Joe McArthur wrote:
There's no current benefit to having a modem that supports a newer
revision of the DOCSIS standard than what the cable company is currently
using. Once they update, they will be able to take advantage of the
newer features of the newer revision, but will likely still allow
existing older standard modems (as many of them will be their own) for
some time.

To give you some perspective, in most areas, the switch from older
proprietary systems to DOCSIS systems took place over two or three
years. That switch involved running two complete systems concurrently,
as opposed to just offering backwards capability on a single system.
Also, in most cases, all the older modems were owned by the cable
company, so they didn't have to make the unpopular move of telling
people modems they owned were obsolete. The final step in the process
was as simple as mailing out new modems to the handful of remaining
proprietary customers.

In other words, I would expect that as long as an older standard version
modem appears on the list of supported modems, it'll continue to work on
the system for long enough that most people wouldn't balk at having to
replace something so expensive so soon.

As for buying a used modem, let me put something another way: Even if
your system operator doesn't offer rebates for customers buying new
modems, and you have to pay full retail price (which is still less than
list price), the difference between buying a new modem vs. buying a used
modem is not a great deal of money. However, if you *do* consider that
difference to be a great deal of money, then maybe you should consider
if high-speed internet access is something you can afford to begin with.
Spending an extra $50 on a modem that could last three to five years is
insignificant compared to spending $45/month over that same period. If
you can afford the monthly charge, you can afford the modem. If you
can't afford the modem, you can't afford the monthly charge, or you've
tweaked the numbers to delude yourself.

Buy a new modem from a reputable retailer.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.
Blatant Plug: What does a new kitchen need?
http://www.holzemville.com/community...hen/index.html

"Warren" <wholzem@hotmail.com> wrote in news:a8D5d.162673$3l3.41325
@attbi_s03:

Ok, thanks.

Warren, here's a piece of advice, from one who knows whereof he speaks
.... being knowledgeable and smart can sometimes not be such a hot
commodity in that we generally think we know it all, and all too often
end up embarrassing ourselves with our completely off base conclusions
about the state of things, as they really are. Case in point, you know
absolutely zilch about my situation, my finances, my background, etc.,
etc., and yet you presume to know quite a bit and continue to offer me
unsolicited advice about what I should and shouldn't do. Most of your
presumptions are totally incorrect. To begin with, my monthly cost for
cable modem service is only going to be $15 a month, not $45. CableOne
offers a $29.95 a month deal, with a one year contract. I have a
roommate who will be splitting the cost with me, therefore we each pay
$15. Next, if I was still earning 100K a year as a Software Engineer, I
wouldn't bat an eyelash over the cost of a new modem, however, that is
not my current situation and I need to watch every penny. Therefore,
saving a few bucks, by purchasing a perfectly good used cable modem seems
like a no brainer to me. Of course if you feel that strongly about my
need to have a brand new one, and wish to buy one for me, because
obviously you have plenty of cash just lying around, I'd be more than
happy to reimburse you for the cost of shipping it here.

Joe

"Dr. Cajones" <drjawn.spamno@remove.yahoo.com> wrote in
news:VrCdnRc3mvFH5cvcRVn-vQ@comcast.com:

Thanks (again) dj. I'm still looking around for a rebate deal, but I
suspect I'll probably wind up just grabbing one off of ebay.

Joe

"Don Burnette" <d.burnette@clothes.comcast.net> wrote in
news:v72dnXcy36nDf8jcRVn-sQ@giganews.com:

Nope not really.

--
Lucas Tam (REMOVEnntp@rogers.com)
Please delete "REMOVE" from the e-mail address when replying.
http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/coolspot18/

Joe,
Monthly rental is usually a few dollars above the service cost, perhaps you
should consider renting until a good deal comes along, or you find that buy
on the net.
Just a thought.
three months to six months should give you adequate time to examine and
pursue all options, and will only cost you and your roomie $1.50 or so each
a month while you seek. I think the Linksys ver 2 is popping up in some
places for attractive prices. Do you check pricewatch.com?

dj

"Joe McArthur" <joemac@hotpop.spamblock.com> wrote in message
news:Xns95708A273C245ipdaily@130.133.1.4...

Dr. Cajones wrote:

On Rogers, the service cost is the same whether or not you buy your modem.
However, when you own your own modem, the bandwidth increases from 3 Mb to
5.

--

(This space intentionally left blank)

Joe,

Most cable companies only provide you with 1 IP Address per account for the
single PC you connect to your cable modem.

If you are going to split the modem account with your roomate, you are
either going to have to use a router between you PCs and the cable modem, so
that you can use NAT to share the single IP address, or invest a little more
in a gateway modem, such as the Motorola SBG900. Or you can pay for an
additional IP address, which some cable companies will provide for an
additional $10/mo. The router/SBG900 pays for itself quickly instead of
paying the $10/mo for each additional IP address.

- Bob



"Joe McArthur" <joemac@hotpop.spamblock.com> wrote in message
news:Xns957089203E8A6ipdaily@130.133.1.4...

"Bob Stephens-Doll" <bob-sd@cox.net> wrote in
news:eQ58d.13679$Hz.11851@fed1read04:

Don't forget about the DHCP Bob; gotta have that as well.
I've owned and used a CABLE/DSL Router for quite some time and I know a
thing or two about sharing an internet connection. Guess you must have
missed the part of this thread where I mentioned that I used to be a
professional software engineer. LOL.

