CableLab ups the ante

[bonecrusher]

Woo hoo! Go cable Go!

Cable Internet has come a long way since I first signed on to Rogers@home so many years ago. Back then your connection bandwidth was shared among all other users in your area, and security was so loose that you could double-click on the Network Neighborhood icon and casually browse the hard drives of other users.

Still, despite vast improvements in the speed and quality of cable Internet service since then, competition continues to heat up from DSL and new services such as Verizon's fibre-optic FiOS network. In response, CableLabs, the non-profit research and development consortium founded in 1988 by members of the cable television industry, has released a new set of specifications for future cable Internet providers. The Data-Over-Cable Service Interface Specifications (or DOCSIS) have reached version 3.0, and lay out the groundwork for an increase in both upstream and downstream bandwidth.

The new specifications call for downstream data rates of 160 Mbps (20 MBps) or higher, and upstream rates of 120 Mbps (15 MBps) or higher. They also include support for the new Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) which allows a significant increase in the number of possible IP addresses. In comparison, the current standard (DOCSIS 2.0) delivers up to 40 Mbps downstream and 30 Mbps upstream.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060808-7450.html

[Speedy]

Sounds pretty good. I am thinking that I am going to be sticking with cable for awhile.

[Pauly]

Wow, I am suprised at the lack of security in the old days.

[Carla]

Goodness. I never knew about the lack of security. I am glad nothing has ever happened to me.