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newview
Ex .. Ex .. Exactly
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Parsonsburg, MD

newview to stufried

Premium Member

to stufried

Re: Typical Comcast

said by stufried:

As I said, if the system works like Free, it isn't your internet. Here is an outline of how Free's system works:

»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_(ISP)

It is a great system. You can get a free internet connection almost anywhere in the country. It doesn't come out of the homeowner's pool of data or even speed cap. It is completely partitioned.

So I guess it'd be OK for me to peek through your window and watch your TV, huh? It doesn't cost you anything, your TV is on anyway.

And I guess it'd also be OK for to sell space on my peek spot to other passersby too, huh? After all, it's my peek box.

Napsterbater
Meh
MVM
join:2002-12-28
Milledgeville, GA
(Software) OPNsense
Ubiquiti UniFi UAP-AC-PRO

Napsterbater

MVM

said by newview:

So I guess it'd be OK for me to peek through your window and watch your TV, huh? It doesn't cost you anything, your TV is on anyway.

And I guess it'd also be OK for to sell space on my peek spot to other passersby too, huh? After all, it's my peek box.

How in the hell is that in any way the same?

They are not on that same network as your computer so they cant see or access any of your stuff, they use a different WAN IP so anything illegal is not on you, and having the 2nd SSID uses no more power then the modem is already using.

newview
Ex .. Ex .. Exactly
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Parsonsburg, MD

newview

Premium Member

It's not meant to be exactly the same.
It's more a loose analogy of what it feels like to be used by someone else, in this way Comcast ... to line their pockets at your expense, with absolutely NO compensation or permission.
stufried
Premium Member
join:2003-10-13

stufried to newview

Premium Member

to newview
I don't think your analogy is correct. Peaking through your window is invading your privacy, watching your TV involves entering your home. This is analagous to walking across the public easement with the easement holders consent.

newview
Ex .. Ex .. Exactly
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Parsonsburg, MD

newview

Premium Member

I guess those packets aren't entering my home?
Bottom line ... I do not trust Comcast.
Period.
stufried
Premium Member
join:2003-10-13

stufried to newview

Premium Member

to newview
I don't think your analogy is correct. Peaking through your window is invading your privacy, watching your TV involves entering your home. This is analogous to walking across the public easement with the easement holders consent.

Ultimately, however, brick and mortar analogies are often flawed. They are emotionally compelling, but often flawed. More importantly, it creates a contest for who can come up with the best analogy which might be an interesting side event, but ultimately rarely convinces anyone.

I'm currently litigating the issue of whether courts should extend special protection to computers based on the special nature of them. US courts are split. Some say that a computer is more private than a person's bedroom. For example, the Ninth Circuit said social guests routinely enter people's bedrooms to toss their coats on beds. At parties this is expected, but most hosts would be floored if the same guest was rifling through the computer. Other courts say that it is just a container and subject to the same search standards as a shopping bag.

The other issue is that Comcast probably did disclose the sharing arrangement, but it is probably buried in the fine print. This often raises the question of whether the fact that most people (including me more than I'd like to admit) don't thoroughly scrutinize these documents..

newview
Ex .. Ex .. Exactly
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Parsonsburg, MD

1 recommendation

newview

Premium Member

said by stufried:

The other issue is that Comcast probably did disclose the sharing arrangement, but it is probably buried in the fine print. This often raises the question of whether the fact that most people (including me more than I'd like to admit) don't thoroughly scrutinize these documents..

Knowing that people do not read these legalese agreements, and then continuing to use those same types of agreements as well as purposefully burying an unexpected and heretofore unused or new "feature" in order to obscure the fact of it's inclusion is near to fraud.

Comcast's own statements make it obvious that the company isn't going out of its way to help customers turn the hotspot off.
quote:
Q. How do I disable/enable the XFINITY WiFi Home Hotspot feature?
A. We encourage all subscribers to keep this feature enabled as it allows more people to enjoy the benefits of XFINITY WiFi around the neighborhood. You will always have the ability to disable the XFINITY WiFi feature on your Wireless Gateway by calling 1-800-XFINITY.
»www.comcast.com/WiFi/faqs.htm

So ... a no-answer answer. Call Comcast ... wait on hold for one of their knowledgeable [/sarcasm] CSRs who will know exactly what you are talking about [/sarcasm] and they will turn it off ... or not.
stufried
Premium Member
join:2003-10-13

stufried

Premium Member

How is this different from the crap in our cell phone agreements. We have no ability to negotiate a contrary contracts, people don't know it is there, but courts routinely say that this doesn't matter?

newview
Ex .. Ex .. Exactly
Premium Member
join:2001-10-01
Parsonsburg, MD

newview

Premium Member

We are not talking about cell phones right now ... we're talking about Comcast. Comcast, who routinely lies about damn near everything ... until they are caught.