[GRLUG] NOT LINUX

[Michael Mol]

On Fri, Sep 14, 2012 at 4:06 PM, Bob Kline <bob.kline at gmail.com> wrote:
> http://omnibus.bobanna.com/isp_ratings/
>
> Ratings of home ISP's.
>
> It's hard to say whether CR's criteria have
> changed a lot in four years, leading it to say
> that no ISP now offers much value, or
> whether the ISPs have in some what brought
> this on themselves.
>
> Of more importance are the relative ratings,
> which having changed much.  WOW and FiOS
> rock, and the rest are mostly all that is available
> in a given area.

I've got a Consumer Reports subscription (I only do the web interface,
not the paper one). Here's the CYA caveat info from the relevant page:

"These Ratings are based on 42,939 respondents to the Consumer Reports
Annual Telecom Survey, online in spring 2008, who received
Internet/online access from a local provider, regardless if the
service was part of a bundled package or not."

I don't know why there are differences in the pictures of the 2010 and
2012 graphs...but I haven't seen a physical copy of that page, either.

There is one trend worth observing: ISPs based on technology requiring
newer infrastructure (i.e. FiOS) rate higher. One thing not reflected
in the CR data is availability; FiOS is exceedingly uncommon, and is
not expanding rapidly, contrary to what the CR buying guide currently
(I checked) states.

-- 
:wq