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Powell Praises BPL
FCC chief: 'The future looks bright'
FCC chief Mike Powell, who has called broadband over powerline technology the "great broadband hope", says the "future looks bright" for BPL after witnessing yesterday's AT&T and PG&E demonstration. "Power-line technology holds the great promise to bring high-speed Internet access to every power outlet in America," said Powell. "What I saw today has the potential to play a key role in meeting our goals to expand the availability and affordability of broadband. AT&T and Pacific Gas and Electric are to be applauded for leading the way for this innovative technology." About 100 residents of Menlo Park are getting 3Mbps BPL broadband and VoIP service as part of a cooperative trial.
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n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY

n2jtx

Member

Why bother...

...even commenting any more? It is a done deal. $$$ talks and BS walks.

Mactron
el Camino Real
Premium Member
join:2001-12-16
PRK

Mactron

Premium Member

Re: Why bother...

The users of the HF frequency spectrum, be they Military, Commercial, Amateur, Broadcast, or Government sure don't need this guy as a friend. Another bureaucrat that doesn't understand it, or get it. *sigh*

Andrew J
Premium Member
join:2001-11-09
Lancaster, PA

Andrew J to n2jtx

Premium Member

to n2jtx
At some point he has to do something right. Leo Laporte has the highest respect for him but never explains why.

CPM
Broadband, DSL, cable
join:2001-08-24
Denver, CO

CPM

Member

Re: Why bother...

Maybe just Maybe, Leo Laporte is the best butt kisser on TV. Wait was on TV

Subaru
1-3-2-4
Premium Member
join:2001-05-31
Greenwich, CT

Subaru

Premium Member

Re: Why bother...

said by CPM:
Maybe just Maybe, Leo Laporte is the best butt kisser on TV. Wait was on TV

he is still on tv, Just not in the U.S.

pcscdma
hi
Premium Member
join:2004-01-14
Winterset, IA

pcscdma

Premium Member

Re: Why bother...

Canada

CPM
Broadband, DSL, cable
join:2001-08-24
Denver, CO

CPM

Member

Re: Why bother...

So is night court.
CPM

CPM

Member

Re: Why bother...

So, I guess not he is the best butt kisser now in Canada A

Subaru
1-3-2-4
Premium Member
join:2001-05-31
Greenwich, CT

Subaru to n2jtx

Premium Member

to n2jtx
it's Eh.

cheesus
join:2002-08-16
Lompoc, CA

cheesus

Member

forget Menlo Park....

Come to my town. I'm at 19,600 so no dsl, no cable internet in our town, no satellite (not a clear line of sight). There is one ham user in my area and all he does is talk to others on hams about hams, Meanwhile I'm stuck on 56k.

Fountainhead
Premium Member
join:2003-10-25
New York, NY

Fountainhead

Premium Member

Re: forget Menlo Park....

You should go live where the people are

Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02

Karl Bode to cheesus

News Guy

to cheesus
Your town is planning a multi-million dollar municipal broadband operation:

»Lompoc Goes Muni
cheesus
join:2002-08-16
Lompoc, CA

cheesus

Member

Re: forget Menlo Park....

I know, but not 6 miles out of town where i live.

P.S. I sent the link for that article

tenbase
join:2000-07-19
Alexandria, VA

tenbase to cheesus

Member

to cheesus
actually, there are more than 200 hams in your town.

Gbcue
Premium Member
join:2001-09-30
Santa Rosa, CA

Gbcue

Premium Member

OMG STUPID!

These guys are so stupid!

Instead of doing this crap with powerlines, why not just drop a fibre line?

WE WANT FIBRE!!

See: »100Mbps for $41?
Don't you feel jealous?

tadmaz29
join:2002-05-30
Mount Prospect, IL

tadmaz29

Member

yo

Quit the trials and give me my 3 megabit now.
nasadude
join:2001-10-05
Rockville, MD

nasadude

Member

so?

is Powell's future a 5W bulb? This might be a stopgap until fiber gets here, but it's a problematic technology with limited potential.

