SCI/TECH: FCC OKs Broadband Over Power Lines

Originally posted by flukemol
think about a technolgy that uses magnetic fields.it does not take alot of examples.i dont lessen the fact that internet has a good use for public or govenment.this needs attention and major study before tossed into the system without care.....

One technology example that uses magnetic fields is maglev trains. Not the best example, I realize.

This would be a real boon for rural areas. Having lived through dial-up in a rural area for a short period of time made me want to kiss my cable modem when I returned to civilization.

BPL could also give us some unforeseen benefits, also. Like maybe it will encourage some people to correct their spelling errors and make their posts more legible.

The Broadband Over Powerline (BPL) rollout got a boost this month with a deal for DirectTV to join their services with Current Group's BPL rollout in the Dallas Texas area's proposed 1.8 million users. The deal could include providing the service to areas in Souther California, Maryland, and Ohio.

This deal seems to driven to prove the idea that only BPL can provide the high speed required to successfully marry TV to the internet. That move could spawn an entirely new industry. One that everyone seems to want. Integrated TV/Internet/Digital Video.

Faster Please!





[edit on 8/25/07 by makeitso]

Originally posted by Thatoneguy
Geo it is the FCCs job to make sure things like that do not happen.

If this means that I can get broadband internet in farmtown USA with only a noisy phoneline that limits by connection to 24.0 Kbps then I'm all for it.

But I wonder how long they will figure out how to get around the inteference. I mean 56k modems cannot even connect at more than 53k due to inteference problems.

Man, I'm even farther back in the sticks than you. I get only 21.6 Kbps, sometimes even less.

Originally posted by makeitso
The Broadband Over Powerline (BPL) rollout got a boost this month with a deal for DirectTV ...

Ok I'm never paying a dime for it now. I wouldn't touch DirecTV with a dead mans hand.

I probably wouldn't go for it anyway. I like my services to be separate and defined. I want my power to be from the power outlet, and my communications to be from the phone line (DSL here). This way it's more fault tolerant and when someone screws up I know who to be pissed at.

Maybe I'm having a brain fart here, but I can't make sense of this.....

I work for a power plant... I have first hand knowledge that the power grid in the US is already loaded to the hilt... and they want to put more load on the power lines?

The only feasible way I see this to work, is if they build/provide more transmission lines... which is very costly to say the least.

I think the idea of BPL is outstanding, though. I'd love to have the added options to my service provider.

I work for a power plant... I have first hand knowledge that the power grid in the US is already loaded to the hilt... and they want to put more load on the power lines?

Its my understanding that they are not adding load to the lines. Instead the've found a way to utilize the back-emf's that already exist within the lines.

Duke Energy is one company that has proven this on very old, overloaded grids in both rural and urban areas in Ohio, Texas, Southern California, Maryland, and other locations.

With 200Mbps costing the same as a standard DSL line, a new industry could be spawned that could reduce not increase electric requirements, since you could (in theory) combine TV, DVD player, VCR, XM Radio, Computer, Monitor, modems/routers into one single system for a home entertainment system. Then set it up by plugging into any outlet in the house, no extra wires needed!

Short of running fiber or T-1 lines to every home, there is currently no other system capable of combining all these seperate systems into the foreseen new generation of integrated TV/Internet that I'm aware of.

Even more interesting is the heavy hitters backing this project. Companies like Google Inc., Goldman Sachs, General Electric, Duke Energy, etc., On top of that, there's a kicker for added incentive. Federal and State gov. is providing a good chunk of the funds for the R&D, and startup costs in most cases.

No, I dont work for any of these companies. I just want it. DSL and cable/satellite is too slow, and fiber/T-1 is to expensive.

Faster Please!


[edit on 8/26/07 by makeitso]

A DS1/T1 is only 1.55Mbit anyway. Not very impressive with modern cablemodem and DSL rates, except your outbound is a solid 1.55meg as well.

I see a lot of BPL companies reporting 200Mbit, but I'll believe it when I see it.
Seems a little too good to be true considering the media, unshielded often fifty year old cabling.

Originally posted by apc
I see a lot of BPL companies reporting 200Mbit, but I'll believe it when I see it.
Seems a little too good to be true considering the media, unshielded often fifty year old cabling.

I worry about that too. I wonder if its like cable systems that once myriads of users log during peak times that particular subnet segment (which is shared) thus reduces the overall bandwidth to each house.

Somebody has seen it though, and believes in it enough to produce the required equipment.

Buffalo™ releases UPA certified PL-UDP-L1 Powerline LAN solution using DS2´s 200 Mbps chipsets. Not something they usually do if they dont think it will work.

[edit] Bummer.

Looking into it more, I found a PDF whitepaper for a scheduled conference at Dallas, in Mid Sept. '07. The whitepaper confirms our worries.

The heart of the BPL system is the chipsets, which vary in speeds. Currently, maximum (i.e. raw) throughput speeds from BPL chipsets is 200 mbps. Due to attenuation and other factors on the BPL network, actual speeds to the customer are typically less than the raw throughput of the chipset. Still, most BPL systems provide upwards of 2 mbps symmetrical (i.e. same upload and download) speeds to the customer.

Oh well, hopefully as this continues to grow, these problems will be overcome. Just as it did with DSL/Cable. Particularly on new subdivisions, etc.

Here's an image of the current deployment locations.




[edit on 8/26/07 by makeitso]

Any one thought about what one good solar flare would do to this mostly unshielded network - they could wreak havoc on the systems we currently use.

But I wouldn't like to see the future being totally wireless personally - we live in a big old electro magnetic soup as it is, as time goes on its getting worse as we add more wireless technology. 100 years ago the problem did not exist, so who really knows the implications.

