>If you do get any info re this, please let me know. My >folks are having a tough time with vsnl dialup. >Couldn't even connect over the weekend - reputedly the >vnsl modems aren't answering. >Arup
Arupda, check your cable channel, i mean the one in which they show hindi songs and pirated videos of latest releases every friday :) Mom was surfing channels one day, when the ad caught my notice. Yeah Indrada, speeds have improved here at VSNL. I seem to be hitting 7 Kbps on average (on a connection that is supposedly 33.6 kbps, what a joke :-) Re: Dhruv's query, i called up the guys; at the phone number they provided. A guy did pick up the phone (that's a very encouraging sign :-) and told me that they are planning to start in my area before the kali pujas. He said that a primary agreement with the local RPG franchisee has been signed. If the latter pull out, these guys are ready to roll out their cable. (Don't know how much of this last part was trash) Re: dialing up VSNL, and all that, i don't think so. The RPG franchisee sub-franchises the signals to a whole lot of other operators, who together make up a sizable area stretching from Jadavpur to (almost) Garia. So they are looking at a big market. Dialing up Vsnl isn't that feasible, considering the rates. The guy informed me of a probable rate of Rs. 750 to 850 a month for *unlimited always-on* connection, including charges for hiring a cable modem :-) Supporting that sort of promises on a dial up line at that rate is insane. Besides, this thing is reportedly being advertised all over the RPG network. One of my seniors at my college, who lives in Dum-Dum, is taking the connection during the Pujas. Other people have seen the ad too, and are interested. Since it is coming over the cable lines that go into the TV, there isn't any issue re: wiring up the city. It's out in the papers, so it must be for real. Check out the 4th october Calcutta Times. At the bottom of the front page, there is an interview (Straight Answers) With the BSNL Chairman . Check out question 4. It says : "Why will people opt for Direct Internet Access Service (DIAS) <whatever it is supposed to be> at Rs.1800 per month when cable operators in different parts of the city are providing Internet connections at Rs.750 per month" So it appears that the cable internet part is for real. And oh, it seems that even Reliance is rolling out broadband too. Probably on day before yesterday, they put an ad in the TOI advertising the establishment of its Webstores to sell products including "Data Services". Rejoice ! Soumyadip Modak -- To unsubscribe, send mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the body "unsubscribe ilug-cal" and an empty subject line. FAQ: http://www.ilug-cal.org/help/faq_list.html
