Should I just give up?

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Should I just give up?
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dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46238
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 12:01 am Post subject:

what they both said is sensible,i went for the "dont take no for an answer"option a while back on a different system to this.the speed went up from unusable to not bad after a few phone calls and a bloke huddled in front of a green box over the road.

a chum who is an ubergeek and uses his connection for work actually got about twice the super fast speed he was paying for using the "dtnfaa"method rather than the 5% he had been getting.

Shane

Joined: 31 Oct 2005
Posts: 3467
Location: Doha. Is hot.

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 2:59 am Post subject:
You can set iPlayer to download stuff overnight then watch it the next day - means you can still watch Auntie with a duff connection

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 11:30 am Post subject:
It's also worth noting that the general troubleshooting instructions you get told by providers can also increase speed. Connecting the router to the master socket if it's not already there often increases speeds on slow lines. Begrudgingly I'll also admit buying a new router, one recommended by your provider for use on poor lines, can also help.

BahamaMama

Joined: 21 Sep 2006
Posts: 2315
Location: Away with the fairies

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 4:49 pm Post subject:
We had problems with speed and quality degenerating and finally, after months of arguing they agreed that we had a faulty router. Replaced and we are back up to full strength - it was hideously difficult and the tendancy was for them to look for a really complicated reason rather than check the basics. Make sure they check everything.

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 9:38 pm Post subject:

I've given up the landline entirely. Paying nearly �60.00 a quarter just to make a few calls & answer a lot of cold calls every evening seemed stupid.
I really was just keeping it for the internet & like you that could be pretty intermittent at times, also being the last on the line & about as far from the exchange & the fibre optic cable as you can get.
I'm now entirely mobile & the service has been pretty good so far, as good as the normal highspeed landline if not a bit quicker & my provider (three) wont be charging more when the system goes to 4G, which should be soon.
Downside is there are no all you can use data packages for tablets or laptops so if you watch a lot of i-player or you tube you will soon eat into your data allowance. I take a trip to my local library every couple of weeks & use their free internet to top up my TV viewing.

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 10:47 pm Post subject:

Tavascarow wrote:

Get an unlimited package on your phone, and use it as a wifi modem. I tether my tablet to my phone frequently. Not all packages allow this.

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15425
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 11:10 pm Post subject:
Many say they don't allow it, but I don't know if they can tell... I certainly never tethered my phone on a contract where it wasn't allowed... no not me, wouldn't dream of it... didn't do it for years... honest.

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 11:23 pm Post subject:

Hairyloon wrote:

Many say they don't allow it, but I don't know if they can tell... I certainly never tethered my phone on a contract where it wasn't allowed... no not me, wouldn't dream of it... didn't do it for years... honest.

There's usually a fair usage disclaimer that allows them to cut you off if they think you're tethering. Probably less of an issue now, but when phones didn't really offer anything that would use bandwidth we had a few rumbled.

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15425
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 15 11:43 pm Post subject:
I was with T-mobile: they had a very fair fair use policy: if you went over the limit, it stopped you doing heavy loads like videos.

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Fri Nov 27, 15 1:21 am Post subject:

Nick wrote:

Tavascarow wrote:

Get an unlimited package on your phone, and use it as a wifi modem. I tether my tablet to my phone frequently. Not all packages allow this.

They aren't available any more. You can get 'all you can eat' data packages but you can only tether up to 5 gig. A neighbour just up the road has an old account & his has no limits. He runs his household internet (Mum Dad & two kids) & two holiday cottages all off the one phone.

jettejette

Joined: 01 Jun 2013
Posts: 225

Posted: Fri Nov 27, 15 7:06 am Post subject:

Thanks chaps!
We don't have a mobile signal in the house. Well, that's not quite true, upstairs in one window we get an intermittent signal, and halfway up our lane, quite a good one.
I will go back to the provider though, because it's definitely not as good as it used to be and it's never been brilliant. I don't really understand how it all works, eg why at peak times it is so bad. Can a 'signal' be diluted?
Incidentally, since we went digital in the South West, the television stops working too at various points in the evening. So now we have a multitude of channels, but we can rarely watch anything through to the end.
In the kitchen, the radio has to be perched (rather precariously ) on top of the kitchen roll dispenser or on a pile of stuff in thee middle of the draining board to get a signal! So it's not just the 'net.
Ah well, that's progress for you!

GrahamH

Joined: 23 May 2015
Posts: 523

Posted: Fri Nov 27, 15 7:10 am Post subject:

jettejette.
Do you use Internet Explorer?

If you do, you can speed up the downloading process by changing to Firefox or Google Chrome. Some say they are faster by up to 50%.

Both are free and easy to install.

Turning off your Windows extras including Internet Explorer can speed up your computer.

There are much more computer literate people on Downsizers than me who I am sure will assist if needed.

GrahamH

Joined: 23 May 2015
Posts: 523

Posted: Mon Nov 30, 15 10:06 am Post subject:

How about this.......quote......

In a shocking turn of events, the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) has announced that they will start reducing the internet speed of customers that complain about them online.

The largest telecommunications company in the Philippines released a statement to the press after "enduring cyber bullying on Facebook and Twitter." "We are going to throttle customers who publicly bully PLDT as a whole," said Julian Vega, a spokesperson for PLDT.

The issues began when Facebook users began posting complaints on the comments section of the PLDT Home Facebook page's posts. You can view the PLDT Home Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/PLDTHome.
A PLDT in-house technician that refused to be named said that they're cross-examining the names of the customers to the names that they post with on Facebook.

"Kung ang subscriber name niyo ay name niyo din sa Facebook, wag na kayo mag-post ng reklamo. Babagal ang internet niyo," said the technician.

............Try telling this company 'you won't take no for an answer'.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46238
Location: yes

Posted: Tue Dec 01, 15 11:03 am Post subject:

just as a comparison

using a good lappy,ms vista and wifi from the router i get about 10 down and 3 up at a good time and a bit less when there is high use.

on this old tower server,linux mint,and a firewire direct to the router i get 38.6 down and 7.61 up.

it does demonstrate the stuff your side of the phone socket is important to get the most from what is available from your isp.

another issue (as being mentioned in the msm at the mo) is that many household electrical items can interfere with wifi causing it to repeat itself ie slow down.these include wires,speakers ,other wifi stuff (baby monitors ,doorbells etc etc) ,big metal solids etc.
so positioning the router away from interfering equipment and giving clear space between router and pooter can improve matters.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46238
Location: yes

Posted: Tue Dec 01, 15 8:26 pm Post subject:

just a thought but we used a length of insulated wire ,about 20m and maybe 5mm wire iirc ,wrapped around the phone aerial a couple of times (i know that is a bit steam punk) but around the phone might work with modern ones and the rest just layed out on the ground .

i worked rather well for phones and cb walkie talkies even inside a tunnel with mass concrete and metal for a lid in a place with patchy signals.

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