[GRLUG] ISP shopping

Fri Jun 24 15:47:38 EDT 2011

Mike,

I used to work for iServ - call them up and have them actually perform the
necessary checks. They have several different offerings. Most likely they
ran your address into a simple checker that just didn't get the data
correctly... if you already have ATT DSL then iServ can service it as well
(they simply re-sell ATT DSL...). They also have additional high speed DSL
services that they maintain for a higher cost, in addition to T1 lines. I
would, however, recommend calling someone else. The prices that you pay for
most of the iServ services will be higher than if you were to call up SBC
and order a T1 to your home. Really the only benefit that I saw with iServ
was the local IT support - when you call, you talk to someone who is
actually somewhat knowledgeable and who lives in the area.

Thanks,
*Richard Maloley II*
*Rick and Richard Computer Consulting*
p: 616-745-6914
e: richard at rrcomputerconsulting.com
w: http://www.rrcomputerconsulting.com

On Fri, Jun 24, 2011 at 3:32 PM, Michael Mol <mikemol at gmail.com> wrote:

> I'm about to write Iserv off. Email I got following my request for a quote:
>
> "I am responding to the inquiry for digital broadband high-speed
> internet. Unfortunately, it looks like high-speed service is not
> available at your location. Thank you for your interest."
>
> Nearly at a loss for words...I've got ADSL already, and the apartment
> was wired for U-Verse when I moved in. Perhaps their idea of
> "high-speed services" is limited to T1s and metro ethernet?
>
> On Thu, Jun 23, 2011 at 10:14 AM, Michael Mol <mikemol at gmail.com> wrote:
> > Yeah, iserv is legit. They were one of our competitors when my parents
> > ran an ISP.
> >
> > On Thu, Jun 23, 2011 at 10:01 AM, Matthew Seeley
> > <matthew at threadlight.com> wrote:
> >> I have never actually had service with them yet, but if your looking for
> >> something like Speakeasy, Iserv.net is local to Grand Rapids, and they
> seem
> >> legit.
> >> For some reason, they hide services and pricing offline -- so you'll
> have to
> >> call or 'live chat' with them to get a quote.
> >> But they quoted me $50/month for 5mb down for "dry dsl" which seems
> >> reasonable. It's $20ish dollars more per month than the same speeds from
> >> AT&T U-Verse in my area, and you have to agree to a contract,  but Iserv
> >> gives you get a real modem (for "free"), and a static IP address (also
> for
> >> "free").
> >>
> >> (I'm switching to them sometime in September, and can let you know how
> it
> >> goes)
> >>
> >> --
> >> Matthew Seeley
> >> Threadlight Systems
> >> PO Box 612, Jenison MI 49429
> >> T: (616) 328-5649
> >>
> >>
> >> On Wed, Jun 22, 2011 at 2:35 PM, Michael Mol <mikemol at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> On Wed, Jun 22, 2011 at 2:31 PM, Bob Kline <bob.kline at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >>> >
> >>> >
> >>> > On Wed, Jun 22, 2011 at 2:28 PM, Philip J. Robar
> >>> > <philip.robar at gmail.com>
> >>> > wrote:
> >>> >>
> >>> >> On Jun 22, 2011, at 1:44 PM, Michael Mol wrote:
> >>> >>
> >>> >> > I'm shopping for an ISP for home. Not going to touch Comcast or
> >>> >> > U-verse for this. U-verse because I don't like their router, and
> >>> >> > Comcast because the local loop's bandwidth will be shared with too
> >>> >> > many other local customers.
> >>> >>
> >>> >> I had Comcast in an pretty dense apartment location in the heart of
> the
> >>> >> SF
> >>> >> Bay Area, California for years and never had a problem with shared
> >>> >> bandwidth
> >>> >> or their service. Currently I'm using Charter here in St. Louis and
> >>> >> I've
> >>> >> never noticed a slow down.
> >>> >>
> >>> >> Phil
> >>> >>
> >>> >>
> >>> > I was told by a Comcast rep that one of the things
> >>> > get with a business class service is "preferential
> >>> > treatment" with bandwidth.  Somehow they
> >>> > allow the business traffic through preferentially
> >>> > if there is congestion.
> >>>
> >>> That's QoS with preferential routing. A reasonable option, but I've
> >>> got worries about Comcast doing DPI traffic shaping even on their
> >>> commercial customers, especially considering I'm going to be pushing
> >>> VOIP.
> >>>
> >>> Also, when I last had Comcast, they had regular-as-clockwork service
> >>> outages at about 2:30AM every Wednesday night, at about the same time
> >>> as all their video channels gave the "this is a test of the emergency
> >>> broadcast system" message. I wouldn't use them for anything that
> >>> needed to run reliably overnight.
> >>>
> >>> --
> >>> :wq
> >>>
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> >
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