Broadband for all - not political

[alan_m]

£400 over a 2 year contract

The headline saving was the cost of the box, phones (landline and mobile), Internet and TV including premium premium packages etc.

I looked at it and assume that if I'm taking all those packages it will be £200 a year more in year 3.

In common with BT offers, they always assumed that people wanted the sport packages. > If virgin had planted their fibre a year before BT, rather than a year

Telepest (now Virgin) did install fibre a long time before BT got around to fibre to the cabinet. There was a lot of objections to the disruption caused by the contractors digging up pavements and restoring them in a shit state. In my case they sent a letter out approx 6 weeks in advance of the work saying it would commence "sometime" in that 6 week period - that was the only notification. I woke up late one morning to find a trench and a pile of debris across my driveway and I couldn't get my car out! This was followed up by cold calling foot in the door scum posing as Telepest salespeople!

[alan_m]

and to give them some praise my online dealings with government departments online in the past few years (national insurance, tax rebates, pension and passport renewal) have been very favourable and must in the long run save a fortune in bureaucracy.

My recent passport renewal took a total of 7 days from submitting the details and electronic photo on line to having the document in my hand. Two days of that were reliant on Royal mail delivering my old passport back to them. I got text messages telling me that the process had started, the photo had been approved as acceptable, that they had received the old passport and the new one was going to be printed and couple telling me of the delivery slot.

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

All done with an absolute minimum of disruption here, maybe they got there act together?

They had a machine cut narrow trenches in the tarmac, followed quickly by the fibre into the trench, then the back fill. My drive was only obstructed for an hour or so. The back fill has stood the test of time, except in a few places, which were quickly marked up for their repair team.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Under corbyn there will only be one business: the state.

[alan_m]

My first modem was a 28.8k BUT not approved for connection to the BT network!

[Jethro_uk]

I had to apply for a new driving licence earlier this year. Took 10 minutes online and was delivered in 4 days.

[mechanic]

Did you mean 'nationalised?

[Dave Liquorice]

Whats that got to do with broadband? Several places around here don't have mains electricity or mains water but that doesn't mean the don't have those two services, they make their own arrangements.

Mains water only arrived here in the mid 80's, mains electricity a little before but not much.

[newshound]

Just come back from a Cornish village on the coast without a trace of signal without driving several miles. There are plenty of kilometer sized dead spots here in Gloucestershire too.

[TOJ]

Wow! High speed luxury! My first one was 14.4k. Still got it somewhere.

[Bob Eager]

Mine was 1200/75, not Hayes compatible. Came from a small company in Yorkshire, who actually manufactured it.

[whisky-dave]

No gamers need a fast connection which isn't quite the same as high speed. What yuo need hight speed for his watching TV/Films etc... in 4K or higher.

[John Rumm]

Direct connection, or acoustic coupler?

[Cursitor Doom]

It was only a matter of time before this wondrous educational resource ended up as just another tool for delivering Hollywood's mind-rotting CRAP to the masses.

[Richard]

Indeed, the same tech delivers your posts.

[Clive Arthur]

I imagine the long term aim includes losing broadcast TV.

Cheers

[Robin]

That may be the aim of some. Others may be thinking more of the leverage a trade union can have in a public sector monopoly that provides a key service.

[Bob Eager]

Direct connection. I had to buy a serial card first...got one of the AST SixPaks if anyone remembers those. Parallel, serial, clock/calendar, game port, memory...

[charles]

Pace? Made in the garage of the compamy owner.

[invalid]

Around here they run in ducts that telewest installed. The BT stuff runs in ducts installed by the builders when the estate was built and before the footpaths were tarmacked. I watched them do some of it.