And somehow, I don't get the feeling that cable is shaking in their boots over this, so I don't really expect much impact. If people had a choice of BPL, DSL or cable (all three in the same area) I could see some impact, but if I had a choice between those three, it sure as h3ll wouldn't be BPL.

If this came in at comparable speeds (3Mbps is mentioned) at about $25/mo, I might give it some attention.
jniamehr
Premium Member
join:2003-10-09
Roslyn, NY

2 recommendations

jniamehr

Premium Member

Re: so?

Look, theres a point in time we have to stop caring about HAMs and worry about the future of this country, we complain that Japan has fiber optics yadda yadda, but we seem to forget how large this country is, and spread out compared to japan... I rather see everyone have broadband over having ham radio... who gives a crap about ham radio... BPL is at least 20 times more important than ham shit radio... im so sick of hearing people bitch about powell, I think hes doing an excellent job, demanding that VOIP stay unregulated, and untaxed, this guy is smart, and I like him, he knows a little something that I like to call PRIORITY!!!!!
JoeBig
join:2002-10-28
Austin, TX

JoeBig

Member

Re: so?

Perhaps, one needs to look at the spectrum of the emitted RF from BPL and decode the packets as they go down the powerline....sounds like they have a very large cybersecurity problem with this technology.

Transmaster
Don't Blame Me I Voted For Bill and Opus
join:2001-06-20
Cheyenne, WY

Transmaster to jniamehr

Member

to jniamehr
said by jniamehr:
Look, theres a point in time we have to stop caring about HAMs and worry about the future of this country, ham radio... BPL is at least 20 times more important than ham shit radio... im so sick of hearing people bitch about powell, I think hes doing an excellent job, demanding that VOIP stay unregulated, and untaxed, this guy is smart, and I like him, he knows a little something that I like to call PRIORITY!!!!!

What pleases me as a Ham Radio operator is your pin headed
comment is in the minority now. I wasn't that way at first.
We education people here as to what the realities are with
this absolutly bogus technology. The Amateur Radio service
as been around for almost a hundred years. we have more collective knowledge of RF then anyone else.

ryanl88
Premium Member
join:2003-01-03
Fairfield, CA

ryanl88

Premium Member

Re: so?

quote:

The Amateur Radio service
as been around for almost a hundred years.

So has the use of fossil fuels to run the engines in the cars we drive. So why bother switching to alternative fuels--let's just keep polluting the earth and keep our economy stable for just a little bit longer? This is the kind of thinking that's preventing our country from advancing to the future.

I'm not saying "screw HAM and Amateur Radio"--but I'm saying that we need to find a way to make this work to keep us from getting stuck in the mud.

-Ryan

jap
Premium Member
join:2003-08-10
038xx

jap

Premium Member

Re: so?

said by ryanl88:
I'm saying that we need to find a way to make this work to keep us from getting stuck in the mud.
Many people, including myself, feel BPL is part of the "mud" problem: too many overlapping providers that are leveraging an existing infrastructure that was NOT designed for bi-directional data. All the major providers are such in this country: TV, telephone and now high voltage electricity networks. The only truly good, stabile, cheap resi services are those via the few munis that built a dedicated data network & sell access to for-profit ISPs. The countries that have excellent resi service (eg: korea, sweden) did the same thing years ago - and they are the only ones that reach less pop'd areas.

RF interference aside, BPL is poised to be another layer of suburban cash grab: the political jibberish about it providing cheap rural coverage is just that: jibberish. Wireless is *so* much cheaper to deploy to most rural environments. The BPL proponents are those with a profit potential because they own the already-build infra, not because it shows a technical, cost-efficacy, or rural penetration potential.