BB over power cables sounds great so long as the bandwidth is good.

I used to have wireless broadband, it was rated "up to" 1.5 Mbps and would get it on a late Sunday night after the sun went down, I was living in town 200 yards from the tower, it would get 1.2 at best and the upload was a little faster then 56Kbps on a good day, it if rained, I was stuck way below 56 Kbps.
in the setup of the wireless modem it talks about signal strength and had 5 indicator lites on the modem for signal strength, the odd thing was I never had less then 4 lights working at any given time, Before going wireless I had Cable, it was cable/TV/phone, and would never work correctly, it took 6 months to get them to test the system finally they did and admitted they had a bad node ( nothing to do with My wire or connections, even tho I told them to check it for 6 months) I never got any money credit other then $50 (1/3rd of one months bill) Now I have DSL, for $25 a Month, and it always works, and is the same speed as my cable was (3Mbps), and I love it, it does let me play games online while my wife surfs and downloads on her PC at the same time, until BPL comes out and is about as expensive as DSL I'll stick with it

Originally posted by BeingWatchedByThem
It won't be around long folks, the future is wireless. Imagine towers (like for cellphones) except wireless internet. Wired is not going to be around long, ask anyone who hasa good wireless internet router. As soon as the technology comes (my est. 10 years) we'll all have wireless internet ISPs.

Rubbish.

We've had Wireless "Broadband" ISP's in the UK for at least 3 years.

They're crap. In fact, I'm pretty sure one of the companies has gone bust.

Maximum speed of around 2-4Mbps, difficult to get a signal, susceptible to atmospheric conditions.

If wireless was so good and wires are bad, why do Telco's (such as the one I work for) not build wireless networks? It's because fibre is immune to outside interference and optical/electrical has greater bandwidth.

Although, having said that, ADSL via your phone line is also crap. Gave that up when I realised it fell over like Italian footballer the moment there was bad weather.

Cable broadband, which I now have, is the fastest and most reliable medium and will remain so for the foreseeable. I currently have 20Mbps off Virgin and have NEVER had any issues, apart from planned network outages which, for the most part, occur in the dead of night.

Wireless LANS are fine, for the most part, but I still don't fancy it myself. I still have a wired ethernet.

[edit on 26/8/07 by stumason]

Psh. I lubb muh DSL. Have never had any problems with it, and I'm in Tornado Alley!

If I had cable TV, I'd get cable Internet however. But I don't, so I won't.

I just don't like the idea of data over mains power. You wanna see some whacky stuff go down, watch your mains line during a storm. It's a transient fiesta!

I'm suprised that no one has mentioned the HomePlug™ Powerline Alliance in this thread. They are a standards group that have been around for a little while.

HomePlug Standard Brings Networking to the Home
By Steve Gardner, Brian Markwalter, and Larry Yonge
26 August 2007

Ethernet-class networks over standard home power links are coming, thanks to ASIC-based signal processing advances that keep a lid on the interference and transfer function degradations that compromise the power line transmission medium.

The vision of the networked home has driven many a business plan, but product offerings to date have been too limited in capability or in market potential to achieve the dream. Advances in ASIC density, however, enable the use of sophisticated signal-processing techniques at price points that are making Ethernet-class home networks via wireless, phone lines, and now power lines a cost-effective reality.

The HomePlug Powerline Alliance is a not-for-profit corporation established to provide a forum for the creation of open specifications for high-speed home power line networking products and services. The alliance is open to all companies that sign the adopter/participant agreement and make a small dues payment.

SOURCE | CommsDesign.com | Read more...

What are the benefits of using power outlets to connect devices found in the home?
HomePlug-certified products offer a convenient way to share broadband Internet services. Home networks are far easier to install than the dedicated network cable needed for purely Ethernet-based networks or for the optimum placement of wireless access points. HomePlug AV addresses the need to distribute entertainment content, such as HDTV, throughout a home.

Power outlets are the most pervasive home wiring medium. Power outlet connectivity is available worldwide, affording the use of multiple outlets in every room at a lower cost per connection point. HomePlug technology leverages existing power outlets to provide both power and connectivity. Additionally, the convenience of connecting any device through a power outlet will enable exciting new products covering entertainment, information access and telephony services.

What are the challenges of using power outlets to connect devices in the home?
Past challenges of using power outlets to connect devices in the home included a lack of industry specifications and multiple sources of electric noise. HomePlug technology has overcome these challenges by creating a specification and advanced, optimized algorithms in semiconductor technology.

SOURCE | HomePlug.org | Read more...

HomePlug™ Main Page
HomePlug™ Frequently Asked Questions
HomePlug™ Certified Product Catalog
HomePlug™ Certification Mark
HomePlug™ White Papers
HomePlug™ Press Releases

I AM INclined to agree with the guy wireless is the future. i goy a linksys g type router and i gave 6 different computers in three different houses tied in using wirelkess adapters thru usb ports and now me and neighbors all have broadband for 44 dollrs a month.

Rubbish. We've had Wireless "Broadband" ISP's in the UK for at least 3 years.

They're crap. Maximum speed of around 2-4Mbps, difficult to get a signal, susceptible to atmospheric conditions.

Right.

One would expect that from the UK infrastructure... wouldn't one?







(Just joking, don't get all fired up! We have a few problems here too.)



[edit on 8/26/07 by makeitso]

Nice try

That pic isn't from the UK.

I know, just for the record, thats a pic of India, not UK.

Somehow though, I just couldn't resist the joke with my friend "across the pond".

Hopefully our experience here is different than yours, seeing the massive funding going on. I'm probably overly optimistic though. I started this thread quite some time ago and there is progress, but its been slow going.

Faster Please.





[edit on 8/26/07 by makeitso]