Talk:Internet/@comment-69.140.165.194-20150628164143

It now appears feasible to bring us decent cell phone reception and lower-priced, higher-quality internet and TV.

We haven’t had those improvements here for decades because no one here had the incentive, authority, skills and budget to keep us up with current technology and prices. We’re beginning to bring together people who can overcome those hurdles. ===

Cell phone reception:  Adding cell phone transmitters to a high-rise building should eliminate most of the reception problems caused by buildings blocking signals from outside cell towers. We can work around the irrational “cancer scare” objections that stopped the previous effort by using a different building. The host building would also get rent for the inconspicuous additions.

Internet, TV:  The current Comcast contract gives us low rates for a few TV channels, but no reduced rate for more channels or internet. We should be able to renegotiate the contract to get bulk-rates for those who choose to receive more channels and faster internet, together with special package prices for multiple services, including phone.

Comcast prices:  We now pay Comcast $27.54 monthly for each resident for minimal TV. That’s almost $2 million a year.

For internet, the price, after introductory teaser rates, is $52 for low speed, and $75 for higher speed. Next tier TV individually is $18/month.

I don’t know the total additional we pay for more TV and internet; it’s probably exceeds the nearly $2 million/year for bulk TV.

A Comcast employee told me that we could expect substantial savings by renegotiating, as other communities have done. ===

In the future, cell phones and internet will become ever more important, largely replacing cable TV and landline phones; the inconvenience and cost of our obsolete communications systems will only increase. ===

Community participation:

Special thanks to those who came to the LW Technical Committee meeting. Your presence and participation made a difference.

We were welcomed by them and invited to actively participate. There clearly is a need for input from residents, so I encourage others to join us.

The next meeting is July 7 (10 AM Tuesday, Administration Building, Sullivan Room).

<span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:18px;line-height:normal;">This committee is another indication that the time is finally right for these changes.

<span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:18px;line-height:normal;">Resident participation will help focus its attention on what residents really need now and build the support needed to make changes. (Two of the committee’s three working groups deal with self-driving cars and fire alarms….)

<span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:18px;line-height:normal;">If you are at all interested in helping organize residents to quickly bring the cell phone and Comcast changes, please email me now.

<span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:18px;line-height:normal;">We aren’t there yet, but if we work together we can do this.

<span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:18px;line-height:normal;">Carl Shoolman