 daslog
join:2002-04-10
Milford, NH
| Until this gets mainstream press.... Like USA today, CNN(haha) or the NY times, their policy of invisible caps is unlikely to change. That being said, I warn everyone that I know with Comcast to keep it under 100 gigs.
Also, it would be nice for them to provide a Bandwidth meter on their website. | |
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nicecaps
@cox.net | Re: Until this gets mainstream press.... OK 100 gigs beats Cox with their 40 gigs down/ 10 gigs up per month cap. What a ****ing joke!  | |
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RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
Premium
join:2005-06-18
USA | Re: Until this gets mainstream press.... At least you know what the cap is even if Cox rarely enforces it. | |
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| | | axus
join:2001-06-18
Washington, DC
 ·Verizon Online DSL
| Caps need to be published for competitive reasons Yeah, if everyone published their caps then it can be used as a point of competition in advertising. The way it is now, companies don't like to discuss it, because all of them would like to not compete on this. When they do, caps necessarily match the highest competitor.
Here are the things I can think of that can be competed on:
price
average uptime (95% is probably fine for homes)
downstream bandwidth
upstream bandwidth
download cap
upload cap
average latency
customer service | |
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KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
 ·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| Re: Caps need to be published for competitive reasons said by KoolMoe  :Generally agree. But if providers not only published their caps but also had a 'your bandwidth usage this month' meters, you know many folks would push it to the bare limit. The people who would push it to the limit would only be the ones currently pushing it beyond the limit.
If you only surf, download say 2-3 gigs a month, then why would you suddenly go on a tear and "push it to the limit" if they told you the cap was 50 gigs a month?
I suspect providing the tools would allow people more control over their usage and would enable competition. I think this is the real reason they don't want to reveal the "invisible" caps.
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"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) | |
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inteller
Sociopaths always win.
join:2003-12-08
Tulsa, OK | how did you discover that cap? I'm not aware of such low cox caps. | |
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join:2007-03-17
2 edits | Re: Until this gets mainstream press.... Yes, i have Cox and regularly download in excess of 200 + gigs
(usually linux iso's on Bit torrent )
I should also mention i have done this for about 5 years now | |
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join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY
| Re: Until this gets mainstream press.... said by djrobx : quote:
Yes, i have Cox and regularly download in excess of 200 + gigs
(usually linux iso's on Bit torrent )
How many linux ISOs can you possibly need? Even if you wanted to try a new distro every week you shouldn't be pulling 200GB/month. Linux ISOs on bittorent, the only PC, non-copy vio thing you can do on Bittorrent  | |
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join:2007-03-17
3 edits | Re: Until this gets mainstream press.... well, I usually keep the bit torrent client on so one Iso will transfer 20 + gigs total for each one
and just in case you are not aware there are a lot of distributions out there 4+ gigs in size
Also in case you are not aware many security distributions used for penetration testing are updated almost weekly, with no update ability (for testing purposes). Agian this is just one example | |
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dvd536
as Mr. Pink as they come
Premium
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ
| said by inteller :how did you discover that cap? I'm not aware of such low cox caps. its on the cox website
Value - 4gb down, 1gb up
preferred - 40gb down, 10gb up
premiere - 60gb down, 12.5gb up
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You can never be too rich, too thin or have too much Bandwidth | |
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phattieg
join:2001-04-29
Winter Park, FL
 ·Verizon Wireless B..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| said by daslog :Like USA today, CNN(haha) or the NY times, their policy of invisible caps is unlikely to change. That being said, I warn everyone that I know with Comcast to keep it under 100 gigs. Also, it would be nice for them to provide a Bandwidth meter on their website. Yeah, a bandwidth meter would be nice, but the caps are "floating" caps, and all depend on your area, and the over all usage patterns for the specific node you're on. I download a ton, and have yet to receive a letter, or warning. I am glad they don't have "specific" caps, because then I would be restricted to a specific limit, and thats not cool. I'm sorry if you'd like it that way because you got kicked off for using it too much, but thats your problem. If there were specific caps, nobody would be happy. At least without caps you can keep going until you're warned... If the restriction bothers you, it's THEIR network, go somewhere else if you need more. I can't understand why you EXPECT a company who is known for shutting people off for "using it too much" has to keep being brought into the spotlight. Repetitive news clips about issues that aren't going to change is the reason I read more news from DIGG. We are getting to the point with this topic where we're "beating a dead horse". They aren't going to change their acceptable use policy for less than 2% of their customer base. This is the nations largest broadband ISP we're talking about here. Why would they change if it's not killing business? If it really mattered, people would jump ship left and right. 
