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Questions
about Wireless Broadband Internet Access
What is Wireless
Broadband Internet Access?
Wireless Broadband Internet access is exactly what it says wireless.
AvantWireless is providing high-speed cost effective solutions for
Internet access via wireless, no phone lines needed! There is no
need to worry about slow down loads, busy signals, or disconnections
anymore, with Wireless Internet your computer is always on the Internet.
Using a new technology, Avantwireless is supplying cost effective,
reliable, high speed Internet access to the Internet.
What
equipment is needed?
You will need: A computer with either a network card or an Ethernet
connector, any operating system that can network will do. (Examples:
MacOS, OSX, Windows (all), Linux.) Your
setup charge pays for installation of a radio modem, power supply,
wiring, a directional antenna that will point at one of our Internet
access points, and final alignment/setup.
How
fast is Wireless Internet?
A wireless Internet connection's speed depends on the plan you
purchase. At an absolute maximum, depending on distance and radio
interference in your area, your connection can receive information at
about 40 MBits per second; approximately equal to the speed of 25 T1
connections. For our basic service typical speeds vary between 2.5 to 8
Mbits/sec. But our Speed from your computer to the Internet is far
faster than DSL or Cable. Our outbound speeds are near to the
inbound speeds!!!
We are rolling out premium service in some areas. Premium service has download
speeds of up to 40 megabits per second. With upload speeds to 20 megabits per second!
How
secure is the signal?
The gear we use is also used for military applications. The nature
of wireless makes it very difficult to intercept. The technology
uses frequency hopping, encryption, and a proprietary network protocol
to secure the transfer of data. It is very similar to DSL and Cable as far as security.
All private information should be transmitted on the internet with at least SSL encryption
Will
I need a firewall since my computer is always on the Internet?
Yes, it's a good idea. Since your computer is always connected to
the Internet, there is a chance (just like all the servers out on
the 'Net) that there will be attempts to hack into it. Just like
most people now run virus checkers on their machines, you will probably
want to run a firewall, which is available from the same companies
that do virus checkers, usually as a package. One good one is available
from Symantec, or if you have Windows XP you are already protected,
as there is a firewall built-in.
How
dependable is it?
Wireless has proven itself to be good enough for businesses to use in
their most critical tasks, such as local area networks and even T1
systems that bypass the local telephone system. But as the tragedy of
New Orleans showed, the Internet has strengths that the phone system
doesn't: i.e. it doesn't break down and quit working when everyone
tries to use it at once. It degrades gr gracefully and still keeps
workings in some ways. After the hurricane, the first communications
back up and in most cases the only communications were wireless
networks like AvantWireless. Even the cell phone networks were not as
useable as the private wireless internet companies.
Will
I have to learn anything new to use this system?
If you already know how to use a Web browser you will find our system
totally transparent. You are always online. You click on your browser
icon, and you are online with no delay- no waiting for a free line
or a connection.
What
are some benefits to having fast Internet access?
Many times you might find yourself sitting on your computer waiting
up many minutes just for one web page to load. Most of the time
it is because it has many pictures and active moving things, sometimes
even sound. (You might be watching video news on Yahoo, for instance.)
This makes it very hard for a modem connection to squeeze so much
information through its very limited connection. As the Internet
evolves so does content and use. Web pages are migrating to content
rich pages leaving modem users frustrated because they have to wait
for the pages to load. With fast Wireless Internet access there
is no need to wait; you can play real time videos, make Internet
phone calls with out breaking up, play your favorite MP3 in real
time, watch live video streams, play online games (like Ace of Angels
a very, very "realistic" real-time space battle), and
send and receive files at blazing speeds. Best of all, general browsing
is enjoyable, instead of interminable. The always-on feature of
the AvantWireless service also makes it easy to access the Internet
via a laptop or Web pad from someplace more comfortable for reading…such
as a nice chair outside during the summer!
What
does the equipment look like?
The antennas range in size from a 6" or 14" square "pizza pan",
to a 24" x 36" grilled directional unit. They are all
very lightweight and are no more difficult to install that a DishTV
or DirectTV dish. The first image shows both a 6" and a 14" antenna, the second image shows a grid antenna.
Do
I need a phone line?
No a phone is not needed. As a matter of fact, phone service can
run over this connection using third party service providers such
as Vonage. This approach would be good for a second or third (or
forth....) line used for business or inexpensive long distance.
However, this system cannot provide the reliability or 911 emergency
service offered by the phone company so you must keep the one line
provided with your phone service.
Is
this like Cable modems, ISDN, or ADSL?
To start off with - Most of these services are not available in
our service areas. Cable Modems, ISDN, ADSL all depend on physical
wires. With Wireless Internet access you are dealing with no wires,
just your equipment and ours give you a fast, always on, connection
directly to the Internet.
Is
Internet access unlimited?
With Wireless Internet access your computer is always connected.
There are no time limits or restrictions of how long you can use
it. Your computer is connected 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365
days a year. You are, however, required to recognize that the connection
is shared with the other users of AvantWireless and need to be respectful
that your bandwidth usage does not impinge on other’s use
of the service. This is why we restrict PtoP filesharing, it's just not a fair
use of the network.
