Broadband/phone packages UK

[Non-Driver]

Maybe I'm being a tight-wad, but.....

Have been with Tiscali for about 3 years and now that Talk Talk have completed the takeover they have kindly informed me they're jacking the price by 25% for the same package. Whilst the overall hike ain't a great deal of cash (not a heavy user of phone or broadband) it does grate. That said I can't find anything much cheaper and a key point is I don't want to change e-mail addresses. We do have Sky so was wondering if that incremental cost was better but can't confirm categorically if the tiscali e-mail will still work on POP3 with Thunderbird through Sky (Talk Talk claim it will stay live if I use it every 30 days). I have a general dislike of webmail (must be my age).

Any thoughts on Sky as a provider, any alternatives and a robust way of continuing POP3 service on same address ? We have a ~5MB performance limit on current BT line and whilst we have had a couple of very frustrating outages, on the whole the current service is fairly reliable. I have tried negotiating with TT but the best I can get is 0870 numbers thrown in :ugh:

[al446]

To ensure your email is safe, why not just get a Hotmail or Google account? OK it's a one-off change but will remain no matter who your ISP is.I have never regretted it.

Due to price and caps I moved from Zen, who were excellent, to Plusnet. This is for BB only and I notice the difference, this may be just a local issue, they claim it is not contention ratio but I do not believe them.

You pays your money and take your chances for 12 months.

[P.Pilcher]

Another vote for both of al446's suggestions. I've been with plusnet ever since my exchange was broadband enabled six years ago. I rarely bother them, they host my website - it just works!

P.P.

[call100]

I have Gmail and GMX mail.....Although you say you do not like webmail it makes sense to have something like these or Hotmail. When you use an email client like Thunderbird or outlook you won't know the difference and you will have total flexibility.
I have cable BB so no little about ADSL. Don't Plusnet offer a rolling 30 day contract if you pay up front for equipment?

[Don Coyote]

I set up my own domain with 1 and 1, I can now change broadband provider whenever I like without worrying about having to change my email address.

I don't mind hotmail or gmail for forums but it never felt right for formal emails.

[Keef]

As Don Coyote says! I set up my own domains (one private, one Church, one flying group) many years ago, and have changed ISPs a few times since. Nobody needs to know I've changed, and there's no problem with e-mail addresses changing.

A friend of mine went with Sky, and wishes he hadn't. Their server will only let you send using the Sky e-mail address they give you, and it blocks stuff he doesn't want blocked. It's cheap, but it's user-unfriendly.

I use PlusNet in the Norfolk hideout, and it "just works". I get 7 - 8 meg pretty much any time of day or night - but this is a little village and there aren't many people to "contend" with.

My former neighbour in Essex is with TalkTalk, having moved her telephone to them, and she has terrible problems with it not working on various occasions. Once the contract period is up, I reckon she'll be going back to BT and PlusNet.

So: buy your own .uk domain - should cost about £6 for two years, with basic mail and web (no hosting). Set up mailboxes to forward to your ISP address, and webforwarding to your ISP webspace, and job done. When you change ISP, you go into the control panel and change a couple of settings, and job done.

[GOLF_BRAVO_ZULU]

Non-Driver. I've got the same problem with TalkTalk. Their latest reply to my complaint was:

I have looked into your account and can see that you have been on Tiscali Max 40GB plus Anytime Talk II since December of 2009. In your July invoice your subscription was 19.99 and in your August invoice a price increase is showing from 20th of July. This brings your monthly subscription to £22.48. If you are not happy with this change in your price plan, I have to advise you to contact our Re-pricing team. They may be able to put you back on your old price plan.

One of our guiding principals as Tiscali becomes part of the TalkTalk group is to ensure we are transparent. With that principal in mind, we have aligned all of our product packages and pricing within the TalkTalk Group. This means some customers will get a price decrease, some customers’ prices will stay the same, and some will receive an increase.


Anyway, I've just telephoned 0800 1105850 and they put me through to the Tiscali desk; result, refund of the additional charge for August and I will get the next 6 Months at the £11.99 introductory rate. I haven't had my confirmation e-mail yet though. Being firm, insistent and indignant but polite seemed to do the trick.