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SIPPhone/Gizmo # 17476200648 / PIMPNET Chatline / Ran by Asterisk & Slackware 10.1. | |
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Camelot One
Premium,MVM
join:2001-11-21
Sarasota, FL
clubs:
| Whats old is new again The topic of the download caps has already been beat to death around here, so I'll leave that alone.
But PC Magazine just now finding out about it seems normal. There was a time when PC Mags were written for the true geeks, but unfortunately they have learned that we tend to get our news online, as it's happening. So they've all been redone, now written for those who have trouble checking their email. (no kidding, see their recent "Reader Help" sections)
I hear they'll soon be publishing an article letting readers know Microsoft is releasing a new OS.
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AMD X2 4800+ @2700Mhz/ MSI K8N Neo 4 Platinum SLI/ 4x 1024Mb Corsair XMS PC4000/ WD 74Gb Raptor/ PNY 7800GTs SLI/ Antec 550 True Control/Custom water cooler | |
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Titus Pullo
I came, I saw, I slept
join:2004-06-26
·Embarq
| Re: Whats old is new again said by Camelot One : There was a time when PC Mags were written for the true geeks, but unfortunately they have learned that we tend to get our news online, as it's happening. I hear they'll soon be publishing an article letting readers know Microsoft is releasing a new OS. That's because life outside their offices is a series of 'UNDOCUMENTED TIPS!' 
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Who would Jesus bomb? | |
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TOPDAWG
Premium
join:2005-04-27
Midland, ON | Re: Whats old is new again I always liked PC World myself. I used to get that in the mail back like a year or 2 ago. It was well written you could learn stuff but was written so anyone could understand it. | |
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RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
Premium
join:2005-06-18
USA
2 edits | If Verizon wireless can figure it out... ...certainly Brian "low-mileage lease BMW" Roberts can.
Just state what the caps are. Obviously Comcast isn't capable of supplying the speeds they claim for any length of time, it's the nature of cable network topology and doesn't matter to 99% of the users on the service (as I would imagine the "average" user wouldn't exceed 4GB/mo in consumption). But since capping and cable go hand in hand they should step up like Cox did and state what the caps are. If it's 100GB/mo fine. IMO that is more than generous. If it's 100GB and because it's only certain markets they have to enforce the AUP they rarely enforce it fine. If they have a cap and then charge a few pennies / MB for overages fine. But arbitrarily picking a secret number every month and not telling customers what to do other than "cut your useage by half" is beyond lame. And because of it Roberts' claims of Comcast greatness are exaggerated. NASCARS are fast too, but the motor is done in 500 miles. Same with Comcast.
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't. | |
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| CLEVELTECH
join:2006-12-21
02107
3 edits | Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... My guess as to why Comcast does not want to post what the limits are is because it's simple lying. If Cox Communications can post the limits on their website (depending on the area where their service is located), so can Comcast. They would rather lie to people and tell them that there are no cap limits to keep bringing in customers and keep the profits high rather than risk alienating them. This is not a problem that is going away anytime soon and with the continuing aquisitions that Comcast keeps buying up, more and more people are going to be getting the "call" and being threatened to "limit their usage" and left wondering what or how much do they have to cut back.
The day will come when CEO Brian Roberts is facing angry former Comcast subscribers and a federal judge in court and that one-sided TOS is thrown right out the window. That fuzzy policy might be legal, but very much in the gray-area and in this country we have laws protecting consumers from greedy corporations that try to change the rules as they go along.
People like Brian Roberts need to come back to earth from whatever planet he's on and realize that even though he might be rich and in a cushy job, the average consumer is much more intelligent than him and the crap he's feeding is going to eventually come back to bite him in the face.
