! does not make up the rules. My state (Maryland) may well go the way of Texas and New York. Great! The three months we had cable years ago resulted in: about 1 months worth of a decent picture, very slow response from the cable company, and a cable magazine that would arrive promptly 10 days after the month it was printed for had ended!
Now that I've got decent connections, expect to see me blogging again more often.
Thank God for Verizon.
September 06 GAIM for IMAugust 05 My Favorite LaptopWhen vacation is near, as it is for the wife, the boys and I, it seems like there are a ton of little jobs that crop up, all of which must be done before you leave. That's how it's been with me this week at work ... and at home. So here I am, sitting at a laptop at 11:35 pm posting on the blog.
This isn't my normal laptop. I've gone through a couple already, and I left my favorite one at work (on purpose). Instead I carried home an IBM ThinkPad T23. I hope it is going to be my mother's favorite computer ... because it is going to be her first computer. I bought it from IBM's Certified Used Equipment site. I love the IBM ThinkPads (I know, its not IBM anymore ... but bear with me) because they are a lot more rugged and dependable than the other laptops I've put up with (or worn out). Their service is great. My favorite laptop is actually an R50e which received an electrical shock one week after I received it. IBM service sent me a box to ship it to them in. I received it back within the week. I actually received it two days before they said I'd get it back. Not only that, they completely replaced the motherboard.
Mom's a bit of a techno-phobe. She won't get an answering machine for the phone. And she's hardly ever home anyway, with church, bowling, visiting shut-ins, etc. Mom stopped using her Underwood typewriter and moved up to an electric only 15 years ago. She's really shy about moving up to a computer, but I told her she'd be able to keep up with all the relatives who are already surfing the web. Everyone her age in our family is retired and traveling around the country ... and she never can reach them at home. The real selling point of getting her to accept the laptop (besides my buying it for her) is that they all have email. (I'm also paying for her monthly internet connection.)
So here I am tonight, on the machine I've set up for her, making sure all the settings are correct. Tomorrow at work I'm going to use Ghost to create a bootable DVD with the default image of the hard drive. That way if she downloads the Internet's worst virus, she can simple reset the machine with the DVD. (Did I mention I also purchased Norton AntiVirus for her and installed it? Did I mention I'm the world best son? Did I mention I hope to get the old Underwood from her and put it on E-Bay?!)  July 08 Great Place to Buy FromMy cousin Jack (who works with me) turned me on to buying from NewEgg.com a couple of years ago. Recently he had some problems with a manufacturer's rebate ... i.e., the manufacturer wouldn't give him the rebate they offered. NewEgg paid it instead! You can see the full story on Jack's blog. |
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