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So you've finally had enough of battling with that dodgy old dial-up connection and are now contemplating going broadband. Or your current broadband connection is not meeting your needs and/or is too expensive and it's time for a change.

The choice you need to make is between Iburst, HSDPA (Vodacom and MTN) or ADSL from Telkom, which can be quite a daunting decision for the technically non-inclined. HSDPA and Iburst are "long range" wireless options not to be confused with "short range" Wifi, while ADSL needs a fixed telephone line. So here are a few pointers to help make that decision a little easier.

connection speed
First you need to decide what internet speed you need. Obviously the faster the better. Below are the theoretically "maximum" speeds on offer:

Iburst: Up to 1Mbps
HSDPA: Up to 1.8 Mbps. Drops to GPRS rates in non coverage areas.
ADSL: Up to 384 kbps, 512kbps, 1 Mbps and 4 Mbps (1024 kbps = 1Mbps)

In South Africa, however, the reality is that these maximum speeds are rarely achieved (if ever) because actual average speed achieved is dependent on factors such as time of day, location, supplier capacity, remote site being accessed and technical problems. For example, right now my current speed is averaging around 175 kbps on a 512 kbps ADSL link. Obviously the higher the maximum speed capability of your link, the higher the average speed you will get while surfing.

price per bandwidth
Next you need to decide between the different packages on offer. All companies charge differently although, after installation, price essentially boils down to cost per Mbyte. With Telkom this price is also dependent on the speed of the ADSL link chosen, as well as the cost of your isp (Internet service Provider). What you need to decide is how many Gigabytes (1024 Mbytes) you need per month and at what speed, and select a package that is appropriate for your needs.

As a comparison, I have listed below the comparative monthly costs for roughly the same packages (+- 3 Gigabytes of data) at speeds of 1 Mbps (or higher) as of 12th June 2007:

Iburst: R0.17/Mbyte/month (3500 Mbytes Pro Classic package, no modem)

HSDPA: +- R0.20/Mbyte/month (2048 Mbytes in bundle rate from MTN/Vodacom)

ADSL: R0.21/Mbyte/month (3 Gigabytes Cap with 1Mbps line using Axxess as isp at R125/month)

(Prices do not include once off costs such as routers/modems etc)

Although the Iburst option works out the cheapest at 1 Mbps (or greater), if you are happy with a 384 kbps line speed, then the ADSL cost reduces to +- R0.12/Mbyte i.e. you are sacrificing speed for price. On the other hand, if you need the faster speeds and are confident that the wireless coverage will be reliable in your area, then one of the wireless options may be the way to go.

Reliability
Unfortunately the reliability of each of the above connections is hard to predict and I have seen and heard of cases where all connection types have been unreliable and slow. This usually boils down to one of the following reasons:

Time of day: At certain times of the day, there will be more users online sharing the same resources, so overall speeds obtained will be lower than at other times.

Your location: Especially true for the wireless options as in certain locations, speed will be much better than in others. This is because the wireless signal coverage is affected by objects such as distance from the transmitter as well as buildings, weather, mountains etc between the transmitter and your router. For example, I have used HSDPA cards at the CTICC centre in Cape Town and got average speeds of only 270 kbps. While the coverage for all is increasing, ADSL is the most likely only choice for many areas because of Telkom's huge infrastructure. Iburst and HSDPA are mainly focused in major cities. It is however important to check the reliability of wireless coverage at your site before going ahead with using a wireless connection.

Technical Problems: All the suppliers will experience technical problems from time to time and that invariably effects connection speed - unfortunately in South Africa this is far too common a problem at the moment.

internet Needs
If you are planning to use the internet while on the move using a laptop, for example, then Iburst and HSDPA are the only options available ADSL needs a fixed phone line.

However, if you will be accessing the internet from one location then you have the option of using any of the three. Personally I prefer using a fixed ADSL line because, in my opinion (and Telkom technical problems and personal dislikes aside), a physical wired solution should always be more reliable than the wireless options. If you need wireless with ADSL, you always have the option of using Wifi, which will give you short range wireless connectivity (+- 35 meters from the router with longer ranges possible using the right setup).

