I need to solve three independent problems which are worsening at the same time. AT&T Wireless is not maintaining GSM-standard 9600 baud service via my voice plan. My cell phone itself, which is going on six years old -- a Sony Ericcson T637 -- is deteriorating. And the Palm TX that I sometimes tether to the T637 9600-baud service is, to be generous, not the best hardware, either.
I thought that instead of a smartphone which probably will neither run most of my Palm software nor tether -- or a Palm Pre while it's under exclusivity to Sprint -- that maybe Clearwire might take care of some of my needs. It looks like they provide laptop connectivity at $25 per month. Their promotional materials don't make it immediately clear how much a bundle with home broadband would come to, but maybe it's a lot less than QWest DSL plus a cell data plan. Is Clearwire's TOS friendly for Linux users? Would they, at least on paper, forbid inbound SSH, for example? Would they put any restrictions on the number of devices I could place simultaneously on broadband, the way Comcast used to (and maybe still does)? Do they block any ports? Do they offer a static address, and is there a surcharge for that? Is Clearwire's residential service cost effective compared to QWest DSL with a third-party provider? I get my IP service from Drizzle. Of course, this won't solve my Palm TX connectivity or quality problems, but one thing at a time. Billy
