Mobile Internet

[cocobolo]

OK, so I went on to the MacGuru's site which I do from time to time when I'm up the creek without a paddle.

It got me in to the page OK, but no information at all about any speeds.

Went to another site for a ping test, 679 ms and 79 ms jitter, FAIL.

Connection between hub and Mac is perfect.

I really am hoping this is just an antenna problem.  BTW, I checked the distances to two of the Rogers towers which have both 850 and 1900, and they are nearly identical at about 9 kms.  The tower at cassidy (by the airport) uses 850 only, plus it is a little further away.

Looks like an antenna is the next move.

[skinorth]

@cocobolo:

Good!  You made it to the RocketHub web management interface.  My suggestion to do that was intended to get you to the internal status page(s) for the RocketHub as I expect that it will give you information on signal strength and other relevant information.  I was not expecting that to help with the speed issue directly.

By the way, I too have a RocketHub, but it is the Ericsson W35, which, although it seems to work fine, was discontinued by Rogers.  Its management interface is different from that on your RocketHub.

As to the cost of the service provided by Rogers, my observation is that their charging algorithms are rooted in corporate self-interest and the need to generate profits, etc.

We have used the RocketHub for both voice and data and usually spend about $80 a month, including Canada-wide long distance.

skinorth

[cocobolo]

Thanks again Skinorth...

We got over for a very quick trip to town this morning, time limited due to the tide.

I was hoping to be able to get some coax and fittings to make a Yagi antenna, but the Source no longer carries what I need in long lengths, so I'm stuck until next time.

I did get to update our cell phone package however, so we will be $20 a month ahead there.

I have been looking to see what typical usage is on the hub, and you are only the second person to put up a figure...so thanks for that.

Also got my first bill already for the hub.  Supposed to be "Zero dollars"according to an email I have from Rogers.  Plus the first month free.  I got this on February 10th...they are charging me from January 30th.  No free month, no free hub, no free anything.  It goes without saying that I will be having yet another chat with Rogers billing department.

Of the three times I have had new equipment, Rogers has always pulled this stunt.  First time was a $133 overcharge, second time $163 and this time they would like $217 for my free hub.  Anyway, that doesn't have anything to do with the technical problem of getting this thing to work properly, so I'm going to spend some time this afternoon having a go at the antenna.

One thing you really do have to give Rogers...they have the most creative accounting department on the planet!

[cocobolo]

Hi again Skinorth...I just learned that Rogers has more than one price plan in effect.  How many gigs do you get for your $80 a month...give or take...?  Thanks.

[skinorth]

@cocobolo:

First off, I paid Rogers $150 to "purchase" my W35 RocketHub.  On top of that, there was a  2 year contract.  Here is the actual, relevant section from the Rogers contract which I signed in May 2010:

VOICE/DATA PLAN(S) & OPTIONS
Wireless Plan Details

Plan Name Rocket Hub Voice & Flex Data
Plan Description Includes Unlimited Local Calling
with 3 calling features ( Caller ID,
Call Waiting, Enhanced Voicemail)
3GB of Flex Data(varies based on
usage), Overage $5.00 per GB for
usage exceeding 10GB
Service Agreement Term 24 months
Monthly Service Fee $50.00
Overage Rate Voice (per min.) Weekday $0.00
Voice (per min.) Eve/Wkend
$0.00
Data (per KB) $0.00
LD to U.S. (per min.) $0.20
LD to Can. (per min.) $0.20
Wireless Essentials Monthly Fee
OPTSRA0B6 Canadian LD Anytime
Option $20.00

The above is from the .pdf of the actual contract.

As you can see, the contract is "sketchy" to the extreme.  I have never been sure how I am to interpret the "Flexdata" provision.  I know how Rogers interprets it: they charge me $10 if I go over 3 Gbyte/month, which I have done a few times.

But, as you can see there is another part of the above which seems to indicate that they will charge me extra only if I go over 10 Gbytes a month.  I have had discussions with Rogers on this matter, and, apart from getting very frustrated as a result of their extreme arrogance and ignorance, I got nowhere with them.  Rogers reigns supreme!

