ADSL 2 trials

I recently applied to take part in the ADSL 2 trials that Plusnet are running.
Does anybody know how long it usually takes before you can expect a reply?

Dave's on holiday this week and he normally manages all of the trial requests.

However, there's a backlog of about a month due to the fact that we're placing all the orders manually and secondly want to control the number of orders that we're placing to ensure that the trial phases goes well.

In reply to a post by Metronet_James:

Dave's on holiday this week and he normally manages all of the trial requests.

However, there's a backlog of about a month due to the fact that we're placing all the orders manually and secondly want to control the number of orders that we're placing to ensure that the trial phases goes well.

Thanks for the quick reply James and the much appreciated info.

Just an update, on the 21 March 2009 My exchange was upgraded to 21CN status. I decided to request being put on the Plusnet ADSL 2 trial. I searched the Plusnet site and was directed to http://community.plus.net/blog/2008/12/15/21cn-progr... and placed my request. After waiting nine days for a response Dave Tomlinson posts that we should all apply by ticket and gives the link as http://trials.plus.net I follow the link and again place my request. I am informed that turnaround for tickets is just over three hours, it is now two and a half days later and guess what? the ticket is still unread and waiting.

If this is the quality of support given while trying to get on the trial, it gives little hope of support once on the trial.

I reckon I will give it a miss altogether.

Hi Lenseman,

Sorry about the hassle, but the delay is because these trial tickets aren't standard support tickets and as such aren't monitored by our CSC in the same way as support requests - it does state this on the page at http://trials.plus.net ("Please note these ticket pools are not directly monitored by the Customer Support Centre and that it may take up to 7 to 14 days for your ticket to be acknowledged.")

In reply to a post by orbrey:

Hi Lenseman,

Sorry about the hassle, but the delay is because these trial tickets aren't standard support tickets and as such aren't monitored by our CSC in the same way as support requests - it does state this on the page at http://trials.plus.net ("Please note these ticket pools are not directly monitored by the Customer Support Centre and that it may take up to 7 to 14 days for your ticket to be acknowledged.")

I apologise.
I must admit it was late in the evening when I was informed about having to re-apply using the ticket system. In my haste to get my request logged following the earlier ten day wait, I failed to notice the message you have now pointed out.

Hope your experience is better than the Multicast trials.

Trails are usually screwed because the decision to go down a particular road has already been made. The purpose of trails are to show the board that their decision was correct. In order to do so participants are selected that are unlikely to throw up any problems.

I would therefore expect the majority of selected participants will be on short lines, thereby reducing the possibility of a poor overall result.

I don't think Plusnet are rejecting anyone for the trial that is on an enabled exchange, though as James explained there is a backlog of orders to submit. If you look at some of the threads on the community site you'll find some posts by people with long lines.

I think Plusnet are learning from the MaxDSL problems, and taking it slowly, so things like fault rates and the like can be monitored and system problems can be ironed out before pushing through large numbers of orders.

If you remember when MaxDSL was being introduced, CSC was swamped with calls and tickets for problems and faults which caused big problems for everyone.

Phil

In reply to a post by wingco1:

Trails are usually screwed because the decision to go down a particular road has already been made. The purpose of trails are to show the board that their decision was correct. In order to do so participants are selected that are unlikely to throw up any problems.

I would therefore expect the majority of selected participants will be on short lines, thereby reducing the possibility of a poor overall result.

I suggest you go and visit the dedicated forum on the Community site (http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/board,62.0...) which will tell you that your allegation is utter rubbish.

Participants are totally self selected, a number are posting to say that their download speeds are the same or reduced.

In reply to a post by wingco1:

Trails are usually screwed because the decision to go down a particular road has already been made. The purpose of trails are to show the board that their decision was correct. In order to do so participants are selected that are unlikely to throw up any problems.

Couldn't be further from the truth tbh Wingco. BTW, Was that a pun on "trails" and "roads"?