Also, the type of applications you will be running will influence your selection. If all you need is "reasonable" internet speed for email and browsing, then 384 kbps from Telkom may be all you need. On the other hand, if you are downloading large files or need a fast connection between two offices, then you will need a faster connection.

My Preferences
Home/Business fixed location: ADSL from Telkom (Non Telkom Router) Roaming user with laptop: HSDPA from MTN

This article is adapted from one that first appeared on the ITRoadblog published by Precision networks

# posted by 34435 : 8:05 AM  0 comments

Brazilian dominance in soccer takes a new complexion. There used to be a time when the Brazilian men's national soccer team were of average size and build. They were small (shorter), fast and skillful. Diminutive in stature but this did not apply to their technical and tactical abilities.

The Brazilian men's national soccer team might appear to line up in some formal positional formation and set up. Once the game starts it is an all positions for everybody on the team. They seem to play a 1 (goalkeeper) -10 (field) as all the players are in constant motion and are able to play off of each other at any time. The team members do however have certain defensive responsibilities and are accountable for their respective areas.

They truely understand "the game" and are ready to be spontaneous as well as volatile.

The Brazilian team seems to make the opponents play catch up and defensively throughout most of the contest.

A goal scoring opportunity can come from any where and any one on the field and at any time.

The only thing that you can predict is that the goalkeeper will not leave the 18 yard box to act as a forward and score some goals.

ronaldinho has just acquired his second fifa international player of the year award in a row. Does he deserve it? most definitely.
He is a pleasure to observe as he sets up most of his team mates to lead his current team FC barcelona to the top of the Spanish "La Liga".

now add the goalkeeper Dida who has been a major part of his team's successes, in the back and Adriano up front who has seemed to be totally unstoppable goal scoring machine on the forward line for the italian "Serie A", Roberto Carlos on the left where he still has a command on the free kicks, and Ronaldo the task master who often and still shows flashes of brilliance in the mix and you have a fortress of power and abilities few can match.

I think the ball got rolling with the the introduction of junior Biano as a defenseman in 1998. With the exception of france his presence was a dominant deterant for other teams.
The latest big man to join him is Lucio

brazil found mass to be a compliment to all their other strengths. It would appear that they have continued to build from there. The average weight of their national team has increased without diminishing their agility and manouverability. Although not a necessity, muscle mass has been a factor in other team sports. This might be true in modern Futbol as speed has become an over-riding factor to the game in the last 15 years.most of the elite players are also playing in the italian and Spanish premier leagues and on similar if not the same teams. They are learning from each other by being rivals and combats as well as compatriots.

Here are the possible candidates for the next world cup roster for brazil.

Goalkeepers:

DIDA,
JLIO CSAR

Defenders:

CAFU,
CICINHO,
EDMLSON,
GILBERTO Melo,
JUAN,
LCIO,
ROBERTO CARLOS da Silva,
Jos Vtor ROQUE JNIOR

Midfielders:

EMERSON Ferreira,
GILBERTO Silva,
JUNINHO Pernambucano,
KAKA',
RENATO,
Z ROBERTO,

Forwards:

ADRIANO,
Jlio BAPTISTA,
Ricardo OLIVEIRA,
ROBINHO,
RONALDO,
ronaldinho Gacho,

Very impressive roster as was the one in 1998.

A team can only be as good as it is a team and is coached as a team.
A team can only be good if all the members play for the team and with the team.

It does NOT matter how many stars you have and how big the egos or the payroll is either.

Win as a team and lose as a team. Play as individuals and the team will lose. I say this not because outstanding players could change the outcome of games, but because other teams and players are more sophisticated and more knowledgable now than ever before. The opposition can read this and contain the key players rendering the rest of the team less potent.

# posted by 34435 : 12:49 AM  0 comments