at home has unplugged its network


like millions of others, i've been using a cable modem hooked up to the @home network. the bankruptcy judge overseeing @home's chapt. 11 case has allowed it to cancel its contracts with providers such as at&t, effectively unplugging those companies' subscribers from internet connectivity. i'm hoping that this will be a quite temporary problem, but have no idea yet how long i'll be down. in the meantime, if anyone needs to reach me, please use my "business" address: [email protected]. thanks.

-cfb
cornfedboy
Sorry (pissed is more accurate, but still not quite correct, if you catch my drift) to report that CT @home has been off-line when I got back home on Sunday night. Lost out on a good buy on a MUSE Model 2 a a result. I can be reached at my temporary AOL (shudder)account [email protected] (almost typed @home.com). Luckily my son's dialup connects at 115kb most of the time, but its still a royal pain. I was temporarily able to get to aol via the cable modem, but no longer.
In the DC area, as of Monday morning, we still have service, because our local cable provider, Comcast, has negotiated a 3-month extension of its contract w/At Home, so apparently we are okay for now, but the situation is not exactly stable.
latest report is that nearly 300,000 users have been moved to att&t's new metork, none in colorado. unfortunately, @home email is unretreviable, as are address books and home page configurations. -cfb
re DSL. I have had DSL at home for a few years and use a cable modem at my apartment close to a work location. On average, I have found the DSL line about the same or faster. At best the cable modem is noticably but not really practicaly faster. The actual average speed depends on the physical configuration from your house to the equipment cage and what else between you and the cage is connected in to it. My DSL line from Pacbell, now SBC, has been very reliable. However, I'm very close to the equipment location, the connection to the internet backbone is also close by and the neighborhood was physically rewired about 10 years ago. So, I have pretty much optimal DSL service.
Sunday morning 11:15 am--At Home still up and running in DC area. But from the Denver and Chicago posters above, looks like the unplugging is moving east slowly but surely. I called this morning for my DSL service, waiting time is 2-3 weeks. . . Plus I'll have to change my email address, which formerly was SO easy to remember ([email protected]). Sob. I was so attached to my cable modem service, it was really FAST. Does anyone know, is DSL just as fast? My cable service was basically instantaneous unless 6 billion other users were also online. I'm checking the paper and the web news regularly, but so far I don't know if my local cable provider has been able to work out some temporary deal w/Excite to prevent unplugging.
Sarah
here's a story from today's denver post that details, more or less, what's going on in colorado. it ain't pretty.

http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1002,33%257E248996,00.html

-cfb
The connection in Chicago is down. I'm currently on my traveling AOL account. What a pain. DSL, here I come.

David Shapiro
I understand that under certain circumstances and at the right phase of the planets, it's possible to communicate with others through very expensive audio systems. Now, does that mean in times of crisis like this, if one plays extraordinarily moving music, that a computer network can be moved into relationship with the outside world?

Bill E.
Good luck you guys. Hope things are okay soon.....Seasons' Greetings early just in case....bluenose
Kelly, I'm surprised I still have service too, I'm hoping it will last until Comcast can make other arrangements for us! But Comcast doesn't have its own network, like AT&T does, so it sounds like you are in better shape than we are in DC. If we get unplugged, I'll have no other cable modem options and will have to get a DSL, I guess. I'm not waiting 6 months for Comcast to finish its own system! As of 7:07 pm Eastern, my connections are all still working. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!
sarah: i'm surprised @home is still providing access in d.c. here in denver, the headquarters for at&t broadband, we've been told that we'll migrate to at&t's own network but the timetable is optimistically pegged at "a few days." -cfb
I'm on At Home too, and was notified that my service might die, but so far today it's still running. I will switch to a DSL if it really goes, but the Wash. Post and web news says the parties are still trying to work out an arrangement to prevent unplugging us millions. I'm going to keep checking over the weekend and hope for the best. But if it's unplugged, I'll have to use my office line too. What a pain!
Sorry to hear of your problems, Cornfedboy! Get a really, REALLY long ball of string, connect it to two paper cups, and then you can splice in a shorter piece of string for your modem! Actually, use a heavier piece of twine to connect to your modem. This twine will give a better frequency response and better "air"...much like a high quality interconnect! If you got the bucks, you might even upgrade to wool yarn! Seriously, I wish you luck! Qwest has such antiquated phone lines where I live, that on a good day, my modem runs at 26K instead of 56K. Actually, a piece of yarn may be faster in my case!
THANK GOD your office system is still up. The thought of you standing in line at the public library for hours trying to get on line gives me goose bumps. That would be very undignified for an Audiophile of your stature.

But, if you had a Walkman I'm sure the time would fly:~)