The NYTIMES hasn't reported it YET, but they will soon enough.
My bud just updated his blog and like me, he's had to defend himself from accusations and attacks by those that refuse to accept that there is a problem and defend Comcast.
»comcastissue.blogspot.com/index.html | |
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RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
Premium
join:2005-06-18
USA
| Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... I don't think there is anything illegal about their AUP. It's just bad practice to in these rare circumstances to expect the customers to curb their usage without telling them how much to curb their usage.
And as Comcast ramps up speeds in their attempts to keep up with telco deployments this will just happen more and more.
Hell, stating caps doesn't seem to have hurt Cox's reputation and the telcos at least in Orange County aren't using the caps in their advertising against them.
It would be very simply for Comcast to do what Cox did...state a cap and then selectively enforce it. But at least them when it came time for enforcement the sub would have a number (eg 40, 60, 100GB) to shoot for.
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't. | |
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| | | CLEVELTECH
join:2006-12-21
02107
1 edit | Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... I agree with you about stating the caps. That's all I (and many other former subscribers) want.
This isn't as isolated as you think. I've talked to hundreds of others that have contacted me with the same story.
I never said that their AUP is illegal, but it certainly falls into a gray area and if you read it unless you are a lawyer, the average person will NOT understand it. It's very vague. It was written that way purposely to shield Comcast from liability.
THAT'S THE PROBLEM. | |
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LeftOfSanity
join:2005-11-06
Felton, DE | So giving everyone a cap would be better than only capping when needed? | |
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RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
Premium
join:2005-06-18
USA
1 edit | Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... Yeah, because the matter of enforcing it is a different issue. Cox clearly states the caps but rarely if ever enforces it. Comcast could do the same. State say a 60GB/mo cap and then enforce it only in cable systems that are having trouble or apply it only to users who habitually blow through their caps many times over. It would accomplish the same thing but those users who wish to comply would have the "number" they need to abide to. As it stand down users cut their usage but are still terminated because they didn't cut enough. They need to know what "enough" is.
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't. | |
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LeftOfSanity
join:2005-11-06
Felton, DE
| Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... said by RideRed :Yeah, because the matter of enforcing it is a different issue. Cox clearly states the caps but rarely if ever enforces it. Comcast could do the same. State say a 60GB/mo cap and then enforce it only in cable systems that are having trouble or apply it only to users who habitually blow through their caps many times over. It would accomplish the same thing but those users who wish to comply would have the "number" they need to abide to. As it stand down users cut their usage but are still terminated because they didn't cut enough. They need to know what "enough" is. So you just want lip service? If your downloading enough to hit the cap, you know what you are doing. So you should know to cut it down a bit. I don't agree with "Well tell me how much so I can go right to that line." I call BS on the post about someone getting "The Call" for the lady checking email and basic surfing. | |
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RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
Premium
join:2005-06-18
USA
| Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... How is stating what the caps would be lip service? You think Cox is just giving lip service with their caps?
Yeah, tell the customers they're accusing of using "too much service" exactly what constitutes "too much". Don't tell customers to cut their usage, tell them by how much.
The problem is customers just let lip service to "cut it down a bit", they do and it turns out the bit wasn't enough and they're suspended.
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't. | |
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LeftOfSanity
join:2005-11-06
Felton, DE
| Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... And do you really think that would be the end all? There would still be plenty of people who will say "I didnt go over" "There must be something wrong" "your reports are off".
With COX, lets say you download 250 gigs and it starts to degrade the area. So instead of dropping it to 100 or so they automatically point to that cap and say "Nope..since you went over by a little, now you get cut down to 60" or whatever it was. | |
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RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
Premium
join:2005-06-18
USA | Re: If Verizon wireless can figure it out... Exactly. The alternative is you cut it back a bit, Cox says "that wasn't enough, you're suspended for 12 months".
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There's only 10 types of people in this world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't. | |
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thender2
Glamour Profession
Premium
join:2004-05-16
Staten Island, NY
| I don't think 100 GB is generous.
They have on occasion boasted that they are not afraid of FIOS. If they're not, they should do more than step up and announce a cap - they should get rid of them.
