Wild Hooey! A broadband bitch session. (Please ignore)
I may or may nor have posted on WildBlue, the satellite ISP that went online late last year. Before I left my previous job, I was working quoting the antenna system for what ended up being the satellite that carries WildBlue. For the longest time, I was under the impression my previous employer won the contract ( things were looking good at the time). Alas, our competitor ended up building and launching the satellite which uses Ka spot beam technology.
Having read up on WildBlue's other technologies I was convinced that they had the best technology available and when I heard they were going to start pricing at $49.99 I was enthusiastic. Maybe finally, I could be free of my terrible landline connection. There was also the promise (at least initiaaly) that WB would not implement a draconian Fair Access Policy (FAP) such as the one that plagues The Angry Engineer (maybe that's why he's so angry?).
Last year around this time Ihad gone to WildBlue's website to sign up. Maybe I could beta test. After all I used to design antennas for satellites I also have plently of experience with computers and dish alignments. No, it turns out that beta testing would be done only in Colorado...er something like that. So, I added my self to their waiting list. They told me they would contact me when service was available.
I checked back in June and found that service had gone live. Alas, there were no installers in my area. It was around this time I found a user board for WB called "WildBlue Uncensored". I had a busy summer and didn't really miss having a useable landline let alone broadband. The landline though, got a lot worse. Finally in November it got so bad that I could not receive calls. I called Verizon and they wanted a tech to enter the house ( My NID is in my basement) an action that instantly incurrs a $90 charge. No way, unless they fixed the problem I was finally going to get WildBlue. Verizon relented and finally fixed the line and also admitted that there were seriouis problems with the line.
The line has been reasonable since then, but with my yearly bonus a week away I decided I was going to get WildBlue anyway. Unfortunately, I received this message:
After some digging in January I discovered that "soon" actually meant, within a year or two. After WildBlue gets the go-ahead to launch a new satellite, completed In Orbit Testing (IOT) and does another round of beta testing. That really doesn't cut it as "soon" in my book. I contacted the "local" (100 miles away) Co-Op performing installs and WildBlue and both confirmed that the beam was "full". After some mulling and kicking a can down the road in frustration, I relented. Perhaps DirecWay was my only option.
As an aside, during this time I also looked at Verizon's BroadBand access. This would work just fine for my needs except they require you to have a laptop. You see, they in no way want you to replace their landline. It's possible to use a Bluetooth enable phone instead, but this is against their terms of service. So, even if I am willing to pay $60/month for the priveleg, they won't let me add a data plan to my phone.
At last the day came, I was going to order DirecWay. I went one last time to WB Uncensored and poked around looking for hope. It was at that time I found a user eager to get out of their contract and, even better, they were only a short drive away. I made an attempt to contact the person and didn't hear back until last Friday. I was elated. That is until I received a call on Saturday informing me that this person had sent WildBlue a nasty letter in the intervening week and WildBlue had let her our of her contract....and given it to someone else. I felt gipped. I mean, I had been on the waiting list since they had a waiting list..before they even had any installers and had been passed over because there are no installers in the area.
So, here I am bitching on my blog. I posted a plea on the WB Uncensored forum. There are plenty of people unhappy with WildBlue. Apparently, it's not all that good for P2P. They also implemented a FAP, but it is still tons better than DWay. We'll see if anyone bites.
....sincerley, Pathetic in Polkton Twp.
Having read up on WildBlue's other technologies I was convinced that they had the best technology available and when I heard they were going to start pricing at $49.99 I was enthusiastic. Maybe finally, I could be free of my terrible landline connection. There was also the promise (at least initiaaly) that WB would not implement a draconian Fair Access Policy (FAP) such as the one that plagues The Angry Engineer (maybe that's why he's so angry?).
Last year around this time Ihad gone to WildBlue's website to sign up. Maybe I could beta test. After all I used to design antennas for satellites I also have plently of experience with computers and dish alignments. No, it turns out that beta testing would be done only in Colorado...er something like that. So, I added my self to their waiting list. They told me they would contact me when service was available.
I checked back in June and found that service had gone live. Alas, there were no installers in my area. It was around this time I found a user board for WB called "WildBlue Uncensored". I had a busy summer and didn't really miss having a useable landline let alone broadband. The landline though, got a lot worse. Finally in November it got so bad that I could not receive calls. I called Verizon and they wanted a tech to enter the house ( My NID is in my basement) an action that instantly incurrs a $90 charge. No way, unless they fixed the problem I was finally going to get WildBlue. Verizon relented and finally fixed the line and also admitted that there were seriouis problems with the line.
The line has been reasonable since then, but with my yearly bonus a week away I decided I was going to get WildBlue anyway. Unfortunately, I received this message:
" We apologize, but due to overwhelming demand, we are not currently performing installations in your area. We hope to resume doing so in the coming months. Please register and we will inform you as soon as installations resume in your area."I went to the WB Uncensored forum where I discovered many users encountering problems uploading to WildBlue. After about a month of investigation I discovered that the spot beam covering my geographic area was full. In my fantasy world, this is all because of suburban Chicago-landers, but I have no proof. There was much speculation at the time issues would be fixed after the New Year. Note the word "soon" in the message above.
After some digging in January I discovered that "soon" actually meant, within a year or two. After WildBlue gets the go-ahead to launch a new satellite, completed In Orbit Testing (IOT) and does another round of beta testing. That really doesn't cut it as "soon" in my book. I contacted the "local" (100 miles away) Co-Op performing installs and WildBlue and both confirmed that the beam was "full". After some mulling and kicking a can down the road in frustration, I relented. Perhaps DirecWay was my only option.
As an aside, during this time I also looked at Verizon's BroadBand access. This would work just fine for my needs except they require you to have a laptop. You see, they in no way want you to replace their landline. It's possible to use a Bluetooth enable phone instead, but this is against their terms of service. So, even if I am willing to pay $60/month for the priveleg, they won't let me add a data plan to my phone.
At last the day came, I was going to order DirecWay. I went one last time to WB Uncensored and poked around looking for hope. It was at that time I found a user eager to get out of their contract and, even better, they were only a short drive away. I made an attempt to contact the person and didn't hear back until last Friday. I was elated. That is until I received a call on Saturday informing me that this person had sent WildBlue a nasty letter in the intervening week and WildBlue had let her our of her contract....and given it to someone else. I felt gipped. I mean, I had been on the waiting list since they had a waiting list..before they even had any installers and had been passed over because there are no installers in the area.
So, here I am bitching on my blog. I posted a plea on the WB Uncensored forum. There are plenty of people unhappy with WildBlue. Apparently, it's not all that good for P2P. They also implemented a FAP, but it is still tons better than DWay. We'll see if anyone bites.
....sincerley, Pathetic in Polkton Twp.
posted by Oberon at 9:23 AM
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