Broadband for Scotland's Rural and Remote Areas initiative

Does the deal the Scottish Executive has done with BT to provide 100% BB
access for Scotland mean access for every home or is that 100% of
exchanges will be Broadband enabled?

tia

--
www.ukwebhost.com

Cullen Skink wrote:
> Does the deal the Scottish Executive has done with BT to provide 100% BB
> access for Scotland mean access for every home or is that 100% of
> exchanges will be Broadband enabled?

The small exchange on this remote island* serves 69 residential premises
and 4 non-residential premises (18 preregistrations +11 duplicates). It
will be upgraded to provide 512K broadband on 24 Aug. Whether everyone
on the island who wants broadband will be able to get it is another
question; even though the island is only 7 miles long the telephone
cabling is all underground and, if it follows the roadside verges, will
take a tortuous route to some remote crofts.

*Stronsay, Orkney - see
<http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange.php?ecode=NSSSY>)
--
Bruce Fletcher
Stronsay, Orkney
<www.stronsay.co.uk/claremont>

On Thu, 28 Jul 2005 11:47:49 +0000 (UTC), "Cullen Skink"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>Does the deal the Scottish Executive has done with BT to provide 100% BB
>access for Scotland mean access for every home or is that 100% of
>exchanges will be Broadband enabled?

the latter.

Phil
--
Tiscali - dialup speeds at Broadband prices, see
http://bbs.adslguide.org.uk/postlist...&Board=tiscali

AOL - the unlimited ISP of choice for heavy downloaders.

"Bruce Fletcher" <(E-Mail Removed)0m> wrote in message
news:dcahc8$7v4$(E-Mail Removed)...
> Cullen Skink wrote:
>> Does the deal the Scottish Executive has done with BT to provide 100% BB
>> access for Scotland mean access for every home or is that 100% of
>> exchanges will be Broadband enabled?
>
> The small exchange on this remote island* serves 69 residential premises
> and 4 non-residential premises (18 preregistrations +11 duplicates). It
> will be upgraded to provide 512K broadband on 24 Aug. Whether everyone
> on the island who wants broadband will be able to get it is another
> question; even though the island is only 7 miles long the telephone
> cabling is all underground and, if it follows the roadside verges, will
> take a tortuous route to some remote crofts.
>
> *Stronsay, Orkney - see
> <http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange.php?ecode=NSSSY>)
> --
> Bruce Fletcher
> Stronsay, Orkney
> <www.stronsay.co.uk/claremont>

We have 16 phones (2 are unused) and 1 isdn line (very little use) on our
island, which is served by a microwave link direct from the exchange on the
mainland. Exchange has just been activated and three of us waiting to go
online with another two possibles soon. Trouble is that BT have been unable
to tell us what bandwidth the link is (one BT call centre staff member
seemed to think the microwave link was something I should be cooking the
dinner in). I have signed up for 2mb and keeping my fingers crossed.

Mick - Graemsay - Orkney

Phil Thompson wrote:
> On Thu, 28 Jul 2005 11:47:49 +0000 (UTC), "Cullen Skink"
> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>> Does the deal the Scottish Executive has done with BT to provide
>> 100% BB access for Scotland mean access for every home or is that
>> 100% of exchanges will be Broadband enabled?
>
> the latter.

Ah right that's a pity, although a news item I read states that BT says
over 99.4% of the entire UK population will be able to get broadband by
this year. Just clutching at straws maybe.

I have a second engineer visit next week after removal of a DACS still
didn't get my broadband working. Anything I could ask him to do given
that the last one said he'd no idea why it wouldn't work? Try connecting
from the street box across the road, rather than just the exchange? If
that's possible and it works I'm guessing that means the problem is the
length of cable from the house to the box which is less than a stone's
throw. Would they replace that?

Confirming what Phil stated, 100% exchange enablement only. I have had
this in writing from BT. Their statistics seem to use a model of
distance from the exchange as the crow flies and not cable length. BT
itself is not committed to any cable or other work to enable those too
far away to meet their contract with the Scottish Executive which is
all about enabling those exchnages hitherto deemed unviable. The
Scottish Executive itself claims to be committed to try and bring
broadband to every community (not sure of definition of "community")
subject to budgetary constraints and there is a Project Manager,
Broadband For Scotland, Rural & Remote Areas looking precisely at this
issue. It will not suprise you to know that I am one of those
affected. Enabled exchange 8.5Km away as the cable runs but 4.5Km as
the crow flies! No ADSL, not even Highway!
It is important to apply for broadband even if you know you cannot get
it as analysis of failed applicatons is being used a measure of demand
for such areas.



