hunter@phoenix.pub.uu.oz.au (James Gardiner [hunter]) (05/11/91)
In <1991May8.234408.614@nic.csu.net> rkent@sparc1.sparc1.csubak.edu (Rick Kent (Student)) writes: >I want my ISDN! I'd love to run a BBS using ISDN. It would be so nice. >A link from ISDN into the internet would sure be damn nice too! Exactly how much does it cost per year to have say a 19200 link or better connection (slip or whatever) into internet in the US? Here in australia it is more then any person can afford. ie around 5000 per year....... new ARRnet prices. :( James.
cactus@zardoz.club.cc.cmu.edu (Todd Masco) (05/12/91)
In article <1991May11.152852.13125@phoenix.pub.uu.oz.au> hunter@phoenix.pub.uu.oz.au (James Gardiner [hunter]) writes: >In <1991May8.234408.614@nic.csu.net> rkent@sparc1.sparc1.csubak.edu (Rick Kent (Student)) writes: >Exactly how much does it cost per year to have say a 19200 >link or better connection (slip or whatever) into internet in the >US? This'll probably be on the low end of the data points, but it cost my (off-campus) room mates and me about $150 a semester before we managed to get our employers to pick up the tab... split 3 ways, that's entirely acceptable. This is using the normal phone lines, giving us (in essence) a dedicated direct line to a VAX on campus, from which we run (Multinet) SLIP to a Sun3 in our house. Our house Ethernet is another matter which I won't go into. If the Phone Companies sees the need to provide the general public with this service, I don't see how it could possible be more expensive (economies of scale and so forth). The system works well and is basically break-even for around 300 "customers." We only have occasional outages, and those can be written up to the "experimental" status of the project (though it's been pretty much stable over the last two years). With all this in mind, I don't see how it couldn't happen that in 20 years or so, *everybody* will have the ability to connect to a "universal" net for reasonable costs. The security issues will be amazing. -- Todd L. Masco - CMU Physics | "Free speech is the right to shout "theatre" cactus@zardoz.club.cc.cmu.edu | in a crowded fire."
c506634@umcvmb.missouri.edu (Eric Edwards) (05/14/91)
In article <13014@pt.cs.cmu.edu> cactus@zardoz.club.cc.cmu.edu (Todd Masco) writes: > > In article <1991May11.152852.13125@phoenix.pub.uu.oz.au> hunter@phoenix.pub.uu.oz.au (James Gardiner [hunter]) writes: > >In <1991May8.234408.614@nic.csu.net> rkent@sparc1.sparc1.csubak.edu (Rick Kent (Student)) writes: > >Exactly how much does it cost per year to have say a 19200 > >link or better connection (slip or whatever) into internet in the > >US? > > This'll probably be on the low end of the data points, but it cost my > (off-campus) room mates and me about $150 a semester before we managed > to get our employers to pick up the tab... split 3 ways, that's > entirely acceptable. This is using the normal phone lines, giving us > (in essence) a dedicated direct line to a VAX on campus, from which we I doubt the $150/semester that you are paying represents the true cost of your connection. Rather, it in an arbitrary figure arived at by the university. Most of the cost of your connection is paid by NSF with the university picking up the remainder. This works now becuase access is limited but the NSF can not afford to subsidize everybody. In order for access to NSFnet backbone to be available to everybody, the customers must pay the full cost. Eric Edwards: c506634 @ "I say we take off and nuke the entire site Inet: umcvmb.missouri.edu from orbit. It's the only way to be sure." Bitnet: umcvmb.bitnet -- Sigourney Weaver, _Aliens_
cactus@zardoz.club.cc.cmu.edu (Todd Masco) (05/14/91)
In article <c506634.3309@umcvmb.missouri.edu> c506634@umcvmb.missouri.edu (Eric Edwards) writes: >I doubt the $150/semester that you are paying represents the true cost of >your connection. Rather, it in an arbitrary figure arived at by the >university. Most of the cost of your connection is paid by NSF with the >university picking up the remainder. Uh, no. The NSF is not giving funding to the datacommunications division of computing sevices. Pure research would be done by SCS (School of Computer Science) facilities or some other group. It *is* possible, however, that the local phone company is giving some subsidy in the form of free services. I doubt that it would be a significant amount, though. The intention (I'm told) was to beta-test a commercial service, with the idea of marketting it to a larger audience as time goes on. I do not see what is inherently so expensive about the setup. I should stress - this is *not* ISDN. This is a system using the local phone wires, using bandwidth that is normally cut off by pass filters. Nice, cheap high-speed communication. Requires, I'm told, above-average quality wiring (which this area has) and (in our case) a Gandalf modem on either end. We own one, and the other is owned by the University. -- Todd L. Masco - CMU Physics | "Free speech is the right to shout "theatre" cactus@zardoz.club.cc.cmu.edu | in a crowded fire."
c506634@umcvmb.missouri.edu (Eric Edwards) (05/15/91)
In article <13028@pt.cs.cmu.edu> cactus@zardoz.club.cc.cmu.edu (Todd Masco) writes: > > In article <c506634.3309@umcvmb.missouri.edu> c506634@umcvmb.missouri.edu (Eric Edwards) writes: > >I doubt the $150/semester that you are paying represents the true cost of > >your connection. Rather, it in an arbitrary figure arived at by the > >university. Most of the cost of your connection is paid by NSF with the > >university picking up the remainder. > > Uh, no. The NSF is not giving funding to the datacommunications > division of computing sevices. Pure research would be done by SCS > (School of Computer Science) facilities or some other group. Ah, but it is. The NSF allows computer services access to the NSFnet backbone at subsidized rates. The big cost is not your link to campus. That's only a few miles, max. It is the T1 lines that reach from coast to coast. They cost lots of money and have a limited capacity. Eric Edwards: c506634 @ "I say we take off and nuke the entire site Inet: umcvmb.missouri.edu from orbit. It's the only way to be sure." Bitnet: umcvmb.bitnet -- Sigourney Weaver, _Aliens_