What a difference a sync makes

[Lance]

It's just a little annoying that it was holding sync at 5632, albeit with up to the -5db drop at night. Oh well. It'll be interesting to see what happens tonight!

[Sebby]

It is frustrating at first, but you'll prefer the long-term stability.

[Rik]

At least, that's we console ourselves with.

[Lance]

It is frustrating at first, but you'll prefer the long-term stability.

Indeed. I was never expecting it to be stable at 5632 anyway!

[Sebby]

Indeed we do, Rik. It's a shame, that. One day we'll all have fibre, but I don't know when (perhaps not even in my lifetime!).  

[Lance]

The engineer said that starting in August, BT will be running more comprehensive line tests as standard, and that they should be able to pick up not only where the faults are, but what is causing them as well. It will also be standard that once they think they have fixed the fault, they will run another of these line tests to check for anything else (as opposed to the standard line test).

He also didn't think that fibre to the cabinet would be happening any time soon!

[Rik]

He also didn't think that fibre to the cabinet would be happening any time soon!

I suspect he's right.

[Sebby]

That's a shame. FTTCAB should see everyone get full sync, regardless of there still being copper/aluminium from the cabinet to homes.

[plugwash]

No, it doesn't. I suspect that's an increasing issue with BT, it seems clear to me that there has been a lack of investment in the local loop for some time.

Really the whole system could do with being redesigned and upgraded. ADSL is a dirty hack to get far far more data rate than the wiring was ever designed for. Frankly i'm impressed that it works as well as it does.

Fiber to the cabinet is a possibility and I belive is used by BT in a few places in the uk but it has problems of it's own. It will make LLU impractical and also cause issues for BT deploying new technologies on the lines. For example people on fiber to the cabinet got ADSL far later than most others. IIRC virgin media also use a fiber to the cabinet system (but they use cable TV coax rather than phone wire for the cabinet to cusomter part of the broadband connection).

Fiber to the home is very expensive to install and so we are unlikely to see it any time soon.

[Tacitus]

....they should be able to pick up not only where the faults are, but what is causing them as well. It will also be standard that once they think they have fixed the fault, they will run another of these line tests to check for anything else (as opposed to the standard line test).

Sounds good on paper but what if, as is the case where I live, the problem is basically clapped out cabling and ducts which go through a low lying area and leak like a sieve .  It's not that long ago that every time there was a heavy downpour the phone system packed up at my end of the village. 

In this case it would involve money and largish quantities of it, rather than simply fixing a joint gone bad.

Methinks that in those circumstances BT are just as likely to turn round and say you can't have a viable broadband service and hard luck.  See you in 20 years and that's probably optimistic.

[Rik]

Indeed, until there is a USO for ADSL, BT are likely to do just that. The role of Ofcom seems to have been to ensure that BT have no incentive to invest in the local loop, and a good starting point would, imo, be scrapping this worthless NGO.