On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 12:09:42 +0000 (UTC), "Cullen Skink"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>Phil Thompson wrote:
>> On Thu, 28 Jul 2005 11:47:49 +0000 (UTC), "Cullen Skink"
>> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>>
>>> Does the deal the Scottish Executive has done with BT to provide
>>> 100% BB access for Scotland mean access for every home or is that
>>> 100% of exchanges will be Broadband enabled?
>>
>> the latter.
>
>Ah right that's a pity, although a news item I read states that BT says
>over 99.4% of the entire UK population will be able to get broadband by
>this year. Just clutching at straws maybe.
>
>I have a second engineer visit next week after removal of a DACS still
>didn't get my broadband working. Anything I could ask him to do given
>that the last one said he'd no idea why it wouldn't work? Try connecting
>from the street box across the road, rather than just the exchange? If
>that's possible and it works I'm guessing that means the problem is the
>length of cable from the house to the box which is less than a stone's
>throw. Would they replace that?
>

Chris wrote:
> Confirming what Phil stated, 100% exchange enablement only. I have had
> this in writing from BT. Their statistics seem to use a model of
> distance from the exchange as the crow flies and not cable length. BT
> itself is not committed to any cable or other work to enable those too
> far away to meet their contract with the Scottish Executive which is
> all about enabling those exchnages hitherto deemed unviable. The
> Scottish Executive itself claims to be committed to try and bring
> broadband to every community (not sure of definition of "community")
> subject to budgetary constraints and there is a Project Manager,
> Broadband For Scotland, Rural & Remote Areas looking precisely at this
> issue. It will not suprise you to know that I am one of those
> affected. Enabled exchange 8.5Km away as the cable runs but 4.5Km as
> the crow flies! No ADSL, not even Highway!
> It is important to apply for broadband even if you know you cannot get
> it as analysis of failed applicatons is being used a measure of demand
> for such areas.

Thanks for that. I'm about 4km away and the exchange is enabled. I'm on
a main road which is straight to the exchange. Neighbours further away,
running off the same lines get BB without problem so I don't know what
the problem is at my house. First BT engineer just said he didn't know
why it wouldn't work but that it wasn't a line length issue. Then Virgin
said there was a DACS on the line which has allegedly been removed, with
no change. Second engineer is out next week. Been ongoing for two
months now. Hope you get something sorted.

Chris wrote:

<in part>

> The
> Scottish Executive itself claims to be committed to try and bring
> broadband to every community (not sure of definition of "community")
> subject to budgetary constraints and there is a Project Manager,
> Broadband For Scotland, Rural & Remote Areas looking precisely at this
> issue.

I think 'community' is 50 dwellings, but might be voters.

Bill

On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 12:09:42 +0000 (UTC), "Cullen Skink"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> Anything I could ask him to do given
>that the last one said he'd no idea why it wouldn't work? Try connecting
>from the street box across the road, rather than just the exchange? If
>that's possible and it works I'm guessing that means the problem is the
>length of cable from the house to the box which is less than a stone's
>throw. Would they replace that?

you could "simplify" the system at your end ie disconnect everything
that moves from the phone system. The BT guy should test in a way that
excludes it, but you never know.

If it doesn't work then he may trace it back until it does, using his
laptop and modem in a street cab, for example. If it works there the
attenuation measurement can be taken and the SNR or noise margin to
estimate how much further it'll go.

Swopping to a spare pair (if there is such a thing, seems unlikely if
you had a DACS) could help if it was better quality or possibly a
shorter run.

All depends if you have more than 10 dB/km of attenuation or just too
many kms. Typical cable lengths are ~73% more than straight line
distance to the exchange, I read somewhere.

They don't do much in the way of replacing line unless its so bad as
to count as a fault.

Phil
--
Tiscali - dialup speeds at Broadband prices, see
http://bbs.adslguide.org.uk/postlist...&Board=tiscali

AOL - the unlimited ISP of choice for heavy downloaders.

Phil Thompson wrote:
> On Fri, 29 Jul 2005 12:09:42 +0000 (UTC), "Cullen Skink"
> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>> Anything I could ask him to do given
>> that the last one said he'd no idea why it wouldn't work? Try
>> connecting from the street box across the road, rather than just the
>> exchange? If that's possible and it works I'm guessing that means
>> the problem is the length of cable from the house to the box which
>> is less than a stone's throw. Would they replace that?
>
> you could "simplify" the system at your end ie disconnect everything
> that moves from the phone system. The BT guy should test in a way that
> excludes it, but you never know.

Will do

> If it doesn't work then he may trace it back until it does, using his
> laptop and modem in a street cab, for example. If it works there the
> attenuation measurement can be taken and the SNR or noise margin to
> estimate how much further it'll go.

Right I'll suggest that then as the cabinet is just across the road.
Would narrow it down if it works fine there.

> All depends if you have more than 10 dB/km of attenuation or just too
> many kms. Typical cable lengths are ~73% more than straight line
> distance to the exchange, I read somewhere.

Hopefully this line length isn't typical in that sense then! :-) I can't
see it being too bad as I live on the main road that runs straight into
the nearby village where the exchange is. The line appears to run along
the side of the road. A neighbour who must be nearly a mile further out
on the same line/exchange had no problem getting broadband, plus the
engineer said it definitely isn't a line length issue. I guess I could
just have a rubbish line. Is there any sort of configuration change
needed when a dacs is removed that may not have been done that would
affect it?

> They don't do much in the way of replacing line unless its so bad as
> to count as a fault.

Hoping it's something to do with the dacs, or that now it's been removed
the engineer will get it up and running.

Thanks for all your advice. (and everyone else).