Rural Telephone and DSL

[TerryinMD]

One of the basic problems with any vendor offering DSL is how they deploy the technology. It boils down to how much real estate is available in a given CO.

DSL equipment takes rack space. A DSLAM is about as big as an average 27" TV and can hold a few line cards. The line card density is about 24 ports. Each port services one customer. From what I can remember, a DSL line needs 2 pairs (four wires) and these pairs are provisioned from your house to the CO (similar to your phone line which uses one pair (two wires).

Additionally, you need to have network concentrators (routers or switches) between the DSLAMS and the IP network (the Internet) to get the traffic routed to it's destination. Again, more real estate.

Now, I can imagine that DSL providers can build out mini-COs to service their customers. However, that means that they have to terminate the copper cabling near those mini-COs to service both telephone, DSL, and any other telecommunications service. The mini-COs also need to have power and air conditioning. Those network devices generate a lot of heat. Fiber optic devices need this more than others.

Some of the technologies may have changed since I last worked with DSL, but the basics are still the same. You need space, electricity, and cooling if you have a large concentration of telecommunications devices. The SLCs (pronounced slicks) could help concentrate the POTS but you need something at the other end to split out the POTS and data services. The real estate problem remains.

So, I guess what I'm trying to explain is that there is a lot more to the high speed data services than you might expect. Additionally, there is a difference in the technologies. Oh, I forgot to mention. The use of DSL to split your telephone and data on one service does exist and will be expanded in the near future. That is why you will see the Ma Bells jumping in on the service big time. The technologies are in the process of combining and the competition for our business will only heat up.

He who has the best technology and service first will get the lions share of the business. Let's wait and see how this all works out. It will be interesting.

Terry

 

[JonLeonard]

I have been watching a new service that will be coming our way for a little over a year. Its called teledesic (teledesic.com).

The service will be provided by low earth orbit satellites. Unlike the current crop of high orbit satellites that have slow response to requests (1/2 a second and up), teledesic will be significantly faster since the signal has to travel a much shorter distance. This will make it possible to use VPN and other time dependent services including on-line games.

Service isnt expected to begin until 2005 though /w3tcompact/icons/sad.gif. However when/if it does finally go live, every home in the US will have fast access to the internet.

Jon

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Terry, you seem to know your way around a SLC 96, so you might be the guy who can answer this question.
My carrier, Crappyzens, is a big lover of the SLC 96, and has a major problem rendering basic dial tone thru a SLC. I've actually sat and waited to see how long it can take to render dial tone from off hook, and the time can be up to 8 minutes on occasion. Is this a result of an insufficient number of cards being installed in the SLC, or insufficient fiber paths from the SLC to the CO?

 

[pajoube]

JonLeonard,
Will heavy weather (clouds, thundertorms) effect this service? I have dishnet now and when we have thunderstorms we lose the signal.
PJ

 

[JonLeonard]

Very little information is available right now, but from what Ive read, the satellites will be much more powerful than the ones that exist now. One of the main advantages is a reduction in the size of the equipment you need at your house. It may well help with reception as well.

Regardless of what they say though, only real usage will tell how good the service will be during things like storms. Getting good service in the middle of nowhere is worth a few hassles, ihmo, though.

 

[gws]

Re: Rural Telephone and DSL

Based on there time line this is not one I would be staying up nights waiting for

Timeline

1990
Company founded

1994
Initial system design completed; Federal Communications Commission application filed

1997
FCC license granted; World Radio Conference designates necessary international spectrum for service

1999
Teledesic signs major launch contract with Lockheed Martin

2002
Teledesic signs contract with Italian satellite manufacturer Alenia Spazio SpA to build two satellites for Teledesic's global, broadband communications network

2005
Service targeted to begin

 

[Old_Wanker]

That delay on dial tone is probably due to insufficient Dial Tone Generators. Theres a bit of math that they have done wrong with regard to how many people they expect to go off-hook at any one time.

The other thing could be crappy lines (eg bad ground) and hence the switch doesnt see you going off hook right away. More likely the dial tone generators.

 

[TerryinMD]

Franz,

I'm no real expert when it comes to troubleshooting the SLCs. My knowledge of them was when I did IT (voice and data) work for the US Army a few years back.

I believe that Old Wanker is probably on to the problem. From the descriptions you've provided, it sounds as though you live in an area with a cobbled system which is not very well designed and maintained. Your best recourse would be to get with your neighbors and complain to your state PUC. There are health and safety issues that you might want to highlight (use the obvious to state your case). Maybe this will get their attention.

Good luck.

Satellite and the Internet - I have not heard of Teledisc and I agree with the "don't hold your breath assessment". By the time they have that technology deployed, ground-based systems will have improved by leaps and bounds. Look to your cable providers for improved services in the future. Just like the phone companies, they are upgrading their infrastructure with fiber optic cables and will provide TV, audio, voice, and data services in the future. All of these technologies are melding together and the consumer will have many different vendor selections.

Now, to get back to the original post - when will all of this happen for the rural customer. The simple answer is that it will take awhile. /w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Terry

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

<font color=blue>"Now, to get back to the original post - when will all of this happen for the rural customer. The simple answer is that it will take awhile"</font color=blue>

It sounds like we might need something along the lines of a Tennessee Valley Authority for rural high speed internet access.

My drive is exactly half a mile from cable service for not only television but also internet access. The pat answer I've gotten from the provider for years about getting cable at my place is, "We have no plans in place to expand service in that direction."

If they did expand 3/4 of a mile in my direction they'd probably only gain access to a dozen or so potential customers. Another couple miles beyond that wouldn't double that number. It's simply not cost effective for the providers to go into less densely populated areas.

It wasn't that many years ago that rural customers were faced with the same situation with electrical service. The private utilities only wanted to service more densely populated areas. That's the situation that the TVA was formed to solve.

I doubt anything like that will happen, but I couldn't help but think of the similarities.

 

[DavidInNH]

I don't think the economics are ever going to make sense for high-speed wireline services to low-density rural locations and I will be surprised to see the government enact an analog of the Rural Electification Act. I bet we are looking at sattelite and other wireless services for a long time to come. According to <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.fcc.gov/rural/>http://www.fcc.gov/rural/</A> it doesn't look like much has been happening from the FCC.


-david