[mixture]

Any thoughts on Sky as a provider

The underlying Easynet core network (which they got their hands on via acquisition) is excellent BUT I suspect you will only see the benefit if you are on Easynet's own branded DSL (which is targetted at businesses). I've got the feeling Sky's own product might be the same old rate-limited, packet-shaped stuff you'll see elsewhere.

UKOnline might be worth a look. They were an Easynet (long before Sky) acquisition and therefore probably of reasonable quality.

Otherwise, I've yet to hear a bad thing about Zen. Who I gather are well worth the slight premium price.

(Don't have any incentive to promote either of the above)

[Mike-Bracknell]

Whatever you do, check the term lengths on your broadband. I have a sneaking feeling once FTTx is rolled out in a great way at the end of the year, we're going to have one hell of a price and performance war between the FTTx providers and Virgin Cable. We as an ISP are ramping up our offering to take into account the ability to resell FTTx at the start of next year, and I expect the takeup to be quite strong.

[mixture]

I have a sneaking feeling once FTTx is rolled out in a great way at the end of the year

Being a bit optimisitc aren't we MB..... :cool:

[papabravowhiskey]

Another vote for Plusnet. I was with NTL (their ADSL offering rather than cable), then Freedom2surf, then Tiscali took over F2S and degraded the service. Moved to Plusnet's basic broadband service ("up to" 20 Mb/s - I get 8 - and a 10GB monthly download cap) plus phone line for under £18/month all in. Plus is a BT subsidiary.

Regards
PBW

[mixture]

Plus is a BT subsidiary.

You missed out an important word...... independent

Post-merger, they currently operate as a wholly owned independent subsidiary of BT Retail.

Which is a good thing for reasons best left unsaid. :cool:

[jxc]

For my internet hosting i use freeola

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And for website design diy very easy

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[Cornish Jack]

...and another for Plusnet. Have tried, in order of succession, AOL, BT, Tiscali TalkTalk and Orange. Each became progressively more and more rubbishy with TT having made irritating uselessness into something approaching an art form!!:mad::mad:
Asked on here for recommendations and went with Plusnet. Helpful to a fault and, so far, providing a (subjectively) faster and more reliable service. Since this is on the same bit of copper wire, it seems odd but long may it continue:ok: Pays yer money and takes yer choice:)

[BOAC]

Being a bit optimisitc aren't we MB..... http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/cool.gif - indeed - he obviously believes Mr Vaizey and Hunt and BT (small club), although it may well happen in Bracknell I suppose.

Out 'ere in t'sticks it will be a decade before FTTC arrives, I reckon, and FTTP- well, I may get it piped to my coffin. Obviously MB has no idea of the state of our 'local copper' (and I don't mean PC Plod).

[crewmeal]

If you have an o2 mobile, broadband can work out really cheap. I've just negotiated 7.50 a month with the first 3 months free. I can't get more than 7gbs in my area so there is no point in try to get a service with 20gbs. There are certainly some bargins to be had if you look around.

[390cruise]

Hi

Cornish Jack said 'TT turned irritating uselessness into something approaching an art form' .


Well all I can say is my experience with them is much much worse.

I will not bore you with details but would say if you think the period under contract is bad, regular loss of broadband both at the start and during use.

Then you should see what happens when you try to leave them!!!!!

Try unhelpful, incompetent, dishonest and in the end just nasty!!

Apart from that they were very good!!

390

[Crashpad]

I have been at a friends today sorting out his Computer. He is currently with AOL, usual mess, useless and burrows into the computer messing it up....Looked into changing his ISP and the only option he has is TalkTalk and BT. He can't get any other providers at his location.....Between the Devil and the Deep by the look of it.. As budget is tight the TT package is in the lead at the moment.http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/puppy_dog_eyes.gif

[390cruise]

Hi Crashpad

If he has a BT line then he has a number of options

390

[jimtherev]

I'm sure that AOL deserve some of the stuff that is said about them, but I've had an AOL contract since 56k days (not changed for a number of good-to-me reasons), and,

- now a rock-solid 6.5 - 7M on an 8M contract,
- never a sniff of an 'unreasonable usage' penalty, ever, tho' I give 'em some hammer from time to time,
- not one outage for the past 6 months; a few hours in the past 5 years,
- they can be talked down from their published prices if you approach 'em right, and
- their spam filter and 'away message' services work impeccably for me.