Is
this the same as "satellite" Internet?
No. For one thing, it's cheaper than bi-directional satellite Internet
service. It's also much better, as it eliminates the crippling effects
on real time applications such as phone calls, video conferencing,
and gaming caused by "time-of-flight" (the tech term is
"latency") delays associated with a satellite orbiting
at 35,785 km above the earth. The other major issue with the residential
satellite providers is the miserable upload speeds. Recently, DirectWay
was as slow as 16kbps, about a third of what you can get from dial-up!
Also, if you study the fine print on the satellite users agreement
you will see that their connection explicitly excludes your hooking
up of multiple computers to their service. (And in fact, it’s
technically difficult to do.) Our equipment is designed for you
to run multiple computers!
What
is latency? And why is it bad?
Latency is hard on applications like games, telephone call, video
conferencing, or anything that requires “real-time”
interactivity. For instance, it can determine the outcome of any
game. For example, in a First Person Shooter, if the connection
is laggy, and both players shoot each other at the exact same time,
person A's bullets may hit person B before person B's bullets hit
person A. In a telephone call, high ping times would be experienced
by a lag between callers, creating a situation that may require
people to say “over” after they finish a sentence. The
same is true of video conferencing. Satellite connections are especially
prone to this problem, (see above), with ping times often in excess
of 1000mS, making gaming impossible. Wireless connections like ours
usually have ping times in the low double digits to the edge of
our network.
Will
game machines like Xbox work well with this connection?
And how! With our low latency, and high-speed connection, the AvantWireless
network was designed to put you in the top tier of gamers. If you
have questions about how to set up your Xbox, follow the link.
Can
I run servers on this connection?
Yes. With our Business Accounts you are free to run your own web,
mail, or ftp server*, etc. The running of servers of any kind is
prohibited with residential wireless access plans.
*Without exceeding the limitations of the Acceptable Use Agreement.
Will
I still need my modem?
No, Wireless Internet connections do not require a modem. You will
need to keep your modem in your computer if you use it for fax services.
How
long will it take to install?
Once your location has been surveyed and approved for wireless,
a date will be set for installing your unit. When a service tech
is on-site it could take as little as 1 hour or several days. Each
location and application differs in the degree of difficulty.
Can
I get Busy Signal?
No, you always have an Internet connection 24 hours a day, 7 days
a week 365 days a year. A wireless connection requires no phone
line making it impossible to get a busy signal.
Is
it available in my area?
We currently cover South Reno, Washoe Valley, along Mt Rose Highway,
parts of Downtown Reno, Sparks, Spanish Springs, Stead, Lemmon Valley Palomino Valley, and now lower Red Rock.
This is patchy because we do not cover areas that might be marginal.
Our service is high performance and so localized. A site inspection
will need to be performed for almost all potential customers to
evaluate the ability to use wireless where you are. If you know where
our access points are, and you can see one, then you should be able to
get a working signal. A site survey must be done prior to installing
any wireless hardware.
What
if I can’t see the Transmitter from my house, but I can from
an outbuilding or somewhere on my property? Can I still get service?
Absolutely. We can set up our CPE and antenna as much as 300’
from your network and it will work fine. Further out? We have sent
the signal over a simple phone line via phone line networking, which
will relay the signal over your phone line up to 1000’ (without
affecting phone service). For those up to a mile away from a good
antenna site and who want to have roaming Internet access within
and without the home or business, there is wireless (using a wireless
access point added to our CPE). All this is very reasonably priced.
(You can even purchase the equipment yourself and we will help you
set it up.)
What
other devices might conflict with this technology?
Because this equipment uses the 2.4GHz or 5Ghz bands, it needs to share it
with some other devices you might have in your home or office. The
most common conflict would be with an existing 802.11 WiFi wireless
computer network, and is simple to fix. Just call us, and we’ll
help you change the channel that your WiFi network uses. The other
most common conflict is with 2.4GHz spread spectrum portable phones,
which also makes problems for WiFi computer networks. Harder
to fix, but not impossible. Read this article about how to fix the
problem. Here’s what the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance
has to say about 2.4GHz phones: “the group has tested four
2.4-GHz phones and found two to be "a bit of an issue."
It too, recommends 900-MHz phones. "You'll get better range,
better battery life, at half the cost," says a WECA spokesperson.”
For our area, with all of our beautiful trees, 900Mhz is a better
choice for range. 2.4GHz, let me assure you, interprets trees as
solid brick walls.
How
does this access method compare to Cable and/or DSL?
Wireless Internet is most like cable, in that it is a shared medium.
Speeds however are faster than DSL. Our Premium plans are almost as fast as Cable. Take a picture off your
computer, upload it to a site on the Internet, then download it back to
your computer and we will be 2 times faster than either DSL or cable.
Unfortunately, cable and DSL are not available in some parts of the
Reno area, and probably won't be available for years.
How
much does it cost?
Installation is between $200-$250 for the vast majority of situations,
although there is the odd (usually very long distance, i.e. over
6 miles from one of our transmitters install that will require the addition of a higher power
radio or dish antenna. (Add $150).
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