I've been placing orders on short, medium and long lines. Besides, the trial is open to anyone on an exchange that has been enabled.

James and Jelv, my comment was intended as a general observation. It was not aimed directly at PN. I appreciate that posting a comment in this forum may give the impression that it was, but that was not the case.

If Jelv was to put down his big drum now and again he may read what was actually written. Thank you for the info James, it's nice to see you didn't see the post as an accusation

PS my typo is noted

Edited by wingco1 (Fri 03-Apr-09 16:14:33)

In reply to a post by jelv:

Participants are totally self selected, a number are posting to say that their download speeds are the same or reduced.

I'm confused actually.

I cannot find out what WBC really means. Is it Worse Broadband Connection or Woeful Broadband Connection?

Wholesale Broadband Managed Connect

We use WBMC and not WBC (like Enta do).

Does that mean that you are not limited on a per node basis but on total usage basis

Yes I know James .

It was just a joke about WBC/WMBC based mainly on what happened at Enta, and the fact there do still seem to be significant oddities with both WBC and IPSC. Mainly down to Enta wrt reliability and resilience, but not everything.

Presumably your triallists are commenting in a specific forum somewhere. I hope things are going well though. Nobody - company, staff or customers want problems! Not even observers want you to have problems, (well not this one though maybe some do).

I just like to know what's going on so I can advise people. So it's useful to know you are going WBMC. What about IPSC? Presumably you will have to move non-enabled-exchange customers to that in a while? Though the last I heard it wasn't going to be available on WBMC till September.

There are only two current things that result in a order being rejected from the orders I have been placing.

1: The exchange enabled. No brainer there though

2: That there is not current fault, or a fault ticket pending retest. We don't want to be making matters worse by either contributing further to a problem, or having to start the fault process from the begining (which is what would happen, after a delay in the move of service).

There are a few additonal orders which have been delayed due to technical problems preventing the order itself.

I don't even pre-qualify the line for the expected speed unless there is a desired request within the ticket.

That's all good to see/hear.

I had a look at the support forum and there seems to be a fairly common theme of poor speeds for many of those posting although obviously we don't see who or how many its lovely for. Do you (or James) reckon there are any consistent problems as yet?

Even a quick skim suggested the following:
a) upstream profile left locked at ADSL1 ie. 512Kbs
b) downstream profile reduced if upstream is wrong (a) - an odd issue.
c) downstream syncs that are lower than ADSL1 - even on short lines.

Is my observation fair? and how common does it all seem to be?

Not to pre judge your trial but to see what the troublesome elements are.

Point a
Upstream locked to 448kbps was an error in the ordering process which has now been corrected assuming that is what you are referring to.
Remainder I will leave to those taking part in the trials - my exchange doesn't go live until next year

Indeed, and I hold my hands up to it.

When placing the orders, you have to physically select ADSL2+ (default to ADSL) and then once refreshed, select uncapped upstream (defaults to 448).

I placed in excess of 130 orders with a 448kbps upstream. Others uncapped when the account supplied a Premium service (Business Premier, old Pro variants and customers specifically paying for it).

I had not been fully aware all had been uncapped.

Anybody that has been capped simply need only raise a ticket or post on the forum, and a modify will be placed.

Don't be too embarrassed. After all thats the kind of wrinkle that trials are meant to identify and eliminate. It not just the technical implementation that needs proving. Its the customer facing, ordering, wholesaler liaison, transition arrangements, etc that often needs the most work.

Indeed had that sort of detail been trialled on the recent package changes many of the anomalies and confusions would have been eliminated before the full roll out! After all I still get emails for BBYW saying that excess bandwidth will be charged at the new package rates. And its over a month without that fixed... Ofcourse you'd probably still have a contract length that scares away a lot of customers and deals that still punish existing customers to some extent. Those features appear to be a higher [sic] management decision so they won't change until the next round of high level bloodletting.