Joe

Hey dj, sorry for the delayed response time. Been off the air for a
while, between moving to my new place and coming down with Strep Throat a
few weeks ago. Anyway, I did wind up renting an SB5100 that the CableOne
tech guy brought along with him (even though I told the gal who took my
order that I'd be using my own), for the first month, since I wasn't able
to secure one ahead of time. Their rental charge is $5 a month. In the
interim I was able to buy an RCA DCM225 off of ebay for $10, and just
received it today. As long as it works fine when I hook it up tomorrow
morning, I'll be bringing that SB5100 back next week, and by the end of
December my "previously owned" modem will have payed for itself. 8)

As a side note, I think the new Best Buy store here is having its grand
opening this weekend so I'll have to stop in to see what special deal I
may or may not have missed out on.

Joe


"Dr. Cajones" <drjawn.spamno@remove.yahoo.com> wrote in
news:tsOdnTa-FKGPTsXcRVn-jQ@comcast.com:

Joe McArthur wrote:
Make sure you place the modem so you won't bump the power connector. It
doesn't take much of a wiggle to cause a power reset on this model.
Also, make sure the transformer end of the power supply has good
ventilation. It gets pretty hot.

For that matter, the modem itself can get pretty hot. Use a can of
condensed air to blow-out some of the accumulated dust on this 5+ year
old modem. Accumulated dust can result in greater heat build-up.

--
Warren H.

==========
Disclaimer: My views reflect those of myself, and not my
employer, my friends, nor (as she often tells me) my wife.
Any resemblance to the views of anybody living or dead is
coincidental. No animals were hurt in the writing of this
response -- unless you count my dog who desperately wants
to go outside now.
Blatant Plug: Fahrenheit 9/11 ships 10/5. Order your copy now:
http://www.holzemville.com/mall/911.html

Glad to hear you have recovered, and were able to find a possible solution
so cheaply. $5/month sounds high to me for modem rental!
But, you will need to employ some cooperation from your cable provider to
establish if the RCA will work for you. Just plugging it in may not really
tell you if it can work. And though I recall this model specifically,
Warrne's warnings ablout heat may be worth heeding, or at least monitoring.
Otherwise I think you are on the right track! Good luck with modems and
throats!

dj

"Joe McArthur" <joemac@hotpop.spamblock.com> wrote in message
news:Xns957D1EF7F5ECipdaily@130.133.1.4...

there should have been a "don't" before recall, sorry.

dj

"Dr. Cajones" <drjawn.spamno@remove.yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:h5Kdndv7yOYdAfTcRVn-ug@comcast.com...

Gee Joe,

I was just trying to be helpfiul.
I'm sorry if you thought I was talking down to you.
That was certainly not my intention.
I didn't know that you knew so much about the required setup being a former
"professional software engineer".

I wish you luck in your endeavor.

Bob Stephens-Doll
Senior Staff Engineer
SURFboard Cable Modems
Motorola Corporation





"Joe McArthur" <joemac@hotpop.spamblock.com> wrote in message
news:Xns957CE4F55AB4Dipdaily@130.133.1.4...

"Warren" <wholzem@hotmail.com> wrote in newsMU9d.440501$8_6.190546
@attbi_s04:

Thanks for the tips Warren. I don't have a can of condensed air handy
but will try to get a hold of one soon. Both the modem and its power
supply are well ventilated, and don't seem to be unusually hot, so
hopefully that means the thing is pretty clean already and in good
condition. There certainly hasn't been any drop-off in throughput -- as
measured by toast.net and bandwidthplace.com -- from the brand new SB5100
that I was using prior, so that's a good thing.

Joe

"Dr. Cajones" <drjawn.spamno@remove.yahoo.com> wrote in
news:h5Kdndv7yOYdAfTcRVn-ug@comcast.com:

Thanks dj. The installer who came out to do my hookup said that their
end would auto detect my replacement modem, simply by attaching it to the
line and powering it up, but he apparently forgot (or just doesn't know)
that the previous modem's configuration data must first be purged from
their end of the system. A simple call to tech support got that
straightened out right quick. My new (previously owned) RCA modem is
working great!

Say, were would be the best place to go on the web to get a user manual
for this modem, other than the RCA site which doesn't appear to have it?
Thanks.

Cheers,
Joe

Joe McArthur wrote:
Note that the long url wraps:

http://www.rca.com/documents/1550669..._700488_25.pdf

Bob, being an engineer at Motorola I should think you'd be familiar with
the expression: "Read The Manual!". I certainly got a healthy dose of it
when I was a rookie at IBM Research. My point being ... jumping into the
middle of a thread of discussion, to throw in your two cents, without
having bothered to take the time to read it through first, is akin to Not
Reading the Manual. As an aside, and strictly in my opinion, announcing
that your a this or that, for such and such company, via your signature
line, may impress some folks, but to others like myself it simply makes
you appear pompous.

Joe

"Bob Stephens-Doll" <bob-sd@cox.net> wrote in
news:Qzkad.42532$a85.5886@fed1read04:

"Warren" <wholzem@hotmail.com> wrote in
news:mB1bd.169204$wV.22713@attbi_s54:

Thanks Warren. I had looked in the obvious places on rca.com for this, but
came up empty. Your determination is my good fortune.

Cheers,
Joe

Warren wrote:

If you post a long URL, please enclose it in < >. This will prevent it from
breaking into pieces.

Now go back and repost your message the proper way.

--

(This space intentionally left blank)

James Knott wrote:

The first one worked fine for me. The fact that it may have wrapped
shouldn't matter (unless his url had whitespace in it and his mailer
broke it up).