This is pretty easy to do. I had a small app I tried out a few years ago. It
would test a connection out and do a few link diagnostics. It also checked a
webserver and would display notices, etc, for reporting downtime, repair
schedules and what not. Overall, it was not much of a hit with people. I have
toyed with the idea of bring it back and adding twitter updates and the likes.
It would be pretty easy to add a bw/$ display to it, depending on the bw manager
setup. I can see about rustling it up again.

Mike Hammett wrote:
> Daily, maybe even hourly bandwidth web based usage history and a running 
> meter down in the system tray?  Then they can yell at the kid for using 5 
> gigs in the afternoon, who cares if he was there to use it or not....  Just 
> like he left the TV on and it used power for two hours.  They get billed 
> either way.
> 
> 
> -----
> Mike Hammett
> Intelligent Computing Solutions
> http://www.ics-il.com
> 
> 
> 
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Eric Rogers" <[email protected]>
> Sent: Sunday, November 08, 2009 9:00 AM
> To: "WISPA General List" <[email protected]>
> Subject: Re: [WISPA] Metered Billing
> 
>> What happens when the teenager starts the streaming tv on the xbox and
>> a friend shows up... decides to go down the street but leaves it
>> running till mom and dad gets home at 6:00 PM?  Then mom and dad
>> decide to rent a movie.  To me, I am counting on over-selling the
>> bandwidth and that is where the profit is.  My dynamic is changing and
>> the only thing that makes sense is to pay if you use it ... more than
>> normal.
>>
>> I am looking for pros and cons of metered/tiered billing.  I have
>> heard from many as to why they wouldn't and don't, so who is billing
>> tiered and/or metered?  The questions still stand.
>>
>> Eric Rogers
>> Precision Data Solutions, LLC
>> (317) 831-3000 x200
>>
>> Fat-fingered from my phone!
>>
>> On Nov 8, 2009, at 9:46 AM, "Jayson Baker" <[email protected]>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Not everyone uses 6Mbps all day long.
>>>
>>> On Sat, Nov 7, 2009 at 7:52 PM, RickG <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Thats one way to utilize bandwidth shaping but how do you "
>>>> guaranteed
>>>> minimum of 1.5Mbps, 4Mbps and
>>>> 6Mbps" at those low rates to every use and make money? Maybe I'm
>>>> wrong but
>>>> the problem I see is that you will end up having unhappy
>>>> subscribers when
>>>> their expectations are not met. Thats where the premium rates can
>>>> come in.
>>>> I
>>>> find people all the time who would pay more for committed speeds if
>>>> it can
>>>> be delivered.
>>>>
>>>> BTW: Cricket Communications, subsidiary of Leap Wireless has lost
>>>> money
>>>> since its inception and continues to do so. Give me an example of an
>>>> non-subsidized "all you can eat service" company in a competitive
>>>> market
>>>> that actually makes money (bottom line).
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Sat, Nov 7, 2009 at 4:55 PM, Jayson Baker <[email protected]>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Ya know, we've looked at this many times over the past couple
>>>>> years, and
>>>>> even tested it for a bit.
>>>>>
>>>>> Fact is, people like unlimited, and not having to guess.  I, myself,
>>>> being
>>>>> a
>>>>> fairly lite user of the Internet, would still always opt for an
>>>>> unlimited
>>>>> plan--even if I knew my bill may be lower on a pay-per-use plan.
>>>>> I have
>>>>> unlimited cell phone minutes, txt messages, etc.  If I could pay for
>>>>> unlimited utilites, I'd certainly do that too!
>>>>>
>>>>> We've got the infrastructure in place for a pay-per-use, and could
>>>> activate
>>>>> it at anytime.  We tried selling it about a year ago, and people
>>>>> just
>>>>> didn't
>>>>> understand the concept.  People aren't used to it--most people got
>>>>> online
>>>>> when Internet was $19.95/mo for dialup (or, $22.95 for AOL!), and
>>>>> don't
>>>>> remember the 10 for $10 dial-up packages.  Nobody knows what ISDN
>>>>> with
>>>> 300
>>>>> hours is.
>>>>>
>>>>> We currently offer 12Mbps service for $24.95/mo.  This makes us the
>>>> fastest
>>>>> in the area, and the cheapest.  We have local sales, support and
>>>>> installations.  We decided the way to win is to shape traffic--we
>>>>> offer
>>>>> three 12Mbps packages; one with a guaranteed minimum of 1.5Mbps,
>>>>> 4Mbps
>>>> and
>>>>> 6Mbps.  If you do nothing than browse, share pictures, etc. (i.e.
>>>>> "normal
>>>>> use") you'll always see the 12Mbps.  But once you fire up a
>>>>> torrent or
>>>>> Netflix, you only get that speed for 10 minutes--after that, you
>>>>> get your
>>>>> guaranteed minimum.  Prices double from 1.5 to 4, and double again
>>>>> going
>>>> to
>>>>> 6Mbps.  We have never had a complaint about speed or price with this
>>>>> structure.
>>>>>
>>>>> I'm hoping that the "big guys" do go to pay-per-use plans.  Just
>>>>> one more
>>>>> way we can advertise and win against them.  "Tired of counting
>>>>> your bits
>>>>> and
>>>>> bytes?  We're unlimited"  Look at Cricket wireless--they've just
>>>>> exploded
>>>>> with customers on their unlimited-everything service.
>>>>>
>>>>> Just my 2 cents
>>>>>
>>>>> Jayson
>>>>>
>>>>> On Sat, Nov 7, 2009 at 2:24 PM, Travis Johnson <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> The cellular guys don't charge by the minute... I have an unlimited
>>>> plan
>>>>>> on my cell phone. I can also get unlimited text and internet
>>>>>> access for
>>>>>> $9.95/mo extra.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> People don't want to guess what their internet bills are going to
>>>>>> be
>>>> from
>>>>>> month to month. Would you want that at your own home?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Travis
>>>>>> Microserv
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Gary Garrett wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> You sound like the cell phone company.
>>>>>> I am convinced the big failure in my business model is I charge
>>>>>> by the
>>>>>> month while the cellular guys charge by the minute.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Travis Johnson wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> You are talking about having to add additional resources (radius,
>>>>>> etc.)
>>>>>> to track it. Then you have to bill it. Then you get to deal with
>>>>>> the
>>>>>> phone calls from users that say "My computer wasn't even turned on
>>>>>> during those times. Remove the charge or I will go elsewhere."  So,
>>>> even
>>>>>> that one extra phone call costs you money (because you have to
>>>>>> think
>>>>>> about scaling). Imagine if you have 100x the number of customers
>>>>>> you
>>>>>> have now... does the same solution work? Probably not.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The easier solution would be to call that customer and get them to
>>>>>> upgrade to the next plan up (which would provide higher speed as
>>>>>> well).
>>>>>> This works very well for us... and then I have that guaranteed
>>>>>> extra
>>>>>> income each month, even if they don't use it.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
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