$10 & Under Cheap ISP's | Forum profile

Unless the phone company claims to be booked, it shouldn't be a problem to get someone out there as fast as they can. Phone service in the U.S. is almost always regulated by at least one (if not more) local regulatory agency. I've worked several places where the technicians (whether field techs or phone techs) ate their Thanksgiving turkey sandwich, Christmas ham sandwich, and New Years' sparkling cider in the employee break...

Hey -- I got 29.2 just now! You guys are even better than I thought! I guess my ignorance is showing, but I'm surprised at how much agreement there is that this is more likely a connection problem than an ISP problem. Maybe the gradual onset of trouble over the fall before the crash in November does point more toward a deterioration of some kind of hardware somewhere along the line. But just out of curiosity, are there any cases where an...

I think radio shack may sell a small device to check phone lines. I still think it is a phone line problem. Check to see if your neighbors have any static too.

As far as I know, dialup ISPs don't drop your speed. That's more the realm of broadband not dialup. If you use too much time online, the ISP would not allow you to connect rather than lowering the speed at which you connect. If the speed drops it is either a line problem or a modem problem.

There's a nice discussion of this including some solutions, dealing with some specific Canadian ISPs but applicable generally, on   http://bit.ly/G46Pm.  

If you have a relatively new phone installation, there's an easy way to check if the static is your problem, or the phone company's problem. You'll need a phone that's in good shape and a screwdriver..... Open the "customer side" of the box on the outside of your house. You should see some phone jacks. One will have your line plugged into it. Unplug/disconnect your interior line(s) and plug in a phone. If you...

Unless the phone company claims to be booked, it shouldn't be a problem to get someone out there as fast as they can. Phone service in the U.S. is almost always regulated by at least one (if not more) local regulatory agency. I've worked several places where the technicians (whether field techs or phone techs) ate their Thanksgiving turkey sandwich, Christmas ham sandwich, and New Years' sparkling cider in the employee break...