Q: Why is my wireless speed so terrible, it’s only between 0.8 and 1.2 Mb/s?
A: Probably because you are fighting your neighbors over a channel. You *really*
need to change channels. Using 5 GHz band wi-fi is usually much better than using 2.4
GHz band wi-fi. See also “Wireless: The Extreme Details.”
Q: What if my internet keeps going in and out or starts behaving really screwy?
A: If you are using a router, it probably needs to be rebooted. This will fix about 83% of weird problems. If you are using the router wirelessly, it might be more cantankerous and liable to odd behaviour than if you are using a wired connection to the router.
A router is just like any other mistake-amplifier (some people use the term “computer” instead of “mistake-amplifier”): if it’s left on too long it is likely to get into some sort of a strange state and will need to reboot to function properly. A typical Microsloth machine will require 1 or 2 reboots a week at least. A very good Linux machine will probably require 2 or 3 reboots a year. If your router needs to be rebooted too often, it might be time to replace it. It is a rare router that will get to more than 80 months of age without trouble. TO REBOOT THE ROUTER:
1. disconnect it from the electrical power (obviously, if you have a power-over-ethernet router this will mean disconnecting it from the ethernet cable which is providing the power)
2. count to 40. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP
3. reconnect to electrical power and wait 90 to 200 seconds for the router to restart.
Q: What happens if I need to do something very important with a big deadline and my wi-fi
speed slows down to a crawl because my neighbors are using wi-fi like crazy?
A: DON’T do this. Ever. All “mission-critical” operations should always be done wiredly if at all possible. This is not a defect of FiberXL service. The only thing FiberXL can control is your speed out of the wall. This is also the only thing that Comcast, At&T, Verizon, Xfinity….(insert long list here) can control. Once you transition to wi-fi, everybody has essentially the same transmitters. Wi-fi is a convenient technology but one would be very hard pressed to call it a good one. In a high-rise building it is possible to have 7 or 8 transmitters creating noise that disrupts your transmitter. Once you transistion to wi-fi you are at the mercy of the fates, your neighbors, random electromagnetic noise, and the FCC regulations. Perfect reception at 10:00 might slow to a crawl 8 hours later with no changes in the signal you are getting out of the wall. You are at the mercy of your neighbors if this happens. 5GHz (a/c band) is almost always vastly superior to 2.4 GHz.
Q: Are there monthly usage limits of FiberXL service?
A: No. Never.
Q: Ok, sure, but you do deliberately slow the service down to a dead crawl to punish users once they are over their monthly quota, right?
A: Never. If your service slows down, suspect your wi-fi channel first.