How community networks are built, and what you can expect from it?
Each village is different, but as with many smaller communities the immediate goal is to get bandwidth in as quick and as efficiently as possible (at least that what our users always say is the priority). This means we start with a basic investment in the community to get it started, usually a single high-grade Access Point and router, with low bandwidth to power just a few users. As the user community grows the investment in bandwidth and equipment increases accordingly to better handle the capacity and manage throughput. Although most of our community networks are completely WiFi compatible, we provide only the best quality outdoor equipment for our fixed wireless users. We use experienced and trained telecoms engineers with a combined total of over 400 installations in the UK. We employ the best, so you have the best connection possible using the highest quality equipment available.
Some things you should know about using your local community network.
Planet802 manages traffic on our networks to ensure quick response and fast access for web and email. We prioritise traffic according to urgency so you don't get the bottlenecks during peak hours that are so common with some ADSL networks. For these reasons, we set out some guidlines that ensure the best experience for everybody...
- Leaving downloads to just 'run' during peak hours can cause major contention and slow the network down substantially. Queue up your large file transfers for overnight downloads/uploads.
- File sharing programs like Kazaa, Gnutella or any other P2P application opens our network and your computer to strangers. It also gives away our hard earned bandwidth, and your neighbors bandwidth that he/she paid for, to outsiders who are not on our network. You should always throttle back upload speeds as much as possible, and when you are finished downloading what you want, disconnect. For more tips try: BandwidthHog.htm - well, you get the idea at least, be good to your neighbors.
- Always ensure your firewall and anti virus software/hardware is up to date. We provide a firewall system that offers basic protection from intruders on the Internet, but you are still at risk if you get a virus that your computer could spread it to others on our network. Ensure you use an Internet protection software like Norton Internet Security
- Remember, this is your community network, and by all accounts it can be faster that traditional ADSL, and has higher upload rates with less latency. On most networks we also manage traffic to encourage gaming and VoIP phones. If you have particular requirments, you can contact us directly and request configuration changes that might suit your needs better.
- You should be fully aware of our Terms and Conditions before purchasing your equipment, or requesting an installation and connecting to the network.
The Level of Service we Provide
Planet802 would hope that your internet experience is a good one at all times. We understand how frustrating service down-times can be, so we endeavor to keep our networks reliable and robust for all to enjoy. For the year of 2004 we experienced a service reliability of 99.94% uptime throughout our entire network.
Support times are weekdays between the hours of 9:00am and 5:30 pm. Service interruptions can be reported via telephone to 01827 874 576, email support@planet802.co.uk or IM client (msn messenger) to addresses provided with your original documentation. Due to the variety of locations we utilize for Access Point placement, hours may vary for each location.
For a complete listing of our Terms and conditions click here..
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