There is no bitterness, but I'm tired of misinformation and distorted facts that propogates from an industry like the computing world that has it's own problems of unreliable services.
For the record, I'm a consultant that has made his living (more money than you think) bypassing the telco's and LD companies for Fortune 500 corporate clients. I've received my fair share of scars from telco's over the years. I've found myself providing MAN and WAN solutions more and more with IT departments and in dealing with them, get a "bad taste" in my mouth for the way they fingerpoint to save their bacon and cover up their shortcomings. Most of the times, their problems are with routers/bridges, that's when they call the manufacturer, who long distance troubleshoot by blaming the communication link. Naturally when you do a 1, 2, 6 or 24 hour intensive BERT test; there is no clock slips, no frame errors...nothing. They then replace their gear that I have nothing to do with. If you think I put up with any of the leasing I do with the telco industry, think again. I'll switch services in a heartbeat. They know it. Make excuses to me? Never happens, because they can't baffle me with BS. I've eaten my fair share of sales and customer service reps offspring over the years. Fear not, this dog get's return business, because I get it done and it works.
I have to say for every 10 service calls, 9 end up being IT's equiment. With Gates/Groves attacks on an industry they absolutely know nothing about, I've decided to wage my own war. My industry, so far, has said nothing. Bitter. not at all, because we are the Internet. Without the digital backbone, which is fiber, there is no Internet. Who owns it? WorldCom, Sprint, AT&T, MCI and global PTT's. Companies like PSINET, BBN and others lease from these guys. The NAP's, who all the ISP's connect to are own by the ROBC or LD's. So you see the very dispersion that you level are misplaced.
The PTSN for the moment is a narrow channel. However, the twisted pair is capable of wider bandwidths. It's the present switches that are the bottelneck. Because of finance concerns of dipreciation, the telco's are stuck in a quandry of tax purposes. Cable industry was forced to upgrade, not because of the 'Net, but because of HDTV. If it wasn't for it, you'd still be waiting on them. CATV over fiber was patent years ago (early '80's), why did they wait so long. DSS shot across the bow with better picture quality and more channels utilizing digital, and they still did nothing. Technology was there for years, but they care not. HDTV is coming and they HAD to do something. Lo and behold, a cash cow presents itself in the Internet and they are slow about it. TCI upgraded my neighborhood a year ago, where is the service? This is about as high tech an area, as I'm surrounded by NASA types, as you can get. You think there isn't a demand for it here? Where TCI? Mind you, I've no choice but to move. Like you said, I've a memory. Then again, for E-Mail and the limit of my websurfing, I really can wait for all comers to see what they are before making the leap in speed. What do I care that it takes all that time, it cost only 19.95 per month. 28.8 modem is cheap, although I'm on my third US Robotics (they keep replacing it under warranty). Even if TCI provided it tomorrow, I'd still tell them to take their TV service and stick it up where the sun don't shine.
As for stocks; I own NT and LU, which are up over 100%. I also own TLAB and NN among others. I dump MSFT, INTC and CSCO in the beginning of the year. 2 haven't done much since. Of all the companies mention; who do you think is providing the equipment for the Internet in a total way? Who doing the most in fiber, ATM and SONET? I don't deal in end user hype and BS, I deal in point to point. Note; not one provider in my portfolio, although I did own WorldCom at one time. GTE is out burying a new cable for some unknown purpose in my neighborhood. Must have something up their sleeve with the acquisition of BBN.
You better read about MCI bitch, seems they are highly upset with what SBC (PacBell) are charging to interconnect for local access. Aerial, that's not the best solution. Subject to other sources of interference. |
