> Has anyone every tried this? > Any comments in relation to bandwidth, configuration problems, and > anything else are welcome.
I don't want to sound like I'm discouraging you from trying this, because I'm not. I just wouldn't want to see anyone burned. :) What I've heard from satellite users (not being one myself): 1) The download bandwidth can range from craptacular to merely acceptable, and 2) The latency is pretty bad, basically mangling any hopes of online gaming Particularly about the second concern, the URL you give actually states a delay of 500-1000ms (almost one second). Yikes! Also, the newest internet satellite systems are TWO-way, negating the need for that phone-line upload. I don't know if that's available in Europe where you apparently live (Italy?). Since I'm in the US, we may be comparing apples and oranges here. That having been said... Are you NOT able to get DSL or cable? That'd be the ONLY reason I'd consider satellite, even if I already owned a dish. It can't possibly be "free" for THAT long, not under any good business model I can think of. Also, with cable or DSL, you generally don't buy the equipment, they lease (or give) it to you -- in this country, at least. So if they go belly-up, you're not out money for useless hardware. Last but not least, I would be very skeptical regarding OpenSky's claims of "2Mbit/s" downloads on their website. That seems like a LOT for each user to get, out of the relatively-precious satellite bandwidth. Sorry if this isn't exactly Debian-related, just my $0.02. If you want to try to get it working just to see if you CAN, I'm all for that! :) But for your day-to-day ISP access, I'd be wary. Jeff Bonner
