The Reverend

Here's one of the better DWay connection speeds, but I had to sell my soul to the devil to get it. ($1,000 down for the gear and installation, then $129.95 a month ....dang man, that's over $1500 annually for Internet)! Nothing to brag about there! RIPOFF!! I don't care if it's their best or not, it still isn't worth the bucks ...but I had little to no choice but to either get it, or (literally) have to move to someplace in the 21st century. Here's my test log from just a few moments ago. Overcast but Signal Strength is still 96 out of a possible 97. Only six users online @ testmy.net ....and I was pleased to get the following: :::.. Download Stats ..::: Connection is:: 952 Kbps about 1 Mbps (tested with 748 KB) Download Speed is:: 116 KB/s Tested From:: http://www.testmy.net/ Bottom Line:: 17 times faster than 56K you can download 1MB in 8.83 second(s) Validation Link:: https://testmy.net/cgi-bin/auth_check.cgi?num=252525 My "up" averages 256kbps or higher during times of low congestion, but I have the Commercial Setup (and am paying dearly for it)! However, when my modem 'acts up' it will fall off to about 50kbps ...which is my first clue that the DW6000 needs a major power recycle to "bleed off" all capacitor charges (like I was trying to say earlier). Cheers! The Reverend G4R 1201MHz

Concerning your "mystery" slow speed, if you are using a DW6000 modem, SOMETIMES they can still connect to the Internet (but terribly slow like a 56k or less), and DirecWay has no clue. What happens to the DW6000 is that it is very sensitive to power 'fluxes', and if enough power fluxes occur over a certain amount of milliseconds (even if you have surge protection ...or even with a battery-supplied power backup that "holds you steady" ...it's not sensitive enough for some reason), there is the outside chance it will mess up the functioning of logic circuitry inside the danged thing. This has happened to me twice in one month. Try unplugging the thing for no less than 10 minutes, then fire 'er up again and see if that doesn't cure your problem. Works for me, I pray it does you as well! Cheers! The Reverend

Fender makes some very nice Acoustic-Electric Guitars that have half-decent 'action' and will actually stay in tune once you learn how to properly tune a guitar (and how to wind the strings to prevent slippage). Fender guitar necks have (usually) 'close action', and if you use a lighter guage string set than what comes with the guitar, you won't end up with bloody fingers while you build up callouses. (Try using a set with a .009 for a 'high' string). Electric guitar strings work splendidly on electric acoustics too ...and they are better for students (or at least that has been my experience with all of my students). It also doesn't hurt to buy a can of "Fast Fret" too ...it keeps the strings "fresher" longer, and reduces friction and wear and tear on your fingers AND 'axe')! You really DO NOT want a 10watt amplifier! That isn't powerful enough to do squat. You'll have to save your bucks to get into something that is "serious" ...but it is well worth the time. A Peavey Session 500 or smaller) makes for a good "starter" amplifer these days, and they are damn near bullet proof. (Check the pawn shops, there is always good merchandise to be found "for a song" left behind by a starving musician). I've been told that Peavey has some decent guitars for excellent prices too, but I've never as much as picked one up to test it. I would not wipe my ass with anything musical costing that little from HNS ...you'd be tossing your money out the window. Remember, they are retailing FOR A PROFIT ...so the damn guitar is most likely worth (in reality) about $75 bucks ...and once you use it it becomes a "used" guitar ...and the value falls through the floor ...no matter what it sounds like. Go to a music store and just "press" the strings down on the fretboard of a Fender Stratocaster (my weapon of choice). Then find the cheapest 'axe' they have and try pressing the strings down on THAT fretboard. You'll see the difference in action "first hand" then and realise that it's worth waiting to buy a quality rig rather than junk ...although you COULD learn to play on junk - - why waste your money? "Chicken Picker"

