[Info-vax] setting up an alpha in a home network using a linksys router

[Neil Rieck]

This is totally off topic and not related to the original question.

I've been a Bell Canada DSL customer since August 1999. The majority
of their C.O. equipment is based upon Alcatel technology which can do
either QAM or DMT. The original Alcatel Speed Touch modem (looks like
a coffee hot-plate) burned out after 5 years probably because it
wasn't meant to be on 24/7 (I support folding-at-home so never shut
down my equipment, ever). Bell replaced the Alcatel modem with a
SpeedStream 5200.

As most of you may already know, DSL divides the telephone line
spectrum into a band of 128 virtual modems. Whenever problems are
encountered by the modem, virtual modems are dropped from the working
pool which means the connection will slowly degrade over the course of
days to weeks depending upon your loop length. The only way to get
them back is to depower/power the modem which forces connection
renegotiation.

A few months ago (there was snow on the ground) I heard some rumors
about a router/modem combo from 2wire which could renegotiate/restore
dropped virtual modems without dropping the connection. Apparently,
the Alcatel C.O. equipment always had this capability but the el-
cheapo DSL modems in the field did not. So I visited eBay and
purchased a 2wire 2701HG-G for $40. This thing works like a charm so
now I've got a LinkSys WRT300 pluged into the back of the 2701HG-G
(router plugged into router; it looks like hell but works)

Now here is a really cool surprise. Before installing my 2wire, I
reset the SpeedStream then I ran line speed tests 5 times but always
measured 4.7 MB/s. After making the 2wire my primary device, the speed
had jumped to 5.25 MB/s. YMMV.

NSR