McKinney Utilities

[GoPadge]

Plano does have FiOS available. I had some installation issues caused by their customer service department, so I would recommend that you not call them and request changes between when you first order and when they install your service. I had to wait a week for my phone installation and then an addition 3 weeks for internet. Also I've found if you have a service request they send out a Fiber technician, which is fine if the problem is with fiber. The technician I had was not as familiar with troubleshooting issues with copper. (On a side note, it is not wise to place a 200 lb cabinet on top of a Cat 3 (home phone) cable. )

As far as the difference between cable, DSL, FiOS and FTTN goes, for the average user, your biggest issue is going to be system reliability and stability and not speed. And lets all be honest, regardless of your provider, once your traffic reaches your ISP it all goes over same leased lines to the rest of the world.

[lh_newbie]

Originally Posted by socketz

Funny, generalizations are getting carried away here, which in turn has pushed the quality of the forum south in recent months. It seems that almost anything posted anymore is an attempt to tick someone else off.

I was a Network Engineer at one time, now help companies design network boxes at the semi level. So it appears that perhaps we know our **** from a hole in the ground ;-)

100GigE is already being discussed but the IEEE, probably 5 years out. Right now you can aggregate 10Gig links to get a similar effect on uplinks.

Sweet - someone that I can talk with!

You're assuming the company doesn't need more than a 40GE channel. I guess I'm in a unique situation, working for Yahoo and all. We push a LOT of data around. Way more than your average corporate customer. We have a guy from our company pushing the IEEE standards to be implemented much sooner than 5 years. In 5-years, we'll need to be bundling 100GE interfaces together.

Keep in mind that in metro areas, where many customers use wavelengths, using multiple colors and bundling them causes you to chew up wavelengths quickly. While dark fiber prices have certainly come down, wavelengths are still a much more economical method of increasing capacity.

I just want 100GE colored optics so we can aggregate them on passive filters. Can't I ask for the world?

Brian

[arfwoof]

I will be moving to zip code 75071.

I need help with:
1) I looked at the Texas Electric Choice | Home site and now I'm more confused and overwhelmed. Any suggestions on which electric provider to choose?

2) How about gas, water and trash? Is there more than one provider for these utilities?

3) For Internet service provider (I've and phone (lan and cell) , which is the least expensive and most reliable?

4) Is cable better than satellite in this area because of the wind, rain, etc?

Thanks!

[CallMeLaura]

What I was able to find out/set up:

1) We picked Reliant because of the use of renewable energy sources, even if it's only a token commitment to the environment. However, they can't find our house and we're relocating from out of state and I can't look up the meter number for them. Our realtor is working on something for us.

Another option is Green Mountain. They are more expensive, but apparently offer rebates which bring the cost down.

When I was looking through the list, the one thing I noticed is that the cheapest rates were on plans that bet on futures, so your rate is totally not guaranteed at all.

2) I think there are two choices for gas. We went with Atlas Energy at 800-460-3030. Our deposit was $123, based on previous usage. There are options to avoid the deposit, but our loan's not funded, so I want to keep the inquiries to a minimum to keep the credit score as high as possible.

Water and trash are through the city. Sign up here - McKinney General Information
There is a $15 non-refundable fee and a $40 deposit for the water, all charged on the first month's bill. The $40 is applied to your final bill with them. Trash service is provided through I.E.S.I. The monthly cost is $15.36 plus tax of $1.27. You may request additional toters for a monthly charge of $6.60 each.

3) We picked: Internet (RoadRunner), TV (DirecTV), and Phone (Vonage) but your needs may be different than ours. (Our cell phones are staying with our current providers. We have nationwide plans, so there's no difference to us.)

4) No opinion. While there are interruptions during storms with satellite, the construction crews around here seem to have a flagrant disregard for buried utilities, so you're likely to have a service interruption with either one.

[CallMeLaura]

Sorry, that was Atmos Energy for the gas.