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I'll pontificate more later...let's just say that Comcast's incompetence in the well-solved problem of bandwidth management makes me more than willing to avoid them as an ISP for any reason, even if it means some extra work and pain on my part.

This shit? Sorry, but if I contract for a line that allows n Mbps down and m Mbps up, then I expect I get that. If I can't use that at MY convenience, then I expect to only be charged for the hours of the day I'm allowed to use my service at the stated rate.

Comcast's inability to do things in a sensible manner should not be their customer's problems.

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Comcast: They're doin' it rong

Comments

How can you tell you are no getting n Mbps in either direction?

In reality all they can manage is THEIR network. If you are connecting to something on some OTHER network, which (since Comcast offers no content, only "eyeballs") I imagine 99.9999999% of your network connections go to, then there is no way for you to truly measure Comcast's performance.

I'm blessed with gigabit connectivity (actually MULTIPLE gigabit, but a gig is the largest of any single connection to the world) at my office. When I go to download a software update from Apple, should I expect to see a gigabit to my desktop? Of course not. I'm not going to even see 1/10th of that.

My car can go 145 MPH. Should I complain to the manufacturer when I'm on Interstate % and can only go 70 MPH?

Put another way: "Don't hate the player, hate the game."

--chuck
http://chuck.goolsbee.org

Posted by: chuckgoolsbee | April 20, 2008 12:19 PM

It's not a case of "do I get max speed all the time". I know Comcast can't manage anything but Comcast.

However, if I pay for x amount of download, and I use that 24x7, or even come close to it, that's not something I need to be hammered for. I know you and I have had this discussion about ISPs overselling service, and it's a pain point that I find more than slightly annoying.

The fact that I am even close to using the bandwidth that I pay for up *or* down, should not be a reason to halt my service, or restrict me to less than what I'm paying for, without a corresponding drop in what I'm charged.

That's the part I despise: that people get hammered for using what they paid for, all because (ISP) is playing a shell game.

Posted by: John Welch | April 21, 2008 12:43 PM