I'll maybe change when I move out of London in a year's time, but I've no reason whatsoever to do anything now.

[mixture]

Aren't AOL Carphone Warehouse these days ?

[al446]

Please do not take my post #2 as an endorsement of Plusnet, it is far from that but I am aware that my problems are down to distance by copper from exchange and BT throttling my speed. PN have no influence on this as they simply resell a product. Why Zen, who are LLU, can do this (speed over 512 in contrast to PN's 18ish) and BT cannot I have no idea. I believe that in circumstances other than mine PN can be quite good.
Don't know about AOL these days, I just hate their software which is like herpes of the computer, you will never get rid of it.

Future for me is either back to Zen or use mobile PAYG for speed plus a LLU supplier with no d/l cap for volume.

Phone is a different matter.

[390cruise]

Mixture

I think you might find Talk Talk are part of Carphone Warehouse rather than AOL. I believe AOL are part of Time Warner.

Talk Talk appear to use some AOL software.

390

[Mike-Bracknell]

Being a bit optimisitc aren't we MB.....
- indeed - he obviously believes Mr Vaizey and Hunt and BT (small club), although it may well happen in Bracknell I suppose.

Out 'ere in t'sticks it will be a decade before FTTC arrives, I reckon, and FTTP- well, I may get it piped to my coffin. Obviously MB has no idea of the state of our 'local copper' (and I don't mean PC Plod).

Not really. I know at least 3 friends who've already got it, in Manchester and Hampshire. My exchange is scheduled for December 2010.

I know there's a few teething issues (like the rollout logistics are back to the bad old days of early BT rollouts), and maybe Dec 2010 is a little optimistic, but first quarter 2011 is a little more realistic, and that's when we're intending to start reselling it (not through BT).

Please do not take my post #2 as an endorsement of Plusnet, it is far from that but I am aware that my problems are down to distance by copper from exchange and BT throttling my speed. PN have no influence on this as they simply resell a product. Why Zen, who are LLU, can do this (speed over 512 in contrast to PN's 18ish) and BT cannot I have no idea
LLU providers have a difference from the BT offering thus:

1) Different DSLAMs in the exchange (differing manuf/cost/quality/firmware)
2) Different backhaul from the exchange to their network

So, as for #1 your modem/router can sync at a specific speed based upon the efficiency of it's handshake between it and the DSLAM, and as for #2 if you sync at a high enough speed then don't get enough of a real-life speed over it then it's to do with the backhaul being either too small, too congested, or both.

e.g. IF you had an Alcatel chipset in your home router, and your exchange LLU provider uses an Alcatel DSLAM, and you're both using router and DSLAM firmware designed for proper interop between themselves, and you're the only LLU user from that specific provider in the exchange, and the backhaul from the exchange to the ISP (and onto the internet) is greater than your modem sync rate, THEN you're going to get the fastest speed available.

...and any deviation from the above optimum scenario *can* have a greater or lesser effect upon the speed you'll get.

e.g. If your modem is Alcatel and your DSLAM is Fujitsu it may not be able to sync at the same rate as an Alcatel-Alcatel or Fujitsu-Fujitsu pairing, or if your ISP hasn't kept up it's interop work with the modem/router manufacturers or hasn't patched the DSLAMs then you might get a lower sync as well. Then despite the sync rate, if you have more users competing for the same bandwidth provided by the ISP through the entire length of the journey to the internet, you're going to get a lower bandwidth than expected anyway. Remember, the contention ratio basically relates to the amount of customer connections sharing the same ISP bandwidth.

HTH.
Mike.

[mixture]

MB,

Manchester and Hampshire

Manchester doesn't count as it's next best to London in terms of availability of whatever connectivity your heart desires. I suspect Hampshire might not be too bad off either, being affluent commuter belt territory. :cool:

I'm taking a more wait and see attitude.....I suspect there might be some skeletons awaiting to emerge from the closet..... theory vs practice and all that.