halfband
Premium Member
join:2002-06-01
Huntsville, AL

1 recommendation

halfband to jniamehr

Premium Member

to jniamehr
said by jniamehr:
Look, theres a point in time we have to stop caring about HAMs and worry about the future of this country
But this is not the technology of the future, it is technology of the past.
It will not be deployed in rural areas that don't have broadband because of cost.
It will interfere with communication far beyond the area it is deployed.
HAM radio bands are but a small part of what is affected, they are simply the ones who most easily recognize the problems and are most vocal about it.
BPL is a technology without a target market. In dense areas, it will have to much competition from higher data rate services like DSL. In low density areas it will cost much more than wireless for deployment. It just does not make good business sense.

n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY

n2jtx to jniamehr

Member

to jniamehr
said by jniamehr:
Look, theres a point in time we have to stop caring about HAMs and worry about the future of this country
Forgetting the HAM's for a moment, of which I am one, there is still going to be a problem with the other users of the RF spectrum. If they were to roll out BPL here where I am located (highly doubtful since DSL and Cable have the area well covered), then we could certainly kiss our countywide fire dispatch goodbye on 46MHz. I for one would rather have the certainty that the fire personnel have reliable radio communications than BPL. The idea that an EMT's pager does not go off because he happens to be near a power line is unconscionable. Of course the county could spend several million taxpayer dollars to roll out new UHF base transmitters, pagers, HT's and mobile radios to all of the apparatus so that the power company could then have their fun with this technology. Personally I think there are better things for them to use the money on at this time.
moonpuppy (banned)
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD

moonpuppy (banned) to jniamehr

Member

to jniamehr
Another no nothing troll who wants his porn faster.

His only priority is money and he doesn't care about you. Powell has no idea what he is talking about and if he keeps pushing this BPL crap, it will end up in court.

BPL is a dead technology that has been banned in Japan already. Plus, if you are too far out for DSL or cable then BPL is going to be the same story.

Tzale
Proud Libertarian Conservative
Premium Member
join:2004-01-06
NYC Metro

1 edit

Tzale

Premium Member

Time to cut the lines.....

This guy doesn't know what he's talking about. FIBER TO THE HOME/PREMISE is the FUTURE! It can offer UNLIMITED bandwidth and carry DATA/VIDEO/VOICE all on a single line. BPL is NOT the answer, it is SLOW (3mbps) and will be considered "dialup speeds" in a few years. HAM RADIO is CRUCIAL to EMERGENCY communications. All explanations all the BPL people give are proven wrong, you simply don't listen. If you want BANDWIDTH move to a populated area. If you want dialup, stay in farm country. We need to get fiber optics soon. I'll personally cut the power lines, and praise anyone who does the same if they allow this. This is BS, CORPORATE greed. This will not only effect Ham Radio, it'll affect MANY other frequencies.

-Tzale

Get Real
@cox.net

1 recommendation

Get Real

Anon

Get Real!

"I'll personally cut the power lines, and praise anyone who does the same if they allow this." Please call me so I can watch.

"This is BS, CORPORATE greed." Where do you plan to work when you grow up?

I don't think anyone on this board is qualified to even comment on how BPL might work out in the future, so quit being so negative. And for those who have what they consider great broadband service and don't care about those who don't, quit being so selfish.


randomispname
@mpk-eres.charterpipe

randomispname

Anon

Re: Get Real!

These people have a valid point, can you explain why BPL is good or even going to work. All the evidence we have now points to future problems caused by BPL. I for one don't need anymore EM waves passing through me.

Get Real
@cox.net

Get Real

Anon

Re: Get Real!

I have no idea if BPL will eventually work or not, but why assume that it will not. If the interference everyone talks about can not be overcome, maybe the technology will morph into something else that is workable. Technology evolves, why can't BPL evolve to something very workable.

I know those who expect fiber to provide 50MB/50MB for $5 mo. may not care, but I have a house in the sticks, and I'd like to see any and all promising technology looked at.