If Roberts' service were truly better than FIOS, as his words indicated, there'd be as many complaints over caps in the comcast forum as there are in the verizon forum.
..can someone find any in the verizon forum? How about the SBC forum(just for kicks - I don't want to come off looking like a verizon fanboy)
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The Problem With Music.
Our Rationale
Time to rewrite the DMCA. | |
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Loker
Premium
join:2004-07-11
Fargo, ND
clubs: | News? Why is it news every time someone writes an article about getting disconnected for network abuse? | |
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dadkins
Can you do Blu?
Premium,MVM
join:2003-09-26
Hercules, CA
·Comcast
| Ok people, one last time... Comcast is huge.
Comcast has a shitload of markets.
My market can likely handle 300+GB per month per sub.
Your market may be able to handle 500+GB per month per sub.
Someone else's market may onle be able to handle 200GB per sub.
So, do you, possibly being in a market that can handle 500GB per sub, REALLY want Comcast to set a fair(for *ALL SUBS*) cap at say - 150GB per month?
So much for your ability to download 500GB, huh?
Screw *MY* 300GB per munth, but that's ok, right?
We *ALL* now get to have a lowballed cap, regardless of what our markets can actually handle.
Oh yeah, that make a whole lot of sense! NOT!
Look, here is what a SMART Comcast Residential HSI customer would do...
Set your own damn limits!
If, by only by reading of these cutoff threads, you can assertain that the "AVERAGE" is 200-300GB per month...
DUH!!!
Don't allow yourself to surpass 300GB per month!
*IF* you still get "The Call", why not just do as asked and CUT BACK and get on with your life?
No, y'all want to have a stated cap.
Never have any of you thought that Comcast(in their INFINITE wisdom) might set it WAY lower than what you previously were able to download.
Here is something that y'all are missing too -
What if... *I* wanted to download 300GB one month?
Now, with that lowballed STATED CAP, I'm boned?
Not only did you all screw yourselves, ya screwd everyone else!
Main thing I'm concerned about, ya just screwqed *ME*!
Do you know what "Fuck all That!" means?
If y'all get your way, we may end up another Rogers!
_____________________________________________________________
So, lets look at this one last time:
Inviso-cap @ 200-300(average).
Or
Stated cap @ 100-150(to be fair to everyone).
Even my neighbor's 3 year old could figure this one out...
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Think outside the Fox... Opera | |
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albie81
Premium
join:2005-01-04
Mount Laurel, NJ
| Just say what it is in the ToS..... I don't care that they have a cap. I care that they have a cap and try to pretend like they don't, until you do something to reach some magical number and they start sending hatemail.
watch what's gonna happen with more availability of online digital media. LEGAL digital media.
say, a person in a given billing cycle, purchases, completely legally, a certain number of say... Hi-Def movies. (regardless of whether or you can NOW... it's coming.) Those are LARGE LARGE files. You download 10 or 15 in a month, you are in deep with comcast. All because you are using your broadband connection how you choose, in a perfectly legal manner?
They need to state SOMETHING in the ToS, instead of making people think they have unlimited service to use as they choose, albeit within the confines of what's legal.. (i.e. don't piss off the xxAA's) and then suddenly getting shut off because comcast decides you've used your allotment of bandwidth.
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AMD Athlon 64 3000+ @ 2.4Ghz ~ DFI LanParty 250gb nF3 ~ 1gb (2x512mb) Corsair PC3200 ~ MSI Radeon 9600Pro ~ 160gb WD Caviar SATA 150 ~ Creative SB Audigy2 ZS Platinum ~ Cooler Master Centurion ATX ~ Sony 18.1" LCD ~ Cubase SX ~ Cakewalk SONAR | |
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madrhino
join:2004-07-03 | Hmm Good explanation Dadkins.There's no way to determine if your speculation is correct or not but it's something to think about.I hadn't considered that angle yet.
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Get Verizon FIOS,The Anti-DIOS | |
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rradina
join:2000-08-08
Chesterfield, MO | Net neutrality anyone? No need for net neutrality. No need at all. Just let the whim of a monopoly define the service!