Like a lot of others who have posted on this, I have few to no other options for my situation, so I put up with it.  I wonder if Vic Toews is on a RocketHub?  Would he be happy with this situation?  Maybe Harper in the next life will have to deal ongoing with Rogers on the telephone.  Now that would be karma!

So, from the above you can extrapolate what my costs are under the condition that I use less than 3 Gbytes a month.  I manage this most months.  I do not download movies, I do utility surfing, email, and the usual computer downloads for maintenance and update functions.  If I know I have large downloads to do, I often take my laptop to work and do it on the network there.

And, don't forget that the RocketHub is both my Internet connection, and my home telephone.  There is, as you can see, $20 a month in the above contract for unlimited Canada-wide long distance, which we use quite a bit.  If you take out the voice telephone charges, if I am not mistaken, my costs would be $35 plus taxes a month, for 3 Gbytes of data.

Those were the costs of the Rogers RocketHub plan back then (May 2010).  I have seen a variety of rate structures since then for basically the same services, but at somewhat different, and usually higher costs.

skinorth

[cocobolo]

The only reason that Rogers is allegedly giving us the hub free is because it is replacing a current modem running on Inukshuk, which, of course, we all paid for.  As I suspect you know by now, they are trying to charge for it, but I will have none of that.

Surprisingly, the rate structure seems very similar, except for the $5/gig over 10 gigs.  Now it is $10/gig over 15 gigs.  The 15 costs $95.  This would include the basic land phone and local calls only.

I'm thinking I really don't need the land phone as we have our cell phones just switched over to the new $34.97 a month plans.  So scrapping the phone option would reduce that by $5 a month for the hub.

I should note that the first 3 gigs on the hub is a tenfold increase over the old modem system on a per gig basis.  I'm trying to think of another business that could get away with a 1,000% overnight increase...coming up completely blank.

You'll be very sorry to hear that Victoews a/c at Twitter has been suspended.  I missed givng him a few shots by several hours.  Perhaps an email right to his office.

[skinorth]

@cocobolo:

ahhhh, you don't mean that!  Vicky baby is such a sore loser........

Denial of Service attack anyone?

I fear it will take more than that to dissuade our Conservative"friends" of the Internet.

skinorth

[envirogeek]

I kind of came into this discussion late, but if there are still any Mac and Rocket Hub questions floating around, I can assist.

One thing... in the Utilities folder on your Mac you will find an app called Network Utility, which gives you a GUI to the commonly used TCP/IP tools.

If you still have antenna/tower distance questions I can offer some feedback.

And, although you will not get better internet throughput by connecting your Mac to the Hub with an Ethernet cable vs. wireless, you may find that if you have a lot of other 2.4GHz wireless stuff floating around in your house that cabling directly might be a little more reliable.

[envirogeek]

cocobolo,

Looking at your location, you may want to point your antenna at the tower on Yellow Point Road. I'd suggest that using a tower further away from the teenagers in Ladysmith or the airport travellers might be your best choice.

I'm currently pointed at a tower 13kms away from me, and it is the best compromise of distance and reliablity most of the year. Pretty close to useless on long weekends in the summer as it is in a party beach area.

As an aside, I wish one of my problems right now was how to get internet on Ruxton Island. The last time I was in Pirates Cove was a few years ago, sailing in a snow storm at the end of March, and the only other people anchored were a bunch of guys from Yellowknife taking a course...

[cocobolo]

@envirogeek

And, although you will not get better internet throughput by connecting your Mac to the Hub with an Ethernet cable vs. wireless, you may find that if you have a lot of other 2.4GHz wireless stuff floating around in your house that cabling directly might be a little more reliable.

Do I take it that a cell phone is 2.4GHz?  If so, there are two here.  Neither one used very often.  The only other thing I can come up with is the satellite dish the wife has for her TV.  Bell Expressview if it helps.