Transmaster
Don't Blame Me I Voted For Bill and Opus
join:2001-06-20
Cheyenne, WY

Transmaster

Member

Re: Get Real!

said by Get Real:
I know those who expect fiber to provide 50MB/50MB for $5 mo. may not care, but I have a house in the sticks, and I'd like to see any and all promising technology looked at.
This is great except for the fact BPL is not a promising technology. It is a fact it will not work without substantial interference to and from everything that uses RF. Any engineer who tells you otherwise got his degree out of a Cracker Jack box. They can couch all of this in fancy terminology to pull the wool over people's eyes. Go ahead feed us your line of crap about modulated non radiating magnetic fields, we know better.

alex4life
Alex4life
Premium Member
join:2001-06-22
Delta, BC

alex4life

Premium Member

?

I thought BPL was the same as Cable, in that fiber had to be laid to a point in a neighbourhood, just like a node in a cable system.

Am I wrong?

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••

ropeguru
Premium Member
join:2001-01-25
Mechanicsville, VA

ropeguru

Premium Member

POWELL IS

A FARGIN IDIOT!!!!

Nuff said.

Sr Tech
Premium Member
join:2003-01-19
Meriden, CT

Sr Tech

Premium Member

Re: POWELL IS

NO Kidden, I like his Father but the Son is dumb as a can of nuts...

pcscdma
hi
Premium Member
join:2004-01-14
Winterset, IA

pcscdma

Premium Member

Re: POWELL IS

In before the lock!

saberdaddy
@cox.net

saberdaddy

Anon

To heck with it, let's see what happens

I think I'd like to see what happens from a real trial of this technology rather than accept the opinions of what appears to be a group of increasingly hysterical kooks.

True, they laughed at Darwin, the Wright Brothers, and Einstein, but they laughed at Bozo the Clown, too.

Carl Sagan
moonpuppy (banned)
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD

moonpuppy (banned)

Member

Re: To heck with it, let's see what happens

said by saberdaddy:
I think I'd like to see what happens from a real trial of this technology rather than accept the opinions of what appears to be a group of increasingly hysterical kooks.

Already tried in other countries and this is the same tech (nothing new.)

»www.arrl.org/news/storie ··· /2/?nc=1

»216.167.96.120/BPL_Trial-web.mpg

»homepages.ihug.com.au/%7 ··· pbpl.htm

All found on www.gobpl.com

CheeseWare
Premium Member
join:2003-04-24
Burnaby, BC

CheeseWare

Premium Member

BPhelL demo - humour

The FCC Chairman enters the gate of hell and heaven. Their computer has broken down and Saint Peter gives him a choice. The Chairman responds by asking for a demo. They first show him hell with a bunch of rather lively people generally doing fine and having a good time. They then go to heaven and see clouds, angels, peace and quietness -hams and no interference but rather quite a boring place to spend the eternity. So sure enough the Chairman decides to go to hell. But somehow soon afterward, he ends up in a dark dungeon on a stretcher with rats nibbling at his feet and his rear-end roasting over a fire (or a powerline?). One night he notices Satan on his walk and yells to him: "But this is not what I was shown". And Satan to answer: "Did you not like my demo?"

I noticed BTW that the BPL stock markets have not blinked one bit on both Powell and Bush praises on how wonderful the prospects of BPL are. Perhaps their intervention will have the opposite effect than what was expected. This must not be a laughing matter for some.
obladi6703
join:2002-06-25
Pearl, MS

1 edit

obladi6703

Member

HAM radio

Are HAM radio operators the ones with the tacky antennas towering over their trailers?

Guys, if you really want to be on the radio, please go be a dj or something.

/there is an alternative to HAM radio, it's called the internet. You can even use voice communication.

Andrew J
Premium Member
join:2001-11-09
Lancaster, PA

Andrew J

Premium Member

Re: HAM radio

You didn't get the memo? They changed this to hambandreports.com.

tenbase
join:2000-07-19
Alexandria, VA

tenbase to obladi6703

Member

to obladi6703
er, ham radio has nothing to do with being a dj. nice ignorant stereotype though.

and in case you havent noticed, this is a public forum, and a lot of the users happen to be hams.
ced06
join:2004-03-12
Towanda, PA

ced06

Member

Screw HAM

I'm tired of HAM users bitching and whining about BPL interference. Oh no, you can't talk to a fat 40 year old balding man in New Zealand! Go join a chatroom or an irc channel.