I say we need more OPECs in the world. That's progress baby! | |
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bigjimc
join:2003-04-21
Middleboro, MA
| Pass this along What if everyone at 8 PM EST on Friday April 13 decided to stream video, download music or movies or Linux Isos or whatever on the Comcast system.
While ordering pay per view and
using their VOIP or video telephone.
How would the Comcast system handles that nugget?
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Just my 2 cents...Flame Lightly... | |
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nightwalker
Nightwalker
join:1999-08-07
Appleton, WI
3 edits | I'm a power user, and I have never received any letterI consider myself to be a 'power' user. I have 4 computers hooked up, sharing it for the members of my household. I torrent probably 4 times a week, and run automated backups at night offsite.
month rx | tx | total
---------------------+---------------+---------------
Mar '07 57,500 MB | 25,538 MB | 83,038 MB
Apr '07 10,605 MB | 2,191 MB | 12,797 MB
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estimated 68,175 MB | 14,085 MB | 82,260 MB
I have never received a abuse letter stating I was using too much. I use about 80-100 gigs per month.
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| benny17
join:2005-02-21
Albany, KY | Re: I'm a power user, and I have never received any letter What is a good program to measure your downloading usage. | |
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AlphaOne
I see
Premium
join:2004-02-21
| Cap ? If Comcast (or any provider for that matter), can't promise to provide the max bandwidth (max speed x 24x7), then they should not be allowed to offer such speed.
It's either they improve their network, or lower the max dowload speeds.
They can't just suspend customers for using the bandwidth that is available to them.
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something incredible is waiting to be known - Carl Sagan | |
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Rob A
Same Old Jets
Premium
join:2005-01-17
Pompton Plains, NJ | Is anyone surprised? Cable Companies will always set limits on their customers, further ripping them off more than they already are. | |
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dvd536
as Mr. Pink as they come
Premium
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ | Re: Is anyone surprised? next thing you know there'll be a max hours on tv cap! | |
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mnms
@mis.net
| that seems a bit much Sheesh 200+ gigs a month!!!Dood thats like 1000 meg bytes to make only 1 gig let alone 200+ sheesh....What are you people downloading???Pirated music,games,and dvd movies???I hope you people are not being naughty..... | |
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plattypus1
join:2005-04-08
Riverside, CA
·Charter Pipeline
| Charter Cable Charter, for all their craptastic customer service (and this coming from an employee!), has no download caps, no upload caps, and AFAIK not even a form letter to warn peoples. There is a provision in the ToS about "excessive use" but it has never, to my knowledge, been enforced.
Perhaps other services should just provision enough bandwidth for the speeds they're selling, and they wouldn't have to worry about caps. | |
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xiaobb
join:2005-12-21
Seattle, WA | support I TOTALLY agree with CLEVELTECH. | |
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| CLEVELTECH
join:2006-12-21
02107 | Re: support THANK YOU FOR THE SUPPORT. | |
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dslwanter
Why would I want DSL? I have FTTH
Premium
join:2002-12-16
Lowellville, OH
·Armstrong Zoom In..
·AT&T Midwest
| You know what though For as big as a company as Comcast is it really is uncalled for, let alone the price for their services. They should have a capless system, just like AT&T's DSL does which is a big competitor for them in many markets. How can you cap anyone, especially with anything beyond a basic broadband connection. Your average Joe that just wants to check his email and wants nothing more than the cheapest package, will likely never hit the cap anyway. But the purpose of buying these premium broadband packages is to download more, download faster, telecommute, run servers, & much more. It is uncalled for from a company of their magnitude who should be able to build a big enough system not to enforce any caps whatsoever.
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"You're as worthless as a screen door on a submarine!" Check out my Internet Radio Station & DJ Service, »www.thebomb102.com. | |
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mikron
join:2007-04-15
06010-3201
| Comcast average user bandwidth I got contacted by comcast 4/13 saying that in march I downloaded 285gigs and i am in top 1% and I am over 200 % the average user bandwidth if I have another infraction in 12 months I lose my internet service for a year
comcast needs to come straight I will stick to 100 gigs a month | |
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PC Magazine Discovers Comcast Caps
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