What do those fibre cabinets look like?

[Niall]

Just wondering as some strange green box has popped up at the top of my estate and no one seems to know what it is. I imagine it's something to do with BT as there are no overhead lines on this estate, so I'm assuming that's where they pop out, but the kid waiting for christmas in me has decided it might be a fibre box

[Technical Ben]

If it's about 5-6 foot it will probably be fibre. If it's 3-4 foor (those little ones you normally get) then it's just a new phone cabinet. Which probably mean the Council has agreed for the extra 500 houses at the bottom of the road, and the kebab shop and night club to boot.   

[MisterW]

I'm afraid I don't think its fibre Niall
You're in the Wrexham area aren't you ? its not showing on this list http://www.ispreview.co.uk/story/2010/03/30/bt-reveal-303-new-uk-locations-for-its-next-gen-fttc-broadband-rollout.html as being in the next phase for Spet 2010

[Niall]

I'm afraid I don't think its fibre Niall
You're in the Wrexham area aren't you ? its not showing on this list http://www.ispreview.co.uk/story/2010/03/30/bt-reveal-303-new-uk-locations-for-its-next-gen-fttc-broadband-rollout.html as being in the next phase for Spet 2010

Yeah I know we're not likely to get it any time soon. I think it's just the new phone maintenance boxes. The old ones were those 4ft wide and 2ft high (ish) and chunky seem to still be about, but this one is a smaller and cheaper looking thing. There wasn't one at the top of the estate before, but there is a new housing estate about a quarter of a mile away, so I think they may have just separated the lines on the road in to different areas to make maintenance easier.

Still, GIMMIE FIBRE! 

[MisterW]

My exchange ( MRCON ) is on the Sept 2010 list but I haven't seen any sign of new boxes yet!

[Odos]

Well just to add to the confusion, Samknows and all the other exchange checker sites don't list even a mention of fibre in our area, yet they are digging up roads and laying new cables to every village from the exchange.

Then today I found this site http://www.digitalregion.co.uk/index.html and according to that I'll have fibre available by November this year.

So now I'm baffled and I've mailed support to see if they can shed any light on the subject 

[Rik]

Given a big enough  torch... 

[Odos]

After doing some extensive reading I think I now know whats happening. The four local government boroughs, Rotherham, Barnsley, Doncaster and Sheffiled under the name of "Digiatl Region", have got an EU grant of £90 million to lay fibre to all the people living in their areas, and thats what it's all about.

Trouble is councils don't supply broadband so they need ISP's to sign up to use this new network. Up to date only four have done so and they are all business ISP's. Of those only one will consider residential supply, and that one I wouldn't touch with the proverbial barge pole 

Ideally it would be nice if IDNet signed up to use this network but if they don't then I'll just have to wait for one that does supply residential 

[Rik]

Have a word with support, Tony.

[Odos]

I did e-mail support last night when I first discovered that it was actually fibre they were laying, asking if IDNet had any details and Brian replied this morning, ( which I didn't expect as it's Sunday  ) to say that they knew nothing about it.

So I've replied asking if IDNet has any inclination to use this new network.

[Rik]

That will have to go to Simon & Tim. It may be, of course, that smaller ISPs haven't been invited to use the scheme.

[Odos]

Could well be but I doubt it, then again we're dealing with local government here 

The four that are signed up I'd never heard of before and one of them, the one I wouldn't touch, gives the impression from their web site and answers to questions on forums, that they may be a simple reseller with no hardware of their own.

Oh well as always I'll have to wait and see what develops 

[Rik]

That's photography for you.

[Odos]

 

[Rik]