[TriLUG] DSL or RoadRunner?

Ryan Leathers ryan.leathers at globalknowledge.com
Tue Oct 7 14:06:25 EDT 2003


That was exactly my point Reggie.  (Read my comments again) The cable
providers can indeed use the architecture proposed in TR-059.  The
question then is whether or not the cable providers will be open to it
or will they keep heading down the DOCSIS road for their QoS needs.  I
think this will be driven mainly by the ASP and CSP (thats Content not
Cable) offerings of the near future, and if these offerings don't
materialize then nothing much will come of either DOCSIS 1.1+ or TR-059
in the cable space.  Secondary dial-tone alone is not strong enough to
carry the day, but it may have already encouraged service providers to
deploy an RoI burden which deters them from investing in the
infrastructure defined in TR-059.  

So, for the Home Linux User my inclination right now is to suggest
getting DSL if they have a desire to take advantage of QoS / BoD as soon
as its available in their market.  

FYI I used to be a BellSouth FastAccess user.  Today I am a RR user. 
For a while I did both.

-Ryan 

On Tue, 2003-10-07 at 11:55, Reginald Reed wrote:
> "DOCSIS is a one-trick-pony as a protocol for cable networks" is not
> entirely true.  There is a wireless specification as well.  Not to
> mention, just about anything can ride on a different physical layer, so
> TR-059 could also be implemented on cable networks.
> 
> --Reggie
> 
> On Tuesday, October 07, 2003 11:15 AM, trilug-bounces at trilug.org <>
> wrote:
> 
> > DSL is ready to do some new tricks.  BellSouth stands to benefit
> > early. If you get DSL from BellSouth you might benefit too.
> > 
> > I posted some detail about this a couple of weeks ago, but here is a
> > quick summary. 
> > 
> > In September the DSL Forum released TR-059 describing the evolution of
> > the DSL architecture.  In simplified terms this will allow
> > DSL customers to pay for not only bandwidth, but a quality of
> > bandwidth. 
> > 
> > Voice, video and on-line gaming are great examples of why
> > this is valuable.  Given sufficient data transfer capacity
> > (bandwidth) the most important thing to the consumer of these
> > services is consistency.  It just won't do to get data at a
> > variable rate.  For example, you can't speed up and slow down
> > video, even a little bit, without noticing.  A gamer always
> > wants a low "ping" rate, but an average rate that stays rock
> > solid is far less irritating than one that fluctuates.
> > 
> > Customers will need RIP2 and DIFFSERV to take advantage of
> > this new QoS on demand capability.  Bandwidth on demand will
> > also be part of the new offering stable for those
> > applications where bandwidth alone - not QoS is what you
> > need.  Since BellSouth was a major player is getting this new
> > specification completed you can expect them to look to capitalize on
> > it. 
> > 
> > All this having been said, there are some fantastic features
> > of DOCSIS which, when implemented widely, might be every bit
> > as tempting to the consumer.  However, DOCSIS is a
> > one-trick-pony as a protocol for cable networks.  TR-059 by
> > contrast lays out a service provider architecture which is
> > low cost, and idependant of OSI L1-L2. Thats right kids - the
> > cable networks could play in this game too and no matter how
> > you get your broadband you could get end to end QoS.  Thats
> > why my bet is with TR-059 and on DSL in the near future.
> > Still, the end of this road is entirely dependant on how
> > service providers (the ASP and CSP type) embrace these
> > technologies and persue their markets.
> > 
> > -Ryan
> > 
> > On Mon, 2003-10-06 at 22:09, Jason Browne wrote:
> >> Got a general question...
> >> 
> >> All I have had for broadband is Bellsouth DSL.  I had Charter
> >> Pipeline very shortly while i was in school, but promptly dropped
> >> them b/c they blocked all incoming connections to my box.  So this
> >> has made me cautious about going to Cable Broadband.  I am going to
> >> be moving down to the Holly Springs area, so i am thinking about
> >> changing to RoadRunner. My main concern is that people can access
> >> all my services from the web. 
> >> 
> >> Has anyone had any bad experiences about Timewarner blocking
> >> services? Is the speed and connection pretty reliable?  If not, who
> >> else is a good provider in the Holly Springs area?
> >> 
> >> Jason
-- 
Ryan Leathers <ryan.leathers at globalknowledge.com>
Global Knowledge
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