There have been many discussions about TV options including suggestions to get Roku, use the ustvnow.com website, slingbox, and the Puerto Rican Direct TV. Recently another option was posted, the IPTV service, which uses the internet for TV much like Roku, but it gets live news channels.
For some reason, the moderator decided the posting about IPTV was advertising and shut it down. For me, that post was very useful information, just like the posts on Roku and the others. I think it would have been useful to a lot of other people too, but it disappeared so fast, probably few people saw the post.
I just had the IPTV set up, and find it to be an excellent option for getting U.S. TV channels. It gets all the networks and Fox for the conservatives, MSNBC for the liberals. It gets hundreds of movies as video on demand or HBO,etc. If you have Cable Onda or another good internet speed, this might be an option for you. The service is new to Panama, so you might not know about it.
To avoid being accused of advertising, please send me a private message if you are interested, and I will give you the rep's contact information.
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Any one having internet problems? On and off for the last two days?
Mine hasn't gone on and off, but it seems many websites are slow loading, even though the speed test shows normal speed. People with IPTV are having problems with freezing, an internet issue.
We have. On and off at least 10 times a day.
Ross, Carlos of IPTV has twice said on this thread that a minimum of 4 mbps is needed for IPTV to work. I have between 15 and 20 mbps with Cable Onda and IPTV is far from perfect even with that. USTVNow may or may not work for you with so few mbps; it didn't work well for me with 15 to 20. If I were you I would take Lori up on her offer to try the Droid box and Kodi if TV is important to you. She guarantees it, so if you're dissatisfied you can return it and get your money back. You've nothing to lose, so far as I can see.
Not to pick on you, but readers should take all this into account when moving.
It's important to know how Internet access actually works to evaluate how well one or another technology might work. Your milage will vary. Everyone wants to stream their video these days (a good thing for users), but that is bringing the Internet infrastructure to its knees, worldwide.
Cable systems share bandwidth among many users. Cable Onda has eight "nodes" in Boquete, which are fed by fiber optics. From there, the signals are distributed to your house on coax cable, with splitters and such for each house. Up to 300 houses are connected to any one node. They all share the same 20 megabits.
So, your so-called 20mbps is really 20/number-of-users and what they are doing. Web surfing is very sporadic and many users can share bandwidth. Streaming requires continuous throughput, and the results are not so good. Cable Onda's bandwidth tanks in the morning between 7 and 9, and in the evening between 5 and 8.
Cable and Wireless DSL, on the other hand, delivers continuous bandwidth at the rated speed no matter what (almost). I get 3 megabits day and night for $17 or so. Pick your poison. Downtown, you might get more.
All of the providers are subject to backhaul problems - transceivers that break down, fiber that gets cut by a retro and of course under-provisioning - not installing enough bandwidth between here and PC to handle the load on Super Bowl Sunday.
There is plenty of bandwidth out there - in 2001 I managed a fiber to the home trial that provided 1000 megabits for $70 per month - at a profit. Why don't we have it now? Antiquated regulations and the structure of the cable industry. Some day, the flip will come and hopefully while I am still walking on this planet.
Regarding your statement, So, your so-called 20mbps is really 20/number-of-users and what they are doing. Web surfing is very sporadic and many users can share bandwidth. Streaming requires continuous throughput, and the results are not so good. Cable Onda's bandwidth tanks in the morning between 7 and 9, and in the evening between 5 and 8.
Questions: Are you saying that when a speed test reveals that you currently have, for example, 20 mbps, you really only have 20/number-of-users and what they are doing? If this is the case, what's the difference between someone to subscribes and pays for 20 mbps and those who pay for much less? Or is there any? If this is not the case, how does the provider direct more mbps to one house than to another?
What happened to Bonnie???
Speed tests over the Internet are useless. The traffic they send back and forth may not model streaming and is there a relationship between the network routes to your speed test site in, say Chicago, and the Netflix servers spread all over the world? No.
The only way to accurately evaluate your bandwidth is with a built-in network monitor on your computer or router. Here is a composite of the Apple monitor included in the operating system of all their computers and the excellent program Little Snitch - which shows you exactly how much bandwidth is being used by each program in real time. It is also a super firewall that gives you exquisite control over what is allowed to come and go from your computer. Highly recommended.
From this you can see that bandwidth is anything but constant.
As for speed, the cable system router that sends data to your specific cable modem knows what you have signed up for and will not send more packets than you deserve. Although 20 million bits per second sounds real fast, consider that the computer in the router is working at 1000 times faster than that.
In addition, the server you are you are receiving information (packets) from, negotiates a speed with your computer (yes, from all the way around the world), starting slow and gradually speeding up until packets begin to be lost, then backing speed down again. Any number of problems or bottlenecks along the route can affect the speed you actually receive, independent of your local ISP.
So, is the higher speed worth it? Depends on how you use the Internet and the statistical profile of bandwidth usage on your node. If you are downloading (ah hem - legal of course) movies late at night, you will see a big speed boost. But if you are just trying to watch The Goodwife at 8PM like everyone else, most likely nobody is getting anywhere near 20mbps, more likely 3-4, which is when the buffering starts.
Having a network monitor on your computer is the only way to know what is really going on from minute to minute. If you have a bunch of Internet devices in your house, find a router that includes a network monitor, which will tell you how much bandwidth each device on your network is using. TP-Link makes excellent routers that include this feature.
How the Internet really works is a fascinating and mind bending subject - maybe a good Tuesday Talk at some point.
Yes indeed what happened to Bonnie? She was one of the most valuable contributors to ning, and she is no longer listed as a member and she can't post on ning. She did not remove herself. This banning of people (for what with Bonnie? She is never nasty to anyone.) is getting ridiculous. That's probably why the postings have gone way down. People are afraid any comment can get them banned with no warning and no recourse. This kind of heavy handed action is going to kill ning.
Bonnie and Dottie Atwater got an email saying they had requested they be removed from the site. Of course they hadn't done so but after thinking about it Dottie at least said it was a .ning error but she was fine with it and didn't want to be a member any longer.
Bonnie said she can still read the posts but can't post.
Judy, you and I may be getting a letter next. This is crazy.
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