LLU providers have a difference from the BT offering thus:

1) Different DSLAMs in the exchange (differing manuf/cost/quality/firmware)
2) Different backhaul from the exchange to their network


You missed (at least) one.....

3) Different network policies (traffic shaping etc.) and product definitions (contention etc.)

390cruise

BBC NEWS | Business | Carphone Warehouse buying AOL UK (11 October 2006) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/6039740.stm)

I rest my case.

[Crashpad]

Hi Crashpad

If he has a BT line then he has a number of options

390
More info please.....Doing a postcode and line check on all the majors indicates they don't provide in his area....Only BT and TT....If I could get him something unlimited for the same price TT are offering with phone and BB then result all round....

[jimtherev]

Don't know about AOL these days, I just hate their software which is like herpes of the computer, you will never get rid of it.

Agreed. Stopped using their ideosyncratic perverse apology for software two computers ago.
But then I use Outlook as part of my calorie controlled diet - which will probably enrage a whole heap of other people. :)

[mixture]

Crashpad,

More info please.....Doing a postcode and line check on all the majors indicates they don't provide in his area....Only BT and TT....If I could get him something unlimited for the same price TT are offering with phone and BB then result all round....

Quite simple really.

There are two ways ADSL to end up in your house. LLU Backhaul (using copper provided by BT Openreach) and BT Backhaul (by enabling ADSL signal on your common BT Retail PSTN - a.k.a "phone" - line).

Therefore, by definition, anyone who isn't a LLU operator will be using BT backhaul. LLU operators being : AOL, Be, Bulldog, Talk Talk, Sky/Easynet, Edge, Tiscali, Orange.

(Alright, perhaps a little bit of a over-simplification in the above paragraph because LLU operators can easily also operate BT backhaul in parallel in order to capture customers that they would otherwise miss ... and most do this. The other over simiplification is you've got to weed out the LLU resellers ... who are just middle-men).

Might be worth you trying the broadband checker at SamKnows.... SamKnows - Broadband Availability Checker (http://www.samknows.com/broadband/broadband_checker)

If SamKnows shows any of the BT Wholesale products as being available to you, then the above statement about non-LLU operators applies.

[BOAC]

Crashpad - your 'mate's' situation is identical to mine, and fairly common - the local 'parent' exchange (ADSL2=8mb) has only TT as an LLU operator- they do seem to be the most common in the LLU market. My 'exchange' (which is actually a dark and dusty corner of the parent exchange) is not 'unbundled' as there is no 'commercial interest', so all B/band is actually BT broadband however packaged by the many ISPs, and thus reliant on the rubbish lines along which it travels and subject to the contention allocation of the ISP within the BT pot. We watch larger settlements within 15km of us go up to 20mb with the odd tear in our eyes :). We are looking at all other options at the moment because of the potential decade or so before the BT woolly mammoth wakes up (or is woken up) including a private cable supply and wireless distribution.

We are not in Manchester or Hampshire.:ugh:

[Crashpad]

Samknows says that only BT wholesale, BT wholesale max and TT LLU are available.
He needs unlimited as his son has just acquired an Xbox and once he's into online gaming with his mates a limit will go out the window pretty quick I imagine.
The TT package will save him around £80 a quarter as it includes line rental and all phone calls (not just evening and weekends) so he's very interested in that.
As the speed achievable is only around 1.5Mb then I don't think he should really angst over it.
I guess it's the penalty you pay for living in the sticks!!:)

[mixture]

Crashpad,

Samknows says that only BT wholesale, BT wholesale max

Which means every man and his dog should be able to reach you (Zen, Nildram etc.)

Perhaps your problem is your distance from the local exchange. Some providers public checkers will say "no service" because of the distance from the exchange, simply due to the fact that although theoreticallly achievable, in practice, sites that are far from the exchanges are a right pain in the neck ! In the residential market, the ISPs want easy volume, not troublesome individual cases.

