Verizon DSL vs Comcast Cable

[bill at horne.net (Bill Horne)]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jerry Feldman" <gaf at blu.org>

> On Sun, 22 Feb 2004 19:35:13 -0500
> "Bill Horne" <bill at horne.net> wrote: (Concerning use of MDS microwave for
data transport)
>
[snip]

> > NYNEX bowed out after extensive field strength measurements revealed
> > that less than 25% of suburban homes in the Boston area could receive
> > an acceptable signal [snip]

> > Long story short: not enough long buildings, not enough stories on
> > them; ergo, no sale.

> It is more like lack of vision :-).

Jerry,

Ghod knows I'm no fan of Verizon, but in this case it was a justified
decision. I have a unique perspective on this issue, since I was one of the
directors of the NETCPA, the New England TCP Association, which is a group
of ham operators using TCP/IP over the air.

There's just no way to serve a ANY line-of-sight service in the Boston area,
let alone low-power Amateur radio data links, and especially not a
consumer-grade service like MDS. There really aren't enough places to put
the central distribution antennas: I spent two months of my spare time
pouring over topological maps and trying to find routes from my house to
MIT, or to a hill in between. I'm not kidding when I say it was a faustian
quest, and I was willing to climb a 60' pine tree and hang a 10' antenna
mast on the side of it (it's still there).

The terain just doesn't cooperate, and every leaf that comes out every
spring is 12 Decibels of lost signal. There's a reason that satellites work:
no trees in the way, and a valid line-of-sight path. It's the same reason
MDS doesn't.

FWIW. YMMV.

Bill