His speeds aren't what you are seeing because it is a bald-faced lie. (Or ...he's using an $8,000 dish with a variable transponder (radio) and is paying upwards of $2,000.00 monthly to his ISP ...such as what the Federal Government uses for systems built "on top" of DWay setups. For the past two years I used a DW4000 (dual modem) system, and recently, 25OCT04 I dumped one grand into DirecWay's Top Notch Commercial System. The fastest she'll run is 1.5Mbps down and 256kbps up (as advertised). Real life speeds are far different. My Signal Strength knocks off a clean 97 with good skies, yet this morning mountain haze has me down to a 94-95 ..."real life" DirecWay Commerical Sat speeds average around 1.0Mbps 'down' and 100kbps 'up' ...you might get better during times of lesser network congestion. (My DW4000 averaged 700kbps 'down' and 55 'up). As an earlier post stated, speeds are getting slower because G4R and others have been Oversold, so now there's a new "bird" called Horizon 1 (meant for Westerly users and Alaska). Give it a month and DirecWay will have oversold THAT one too. I use G4R @ 1201MHz. If you want to read the truth about DirecWay and how (and why) they treat their customers like they do, check out www.direcwaysux.com ...there are over 380 "outraged" posts ...and climbing. lol... Cheers! The Reverend Costa Rica G4R - 1201MHz

As you will see in my earlier post, I stated I have DirecWay's very best "setup" and Business Class account. It's raining, but not hard, presently my Signal Strength is hanging around 95. At BEST I am supposed to be able to "pull" 1.5Mbps 'down' and 256 up' ...well, here my test results "cut and pasted as of 5:52AM with little to no network congestion. I'd say his posted speed scores MUST be cached ...DWay just doesn't run that fast ....and I've been using the new system 24/7. It only gets SLIGHTLY faster than this, and I'm running a state-of-the-art PC with no known 'bottlenecks'. :::.. Download Stats ..::: Connection is:: 975 Kbps about 1 Mbps (tested with 748 KB) Download Speed is:: 119 KB/s Tested From:: http://www.testmy.net/ Bottom Line:: 17 times faster than 56K you can download 1MB in 8.61 second(s) Validation Link:: https://testmy.net/cgi-bin/auth_check.cgi?num=252525 *My upload is hanging around 124 this morning. DWay advertises "enhanced Uploads of "up to" 256kbps ...and I've seen it exceed 400 at times, but normally any DWay Commercial 'rig' is going to spit out a max of 128 ...usually closer to 100kbps (as advertised). Cheers! The Reverend (el Pastor) Costa Rica G4R 1201MHz XP Pro | 3.0GHz CPU (HT) | 4GIG Corsair Xtreme DDR | D865PERL MB | Dual 19" Displays @1280x1024 w/NVIDEA 256MB 'high end' VC | DW6000 with .98m dish | Business Class Account via DirecWay | If You Play By The Damed Rules You'll Miss All The Fun!

I just purchased (because it was my only choice), DirecWay's very best Commercial Class System and Service. $1000.00 bought the modem, .98m dish and 'pro' installation (he actually knew what he was doing). The account is $129.99 monthly for 'up to' 1.5Mbps 'down' and an "enhanced" 256kbps 'up'. Signal Strength stays locked at 97 but rainfade will take us down to as low as 93 (torrential downpours). As far as the first post goes it just isn't possible to go that fast due to latency issues, and about 1,000 other issues inherent when using Satellite connections. As I have indicated, I'm using DirecWay's "latest and greatest" Commercial System and running as fast as their systems will go ...and even with network congestion we never fall below 941kbps. There are NO satellite retailers or companies that are advertising anything higher that "up to" 2.0Mbps ...and even then they admit it has to be primo conditions in order to get it up THAT fast. Soooooooo....I would either get my eyes checked if you think you are getting speeds like that, or make sure you are not still plugged into the cable modem box! Sorry ...don't mean to step on anyone's toes in here, but I do believe in the promotion of Truth when at all possible. This post is 100% truth ...so help me. Cheers! The Reverend