[cats_five]

If distance from the exchange is the issue, you might like to try Wizards - a small two-man and a dog ISP. Yes, they are middle-men, but if that's all you can get... I originally used them for exactly that reason, and didn't change when I moved to a house where I can see the exchange out of my front door as I like being able to ring & talk to Hugh or Chris. They were quite helpful as well about me prizing a domain from the grasp of an awful ISP that wasn't renewing it.

wizards: Wizards (http://www.wizards.co.uk/)

PS one of them is Hugh and he has a strong interest in aviation, the Vulcan and so on.

[Crashpad]

Crashpad,



Which means every man and his dog should be able to reach you (Zen, Nildram etc.)

Perhaps your problem is your distance from the local exchange. Some providers public checkers will say "no service" because of the distance from the exchange, simply due to the fact that although theoreticallly achievable, in practice, sites that are far from the exchanges are a right pain in the neck ! In the residential market, the ISPs want easy volume, not troublesome individual cases.
Chasing around he can get the resellers but none are offering the package TT are tempting him with. I suppose when you are on a budget £80 a quarter means a lot....
I'll leave it up to him I think....Too much chance of the 'it was your suggestion' further down the line..:}

[newswatcher]

I have been with TalkTalk for 4 years now. Previously with Onetel, which TalkTalk took over. I pay 22GBP per month, which includes unlimited calls(not 0870,0845 etc), broadband, and line rental. During this time, I have had three outages, with a maximum of 2 hours. Customer service is frustrating, but usually delivers.

My distance from exchange limits my BB speed to 2MB, but I understand that the BT roll-out has reached the junction box at the end of the road! :ok:

I await further developments!

[Mike-Bracknell]

Mixture...

Alright, perhaps a little bit of a over-simplification in the above paragraph

Can I jump on your 99% accurate info for the 1% missed for clarity too? ;)

:E

BOAC...

We are not in Manchester or Hampshire.:ugh:

I didn't say you were. I said that the rollout HAS ALREADY HAPPENED in those two places at least, and so IT IS COMING. That was the ONLY reason I mentioned Manchester and Hampshire.

[BOAC]

MB - I'm well up to speed(:)) with the 'roll-out' and awaiting with passing interest the 'upgrade' new list to be published end Sep/early Oct (we are not on it, a well-placed source tells me, nor will we be next year) BUT the problem those not in 'Manchester' or 'Hampshire' face is that the wait, in some cases for broadband at all, is indeterminate. Our folk here on 'dial-up only' have seen the 'promise' of 2012 go back already to 2015. We don't even have a real 'exchange'.

[mixture]

MB,

Can I jump on your 99% accurate info for the 1% missed for clarity too?

At least provide a Visio diagram and PowerPoint presentation if you're going to do that. :E

[BOAC]

He needs unlimited - just be aware that you will find even with 'unlimited' ISP packages, a 'fair use' policy will be in the small print and they will probably penalise your lad if he is into heavy 'gaming' on-line.

[mixture]

just be aware that you will find even with 'unlimited' ISP packages, a 'fair use' policy will be in the small print and they will probably penalise your lad if he is into heavy 'gaming' on-line.

I will second what BOAC says, it is very rare to find residential ADSL products that don't have a 'fair use' policy where you will find yourself rate-limited and/or packet-shaped for exceeding it.

I beleive Zen were one of few exceptions to the rule, not sure if they've changed their policies for home users now though.

[Mike-Bracknell]

MB - I'm well up to speed() with the 'roll-out' and awaiting with passing interest the 'upgrade' new list to be published end Sep/early Oct (we are not on it, a well-placed source tells me, nor will we be next year) BUT the problem those not in 'Manchester' or 'Hampshire' face is that the wait, in some cases for broadband at all, is indeterminate. Our folk here on 'dial-up only' have seen the 'promise' of 2012 go back already to 2015. We don't even have a real 'exchange'.

I don't dispute that, but the reality is that BT have sunk a LOT of cash into this rollout, and are really pushing it. If therefore it is successful, and barring any protectionism spats with Ofcom, you should see the rollout schedule ripped up again (like it has been several times so far already).....as other well placed sources tell me. :)

Anyway, my original point still stands - don't get yourself stuck in a 12 month contract without knowing better, as faster things are *around the corner


(*the corner being nearer or further, depending upon your affinity to Manchester/Hampshire).