Yes, I understand that HAM CAN be used for emergency purposes...but do you honestly think they (they being the government in huge disasters such as 9/11, or others) don't have backup (short wave, etc.)?

In the end more people want broadband more than HAM.

••••••••

Paladin
Sage of the light
join:2001-08-17
Chester, IL

Paladin

Member

Homeland Security

I don't care a bit about this hype with BPL. Even though I'm not a ham radio user, and I believe that there are more relevant communication technologies in place today than amateur radio, the real comparison is BPL vs. WiMax. To me it's quite apparent that WiMax is the major player in trying to bring rural broadband services to fruition. By the time that BPL actually makes it to the sticks, WiMax will be there cleaning its clock. WiMax just has greater speed and distance potential to bring broadband to the rural masses, while BPL is just going to get stuck in static.
Jeetyet
join:2003-11-18

Jeetyet

Member

Hmmmm.....


Well lets see now. We have this...

"We education people here as to what the realities are"

and we have this...

"I'll personally cut the power lines, and praise anyone who does the same if they allow this."

Yall sure you're hams? Ya sound more like a big ol' pile o' chitlins.

winky
Turn Left At The Moon
join:2001-02-11
Saint Louis, MO

winky

Member

Ah..the botttom line

Bing..Bing..Bing..Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner:
"BPL - Broadband over Power Lines was not being promoted because it is a good, clean or technologically advanced technology- it was promoted because the power companies want a piece of the broadband pie and they will do what they can to use their pre-existing system to provide it"

Mommy? I don't see it! Where's the Forest? I think all these trees are in the way!
lonewulf44
join:2004-06-14
Springville, IN

lonewulf44

Member

Re: Ah..the botttom line

Hmmm....I did not know the issue of BPL causes such a war between ideal of people. I guess in a way I see both view points, but no matter what the technology faults, I'm for pushing any type of Broadband out to everyone. Like alot of poor souls enslaved to 16.4 dial-up hell, I'm welcoming to any High Speed Option. I still look at as priority.......High Speed Internet is more important to society, business, and educational needs than anything out there. Just wish I even had a BPL trial near me.........but unless a miracle happens.....I'm still screwed outa luck!
Karborin
join:2005-01-22
00200

Karborin

Member

And now?

Man,

I have stumbled on this forum, and was wondering if I should rather post a comment to the local "kindergarten" due to the bickering over your toys......

Then, some comments that were sober, reasoned and well structured

Now, instead of wasting the considerable IQ in evidence on derogatory remarks, idle threats and the such, why don't you guys (and girls, maybe) help me come up with a solution to provide interactive multi-media content to Kenya and Sudan.....Sudan especially where some war ravaged people have never even SEEN a radio, ham or FM or AM or otherwise - by the way "ham is good' - especially in the sticks - using content delivery interactively via VoIP, the last mile - where you can not even buy a pen in the local store - there isn't one - where there is NO INFRASTRUCTURE.

No cable, no wire, no wireless, no ...

I am thinking ..... HF radio from Nairobi - Codan or similar, to Rumbek in southern Sudan, to 16 other areas in southern Sudan.

VSAT available, but as this is for disadvantaged communities with a annual income of less than zero, and funding will be via donors - expensive.

Content delivery can be via something like "Elluminate"

Target audience - the communities mentioned, the Sudan Peace and Reconciliation Commission, the demobilised soldiers, the internally displaced people, child soldiers, war wound and land mine victims, and so on.

In Kenya the target audience will be prisoners, juvenile delinquents in custody, youth via a Drug, Alcohol and Substance abuse program, and a certain Kenyan Community that practice "wife inheritance" - even if the husband died of AIDS.

If any info or bio data is required, i will gladly accommodate any requests.

Well, well done, my first ever post... or whatever

I trust you can get my e-mail ID from here??

Then How?