[SLL] OT warning--Comcast opt out

[Ken Meyer]

Ryan --

Comcast is a mixed bag, for sure.

For instance, you don't have what Comcast calls "Basic Cable" (that includes
the news channels like CNN), for instance) for $67/month including Internet,
unless maybe you are on some sort of limited-time enticement or you live in
some approximation of Valhalla.  The lowest tier of cable TV here in Seattle
is called "Limited Cable", and that plus bb and tax would come in somewhere
around your number.  My monthly bill is change short of $100 for that
service.  It's indicative of how big the weasels are in the front office
that you can't even tell what the lowest level service is from the name (the
lowest level used to be called "basic", and what is now "basic" was called
"extended basic").  Then we have "enhanced" and "expanded" and all sorts of
digital packages to up-sell you to, not to mention, of course, the "premium
channels": HBO, SHO, etc., etc. and pay-per-view events that are sometimes
breathtakingly expensive.

Also, if you do pick-up the little so-called "digital boxes", which they
have been giving away free for a year recently, and which allegedly can
provide digital signals to an analog TV, you get few or none HD channels
without buying more packages, and that only if you have one of the
DVD-player sized "set-top boxes" -- or you have a TV with a digital tuner.
You may get some digital SD channels on the (real) Basic Package, but what
Comcast is broadcasting here is somewhat confusing.  Of course, what you DO
get with the boxes is the little program guide, and access to pay-per-view
and on-demand, and little event advertising messages which require burrowing
down the menu tree to clear.  Comcast is very efficient in pumping crap
downstream to entice you to spend more money.

It is true that servers are technically verboten, and the16 page SA, last I
looked, says so, but clearly, people do run servers with modest traffic
without incident.  My theory is that it's just too much trouble for them to
monitor that (though maybe a guru here can explain that it would be easy).
But then also, theory two, as long as you can access an ISP via DSL who will
allow it, Comcast will lay low.  However, the day that the telcos get the
common carrier provisions eliminated from DSL, things could be different,
and it could be doom for all third-party ISPs.

How about making you get a business package if you use your connection for
telecommuting -- I think they tried that, but not sure what the current
status is.  I'm sure that you don't screw with the likes of Boeing lightly.

Furthermore, Comcast says that it is "theft of service" for you to connect
more than one computer to the net without paying for them, with a max of 5
total.  So you have to resort to MAC cloning and stuff like that.  Well,
again, since DSL doesn't currently contain such provisions, Comcast may be
just waiting for them to get the right to do so.

Sure, the CS people that I confer with all too often are very chatty and
friendly, but don't ask them something that isn't on their screen and expect
an answer that has anything to do with reality -- but at least they are
located locally here, in Tacoma and Lynnwood.  The people who come out for
service are the typical spectrum of reasonably competent, morons and
assholes, but the process is painful.  It is easy to get into the familiar
tight loop of finger-pointing between the computer set-up guys and the cable
infrastructure guys -- and they are separate people, regardless of their
training, so you get to wait around home a lot to get service.  And the
people at the walk-in store are beyond stupid.  "Does your set-top box have
HDMI or DVI outputs?  "It has component, and that's the same thing."

I couldn't send this last night because my connection was being flakey, as
it seems to be a lot of the time these days (I'm suspicious that this loop
is overloaded).  I had a nice chat with a CS guy who made me remove my
modem's power from my APC UPS and put it on a direct connection to the wall.
How about that.  Reboot, reboot, reboot...  Well, it didn't cure the
problem, but this AM, things are perking right along at least decently.
Maybe the people streaming things are all still in bed.  And they want me to
use their phone service!

I would curse these people out -- the management and policy-makers, not the
poor folks who take the heat in the trenches -- but I don't know any
language vile enough to do them justice.

Ken Meyer


-----Original Message-----

From: linux-list-bounces at ssc.com [mailto:linux-list-bounces at ssc.com]
On Behalf Of Ryan Allen
Sent: Monday, July 16, 2007 7:34 PM
To: Clifford Snow
Cc: linux-list at ssc.com

Subject: Re: [SLL] OT warning--Comcast opt out

I feel the need to pipe in this one.  I've been on comcast for 3 years
in my current house in the Central District, and for 3 years in my old house
in North Seattle.

Contrary to what others say, I've been quite satisfied.  I've had
almost zero down time (last Decembers wind storm was the only time I
remember, large tree took down the line).  I think I've had to talk to
cust service three times, just to register a new MAC address.  I
remember not waiting more then a couple minutes to get someone.  I've been
openly chatty about running Linux, and it seems to go down like this:

Me:  Yeah I have a new cable modem and need to register it's MAC
address.

Comcast:  Oh, do you have a MACintosh?

Me:  No, I run Linux.

comcast:  Oh, you are one of those guys!  Okay....  Say, how do you like
running linux?  What are it's benefits....

And we chat about it.

Also, My dynamic IP address has changed only 3 times, including the time I
moved, but that doesn't matter because I roll with dyndns.  I've always
had a HTTP server running, sshd too, mostly for personal stuff, and never
experienced TCP port blocking for inbound OR outbound.

Not to mention its plenty fast!  The other day, I downloaded 3 Gigs of
.isos in about 25 minutes.  Do the math, thats 2 MB/s (that the CAPITOL
B)!

Despite what the others are saying, the $65 a month I pay (includes
basic cable, and it's in HD) seems well worth it.  I can't ever
remember having to fight the pipe!