I will second what BOAC says, it is very rare to find residential ADSL products that don't have a 'fair use' policy where you will find yourself rate-limited and/or packet-shaped for exceeding it.

I beleive Zen were one of few exceptions to the rule, not sure if they've changed their policies for home users now though.

You'd be lucky anyway. BT are due to roll out QoS on their network shortly too. Now how they differentiate between EF-marked packets from a VoIP setup versus some twazzock pushing EF-marked torrents is another matter.

[mixture]

hmmmmmmmmmmm......

BT have sunk a LOT of cash into this rollout

PLUS

, and are really pushing it.

Does not necessarily result in

successful


and as for....

don't get yourself stuck in a 12 month contract

Personally, I'd rather not be BT's guninea pig early adopter. I still remember the early days of ADSL (amgonst other BT cash sinking initiatives). :ok:


Let's face it, 21CN is probably not going to change much quickly for those not in Tier 1 MSAN.

[Mike-Bracknell]

My point was less "chuck money at BT for their FTTx rollout", and more "don't tie yourself into a 12 month contract on ADSL and then suddenly find FTTx becomes (shock, horror) successful and then get narked that your neighbour is on 40mbit/s down 10mbit/s up". :ok:

[call100]

I would imagine that BT would be making offers for you to switch even if you were in mid ADSL contract.

[mixture]

that your neighbour is on 40mbit/s down 10mbit/s up

Which, in reality, is likely to be pure marketing drivel because of contention, packet-shaping and rate-limiting. Just like in today's ADSL world. The residential market will always be a volume market where the preference is to fight on price rather than quality.

FTTx becomes (shock, horror) successful

I'm not saying it will never become successful. Just saying there are many reasons to be cautious about BT 21CN, and thus there are many reasons why signing a 12 month contract on existing technology in order to get a good deal is not exactly stupid either, 12 months isn't exactly very long either.

And by the way, coming back to ....

BT have sunk a LOT of cash into this rollout

I forgot to mention the obvious that if they did not sink "a LOT" of cash into this rollout, then BT would likely be just commiting corporate suicide as they wouldn't have a competitive network going forward. So there wasn't exactly a great amount of choice in the matter.

[Mike-Bracknell]

Just a few quotes (excuse the spellunk and punkchewashun as they're verbatim quotes) from independent sources (my mates) about it:

i got BT infinity and its actually GREAT! i went from 1.5mbps down to 38mbps down and 8mbps up

all for £24.99 BARGIN (which i actually claim back from my company as well

in my old house i had virgin 50mb service, and to be honest it wasn't a touch on BT offering.. (feels very strange to say that!)

if you can get it ! GET IT !

Thought this might be of some interest to some of you.

I've just had my BT Broadband upgraded to BT Infinity Option 2.

When BT originally called me with the offer of an upgrade, they quoted me that I would get about 19 meg DL and about 2 meg UL.

Engineer just left and im now a happy bunny with DL speeds of a steady 38-39 meg and UL speeds of 8-9 meg (wireless)

If anyone wants very fast BB and are with BT I suggest you find out if you can get this.

Also they arnt charging me any more than I was paying before £25 per month.

Hope this helps some of you - I'm off to download some HD porn

I came home from work last week and my BT Broadband has risen from around 6mb to 14mb. This is just because the exchange has been upgraded haven't got the fibre done yet.

Plus I get it for free

p.s. 21CN != FTTx

[mixture]

You're like a dog gnawing on a bone MB.

Guess we'll have to agree to disagree. :ok:

[BOAC]

Agreed, mixture - one thing I think we can all agree on is that it would be very nice IF MB were right - however.

The only light at the end of the backhaul tunnel around here is that I understand BT are soon to be up begging for another 5 years 'funding' by government so I guess they will try to appear as if they are dong something.

We have had two 'mis-sellings' in this locale by BT sales, both 'promising' we are on a 'list' for exchange upgrade 'very soon' - both blatant lies and reported to and actioned by Trading Standards. They do not seem to learn, do they?

