Re: Security System and self monitoring

["Percival P. Cassidy" <Nobody@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

And then there is the question of reliability of the Internet service on
which VoIP depends.  When we lived in NY, our phone service
(Nynex/BA/Verizon) was more reliable than our Internet service
(CableVision/Optimum Online), and in the two years we've been in W.
Michigan our phone service (SBC) has been more reliable than our
Internet service (Charter). In both places interruption to Internet
service has been rare (but once as long as 36 hrs in NY), but I wouldn't
want to have to depend on my ISP for phone service.

Perce


On 09/11/05 06:15 am trader4@xxxxxxxxxxxxx tossed the following
ingredients into the ever-growing pot of cybersoup:

> Most people who are aware of VOIP think that it's cheap primarily
> because of some great digital technological breakthrough.  They don't
> realize that virtually all voice traffic has been digital for a very
> long time.  In the case of existing phone lines, the A/D was done at
> the switch at the local phone company.  From there on through the
> network it was all handled digitally, running through exactly the same
> kind of fiber optic lines and other high speed digital lines as the
> internet, until it was converted back to analog at the far end.  The
> big difference was that the phone system guarantees that every digital
> sample arrives at the other end at precise intervals that correspond to
> the 8khz sampling rate.  With VOIP, the packets can be routed all over
> the place, with no guarantee that they will get there at the right
> time.  That's a big difference in quality of service.
>
> Most people who went to VOIP did not do it to avoid the $20 monthly
> local phone service fee.  The did it because they had high toll call
> bills, with a lot of that likely being over seas calls.  So what they
> were avoiding was the regulated tariff structure, both domestic and
> international, at the the expense of reliability.  Along the way, many
> found out that there are in fact some serious problems, like the 911
> issue and call quality.  And also, since we're on the subject of call
> monitoring, do the major monitoring services work with VOIP?  I know as
> of a couple years ago, they had a policy of not supporting it.  The
> domestic long distance cost has dropped sharply over the last few
> years, with most providers now offering some form of bulk or unlimited
> calling packages at more reasonable rates, so the incentive to switch
> keeps dropping.
>
> And today statements like:
>
> "Those of us who actually use VoIP every day might tend to
> disagree with you.  I've had the service for over a year.  At
> first there were major quality and reliability issues so I only
> used it as an overflow for my POTS lines. "
>
> hardly bring a ringing endorsement.  If there were major quality and
> reliability issues that recently, I'll just stick with Verizon.