Direcway Satelite Internet -my lastest experience.

rockyridgefarm · Jul 21, 2002

I was having terribly slow browsing, so I called Direcway service, and there didn't seem to be anything that we could find, until smoke started billowing out of my PC... Turns out the computer was dying!

I upgraded from a P3 800 to a P4 1800, and now my internet really sings. I use DSL at work, and am hard pressed to feel any differance with the satelite at home, now.

I have made several posts where i gave it mixed reviews, but if DSL or cable isn't an option, go Direcway. But be sure to get it from them, not some reseller, like earthlink or pegasus.

Ping times are still high, but not too bad... Again, if you have up to date equipment, it sure beats dial up in a rural loaction.

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://dtv.direcway.com>http://dtv.direcway.com</A>

JoeR · Jul 21, 2002

Mike,

Have you used Direcway to connect to a VPN? Any latency problems?

Thanks,

Joe

Wil · Jul 21, 2002

Why do you say not to by from Eartlink or Pegasus??
I would save money on my monthly service charges if I bought from Earthlink.

rockyridgefarm · Jul 22, 2002

Satelite brings new meaning to latency. Try 700ms. I doubt vpn is any hope; I haven't even tried it. Forget VOIP and online gaming, for sure.

That said, I'll try to do some more testing with my faster box, to see what I get. But I wouldn't hold out much hope for vpn. If I could get wireless, isdn, dsl, or cable; I would. I can't. But Satelite does really well for wht we use it for.

For downloading, streaming video, or browsing, it really does well.

I cannot figure out why most folks don't understand latency.

rockyridgefarm · Jul 22, 2002

I have been involved with about 20 satelite installations; so that doesn't make me a total neophite, or an expert, either.

But I have never seen an installation done by earthlink, or pegasus, that didn't turn out to be a total fiasco. Either from operation or billing. I have yet to see one that didn't end up being ripped back out.

Billing brings out another issue, you are paying earthlink for a service provided by hughes, and it seems that you end up a stepchild. I see frequent updates that are only for hughes customers. and my support is much better.

If you go with earthlink, and prove me wrong, that's great!/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I only warn you to check it out. <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.dslreports.com>http://www.dslreports.com</A> usually has reviews of providers that might help.

BOOMERANG · Jul 22, 2002

I have been using STARBAND satellite service for about a year now and it works great for basic internet service. The delay however does kill any hopes of using VPN or VoIP. I can get my VPN connection established, but its slower than dial up once its running.

Trev · Jul 22, 2002

We've been terribly disappointed in our satellite connection. It was the only thing we could get, called DirecPC back then, and it's just plain awful. Of course they can't help the latency problems.. it takes a given amount of time for those signals to bounce around the satellites.. but they lose our email, they haven't a clue on their help desk, they require Winblows software running so you can't go to something nice like Linux or Max OS-X, and the actual browsing experience is far worse than a normal dialup. We'd go back to dialup if only our rural area had equipment made during this century.

YMMV. For your sake, I hope so!!

Good luck,
Bob

rockyridgefarm · Jul 22, 2002

I've BEEN there, but not now.

Are you on Dial return, or sat return? Do you have the latest software? When I downloaded the latest my performance went way up! And, like I said, the PC upgrade was a MASSIVE improvement. I would not have guessed how much it helped...

Direcpc did have a major email snafu a little while back, and they openly admited it. I can't say that I've seen any hitches since thay got it back up....

Before I got to the latest setup, I used to have to run websetup from time to time to make sure I had the best config to the bird. The latest version works differantly, and I stay locked on pretty well...

Direcway isn't perfect, far from it. But satelite is my only option, my dialup is through a slc and tops at 21.6k. I have had trouble but now it is really working well.

rockyridgefarm · Jul 22, 2002

YMMV. For your sake, I hope so!!

i do not understand...

MikePA · Jul 22, 2002

Your Mileage May Vary

Trev · Jul 22, 2002

Are you on Dial return, or sat return? Do you have the latest software? When I downloaded the latest my performance went way up! And, like I said, the PC upgrade was a MASSIVE improvement. I would not have guessed how much it helped...


We're on satellite return. We had the latest software, although my wife said just yesterday that a new one was announced.. she said she'd wait until 4am to download it since things are so slow.

I'm glad you're is working well.. maybe there is hope for us! /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif I know my wife monitors the DSL Reports discussions, and she laughs about how whenever someone suddenly gets access to DSL or cable, they say "See ya round, I'm outta here!!" /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif We continue to hope we'll get cable in our area some day, but so far no dice.

Trev · Jul 22, 2002

YMMV. For your sake, I hope so!!

i do not understand...


Sorry. YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary.

rockyridgefarm · Jul 22, 2002

well, then, the biggest help I found was the PC upgrade, that took me from dial-up to broadband... Before I upgraded it; I had to use the system at weird hours, now it works great all the time

My signal strength is right at 74, although they claim that 34 or so is enough.

BTW if you have been experiencing terrible service, ask for compensation - it shouldn't be hard to get a few free months service, I have done that in the past when I was having problems....

Trev · Jul 22, 2002

Hi Mike,

BTW if you have been experiencing terrible service, ask for compensation - it shouldn't be hard to get a few free months service, I have done that in the past when I was having problems....


I'll mention this to my wife, who does most of the computing from home.. I'm lucky.. I have a work connection and they don't mind me using it for personal stuff as long as my work gets done. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

Have you run into the FAP?? This was one of my wife's biggest complaints.. they oversold the service, and then, to keep the whole thing alive, they started penalizing people who downloaded "too much" within a certain amount of time. I was furious.. we *paid* for that download speed, and we weren't abusing it.. an occassional download, listen to the Art Bell archives, nothing major. But when they would kick in their FAP ("Fair Access Policy") our speed would drop to that of a 28.8 modem. This has been a major source of contention.. the over-selling of the service, and the inevitable lousy service to those who have no option but satellite.

Have you gotten into the whole FAP game?

Thanks for the suggestion of asking for compensation.. I'll try that.

bob

rockyridgefarm · Jul 22, 2002

Have you gotten into the whole FAP game?

That has never been a problem for us... We HAVE downloades music, but never all that much, but i have heard others complain of being FAP'd

Have you been to <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.mydirecway.com>http://www.mydirecway.com</A>? The speed test there allows a log file, which might help you get a better picture for the hughes guys to see what's happening...

Besides, the music is kinda cool...

Mrwurm · Aug 8, 2002

I know that I'm jumping into this thread late, but can anyone tell me what a 'VPN' or 'VOIP' is? I'm considering hooking up to Directway.

hayes · Aug 8, 2002

A "VPN" is a Virtual Private Network, this allows the network operator to reserve a certain amount of bandwidth for a customer throughtout the network, kinda like having your own LAN, you are still sharing physical resources, but are guaranteed bandwidth. (Or so they say).

"VOIP" is Voice over Internet Protocol, this is sending voice over a data network, ie no long distance charges. Not sure how good the quality has gotten, but its out there.

Larry

Wingnut · Aug 8, 2002

VPN
"supposedly" not just bandwidth, but also technology to make it private. It has been called "tunnelling" in some circles ... allows you to mimic a private WAN (wide-area network) or LAN (local area network) over the internet.
VOIP
technology has definitely paid off here ... even the telecommunications companies are pushing VOIP ... and big companies like the one I work for are converting to cut down on those long distance charges.

Mrwurm · Aug 8, 2002

OK, I'm going to be taking online classes and 'online presentations' are required. The online class uses 'Black Board" software and uses a pc microphone for presenations. Will satellite such as DirectWay be able to do this?