Take heart, friends! All is not lost. Here's my research on directvdsl
alternatives:
I took the liberty of calling John at Southern Star (sstar.com) yesterday,
and this is what I found out:
He is as linux-friendly as telocity/directvdsl was. Static IP, no ports
blocked, no BS. Put up a firewall and be happy. He's on this list (I'm
replying to his post, actually) btw.
He knows his stuff. You won't find a more knowledgeable DSL geek in town.
He's local. Makes house calls, if all else fails.
He charges $60/month, but will give a 5% discount to noluggers (correct me on
this if I'm wrong, John --- this is what I understood when we talked).
Further discounts can be had by paying in advance (5%/10%/15% for paying
3/6/12 months in advance). You an easily get your bill down to $54/month,
which is close enough to telocity/directvdsl prices for me.
The only bad part is he charges $75 to come out and hook you up.
Self-installs aren't available.
Speakeasy (as Scott mentioned) is linux-friendly, as well. Static IPs, no
ports blocked, The website says their starter package is $49/month, but I
don't know what their hookup fee is.
Gulf South Internet (gs.net) is here in Metairie, but are not linux-friendly.
Cox (ugh --- remember, I used to do cable modem installs for them) will fix
you up for $30/month if you are already a Cox subscriber, and $40/month if
not. Basic cable is $15/month, so you're stupid not to get that, at least,
unless if course you've already got satellite. Modem rent is $15/month, or
you can purchase one for $100 or less. They can have you up and running in
days, not weeks like DSL. When you call, ask for the self-install and save
money.
The good news: when it works, it's great. The bad news: it doesn't always
work, and the techs aren't that bright. To be fair, the heavyweight techs
know their stuff, but getting escalated to them rarely happens. I went down
that road once for one of my clients and didn't like the scenery.
Oh yeah, and they block ports (web, mail... what else?), discourage servers,
don't "support" linux, etc.
On the other hand, we've got Charles on the list, who runs the broadband
department for Cox locally. He can help out with the technical questions or
problems we have, possibly. We've also got Scott who used to do the same
thing across the lake for Charter, who also knows his stuff.
Scott can tell you that most of the maladies that cable broadband providers
suffer from spring from the fact that these aren't broadband providers, but
TV purveyors. They know cable TV, but not internet. They sell broadband
because they can make a buck off it, but it's not their main gig. Ditto POTS
--- see my other post this morning). They've been in the cable TV business
for decades and that's what they are --- TV people.
My wife likes the prospect of finally getting cable TV, so I may end up going
this route. Fortunately, I've got other accounts (my clients' stuff) that
will allow me to do the server gig with no restrictions, so I won't really
suffer. Anyway, I can run a webserver on port 81 and they're be none the
wiser.
I haven't called them, but there are 2 local providers that may or may not
work out: Reserve Telehone just on the other side of LaPlace and EATEL in
Gonzales. These guys are the local exhange providers in their parishes
instead of SBC. They are competitors of SBC here in Nola. I shopped them
about 2 years ago when I was looking for a dailup ISP. They do DSL here, and
if you like the idea of buying from a Louisiana company they may be right for
you. Of course, Southern Star is local too, based in Metairie.
That's what I got so far. Anyone else want to post their findings?
--Joey
Thou spake:
>Hello Andy.
>
> > It just gets better. I went looking for a new DSL provider in
> > Luling, and look what I can get. I'm doomed.
>
>Just about any ADSL provider who is using BellSouth for the "last mile"
> (which is what most of the ADSL providers do, me included) and serves the
> 985 area code can handle you - if they want to. Call them and see.
>
>I cover the entire 504 and 985 area codes. I was in Luling to install a
>customer on Wednesday. :-)
>
>John
>
>
>John Souvestre - Southern Star - 504-888-3348 - http://www.sstar.com
>___________________
>Nolug mailing list
>nolug@nolug.org
-- Joey Kelly < Minister of the Gospel | Computer Networking Consultant > http://joeykelly.net I'd rather crash a Ford than wreck a Chevy ___________________ Nolug mailing list nolug@nolug.orgReceived on 12/14/02
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