[Mike-Bracknell]

You're like a dog gnawing on a bone MB.

Guess we'll have to agree to disagree. :ok:

:ok: furry muff. Remember, my original tenet was much more benign than I think you're making it out to be - just to be aware that things are around the corner and to go into contracts with your eyes open. It's a statement that rings true in all walks of life, and I doubt you can get much of a meaningful discount with a 12 month contract versus a 1 month contract anyway :)

I am happy/expecting/hoping not to be proved wrong, but wouldn't it be nice if BT actually did something they said they would?

Besides, it won't immediately fix BOAC's issues, but in theory the revenue uplift from a successful early deployment might fill their coffers enough to accelerate deployment to the harder-to-reach areas - thus getting the government off their backs as well. :)

[Keef]

Does anyone know where there is information on timings for 21CN installations?

All the lists I find say either "Already done" or "No plans". Have they stopped, or are the lists not being maintained any more?

[BOAC]

Keef - I am totally confused by all the froth from BT as to whether '21CN' is actually 'dead' and replaced by 'NGA', but here is the latest Openreach exchange FTTC schedule. NB there is another due late this month/early October.

http://tinyurl.com/3yodjyy

I note BT continues its predatory tactics - now at Erbistock.

thinkbroadband :: Openreach give Erbistock users option of migrating to another exchange (http://www.thinkbroadband.com/news/4374-openreach-to-give-erbistock-customers-option-of-migrating-to-another-exchange.html)

They really need stamping on hard - 80 customers - 'not worth it' until Erbistock start putting a lot of effort into a Rutland solution.

[BusyB]

I'm with Plusnet now for the complete phone/broadband package. Not cheapest but very straightforward having been lied to and conned by Orange over the last 2 years.

I have a problem with an AOL spam message, maybe someone can advise me. These emails purport to come from a deceased friend of mine (2 yrs ago) and despite attempting to contact AOL I've had no joy stopping them at source. Anyone any advice?:confused:

[BOAC]

If someone has 'harvested' the email address there is no way you can stop it. Does AOL have any sort of spam filter - ie can you set it to automatically delete emails from particular addresses?

If not, look at Mailwasher and set that to automatically delete on delivery.

[mixture]

BusyB

I have a problem with an AOL spam message, maybe someone can advise me. These emails purport to come from a deceased friend of mine (2 yrs ago) and despite attempting to contact AOL I've had no joy stopping them at source. Anyone any advice?

A little friendly word of advice for the future.

Do not hijack a thread with a completely unrelated question.

Not only is it bad "netiquette", but you will also find that starting a new thread will mean that your question gets more attention because it's not buried on page three of someone else's thread on a different topic.

[IO540]

I am with ZEN at home and have been for ~ 7 years. Of several ISPs I have used home and at work they are the only one with zero downtime and superb customer service. I recommend them highly.

On their old 512k/256k product they had no caps (and they still offer that I believe) but their current product (8192k/448k) is capped at 20GB each month. They email you when you reach 50% at or before the 15th.

[BusyB]

Apologies Mixture:(

[Mr Optimistic]

Gaming should be no issue, downloading videos and p2p sharing are. If you are interested in gaming watch the difference between 'fast' and 'interleaved'.

With 53db attenuation on a rural exchange there isn't much near term hope here either.

Someone I know has a 58db line and rubbish service from Orange: would LLU help him (TalkTalk is an option) ? Also, do you have to give up your BT line and riska future £140+ reconnection fee ?

[Mike-Bracknell]

Someone I know has a 58db line and rubbish service from Orange: would LLU help him (TalkTalk is an option) ? Also, do you have to give up your BT line and riska future £140+ reconnection fee ?
LLU isn't going to change the line attenuation to anything significantly different from the above.

I would rather hack off my testicles with a spoon than join TalkTalk/Tiscali/CPW.

[mixture]

busyb,

Don't worry about it, was only trying to help make sure your question got the exposure it deserved.... apologies if my wording at the time was slightly on the heavy side.

[Mr Optimistic]

I'll advise the testicle retention option then