Internet Problem Solution? Part 3

I bought a phone from Visible, and it arrived. I activated it and now have unlimited 4G LTE data. The model I chose was the Motorola Moto G7 Power because it has a 5,000mAh battery. I really wanted a Samsung, but Visible has a hard time keeping phones in stock. No throttling and no data caps for $25/month will lead to that. The Motorola was also cheaper at $179. They have cheaper phones but not ones good enough for what I'm trying to do: home internet.

I find some things about the Motorola very annoying, but my plan is to use it only for internet. I would not want this phone as my everyday phone. Visible advertises overnight shipping, but because of the holiday, I had to wait until Tuesday for it to arrive. Due to real life stuff, I didn't get to do much with it the first night. However, for the past two nights I've been using Visible for my internet connection. With Windstream I get 1.25Mbps up to 1.5Mbps, though I rarely see 1.5 any more, and I don't know why. With Visible, owned by Verizon, I get around 3Mbps to 11Mbps, usually somewhere in between. That's not the normal 4G LTE speed. I live in a rural area. In a city or near a tower, people get from around 38Mbps to 80Mbps. If I could afford a signal booster, I would be getting those speeds as well. Unfortunately, I'm at the edge of the local tower's range and get one or two bars tops indoors. That really degrades the speed. One bar away from the windows and maybe two bars standing in front of a window. I'm not rich, and signal boosters aren't cheap. That's something to think about later after more stimulus.

So far, 4G LTE speed is an improvement over Windstream. Pages don't take as long to load. I could stream HD video if I wanted to. I've been pondering getting MLB TV when baseball comes back. I've tried it with Windstream, but 1.5Mbps is too slow for that. Even with minimal picture quality, it just didn't work. Buffer and play. Buffer and play. With less than SD picture quality. With 4G LTE I could stream at at least 720p. The bad thing is that MLB is talking about using a DH in National League games. If they do that, I'll skip baseball this year altogether. I have my standards.

The battery life on the phone is good so far. Each night I've used about 20% charge. That's with average web surfing and listening to YouTube while I do other things. I'm hoping I'll only have to charge it about every three days. We'll see how the battery holds up over time. Yes, I could keep it plugged in, but the battery is not replaceable through ordinary means. I haven't had any major downloads like Windows update or a major software update. I had a minor 9MB update that was through before the download software could register the network speed. It was showing me numbers as it tried to calculate it, but they weren't right. I updated some Google Play stuff on the phone itself that was much faster than on Windstream. Sadly, it doesn't give download speeds for that.

According to Visible's web site, tethering is supposed to be capped at 5Mbps. I'm not seeing that, probably because of my rural location. As part of my research before trying Visible, I saw some people saying they're capped and others saying they're not. It might depend on location and how busy Verizon's network is there. With 5G coming the 5Mbps tether cap would likely go away, I would imagine. With 4G network congestion gone, why would they need it? Nevertheless, I'm not abusing my unthrottled data privilege. I'm not giving them any excuses to throttle me. The 1.4GB software update I'm expecting around June 1st will be a test of that and of whether they're even paying attention to my location. It'll also be a great test of network speed. An update like that takes hours on Windstream. I can't wait to see how it does.

Price. Visible is $40/month unless you do the Party Plan. The price lowers the more people join the party up to four people. With four people the price is $25/month. The people don't even have to know each other or where they live. Everyone pays his or her own bill seperately. The cell phone forum I'm on has a dedicated post just for people joining the Party Plan. Reddit has a place for it. Finding a party is easy. The first month of service is $25, so they give customers plenty of time to look for one. I'm using my first month to test this out to make sure it's going to be able to replace Windstream before I try to join a party.

Reliability. It's too early to tell. So far, I've only hit one patch where the connection stuttered, and it only lasted so many seconds. We'll see over time.

The one thing I still need to do is buy a router for my home network. I have my Google Home Minis that I use to control lights and ask for information. Visible doesn't allow tethering of more than one device. They do allow tethering of routers and don't care how many devices people hook up to them. That goes back to the 5Mbps cap on tethering they have in congested areas. It appears that my DSL modem will not act as a router for other than DSL. To get a plain router is $20ish(travel routers) to $50ish(real ones). I've been looking and researching those. I'll probably order one next week or over the weekend.

Internet Problem Solution? Part 4

If you've ever wondered how the Nazis came to power, watch this video.

 A Waking Nightmare is a video of Covid 19 patients talking about what it was like on the ventilator and afterward. It's grim stuff.

How SARS-CoV-2 spreads. The picture under #1 is funny and so California. The chart under #4 is the main reason I'm posting this. It shows how long the virus lasts on various surfaces. The authorities have been downplaying surface spread, but this chart shows the reality of it.

Have a great weekend.

Which Mask?

I've been looking for a mask that's at least as good as N95. When I searched for N95 on Amazon, they kept defaulting to cycling masks like this one. That gives the impression those are N95 equivalent. They have carbon filters. They look safe. I did some research. According to this article, cycling masks do NOT filter viruses. "And if you’re worried about infectious viruses and bugs, a bike mask won’t help; instead, you’ll need to look for something with a European PPE or US MDC classification."

That's what I needed to know. Sometimes, I see KN95 masks. It has N95 in the name. Is it the same? This article that includes a short video and a chart from 3M explaining the differences says they're basically the same. They both filter 95%. The KN95 has a standard regarding how the mask fits that the N95 doesn't. N95 may be slightly easier to breathe in, but the difference is slight. I ordered a 30-pack of KN95 from Amazon. Including shipping, it comes out to just under $30. At about a dollar a mask it's the best price I've found. I do have a concern about how the fit looks in the pictures. I hope the actual product is flexible enough to fit properly.

This page has a chart about 2/3 of the way down that compares various masks, mostly 3M.

The best mask is still a respirator that uses filters of this variety. 95% is just okay. It's not great. Since 3M filters are being withheld from sale, I may get a Honeywell mask to replace my 3M and wear that to the store when I finally go back again.

Internet problem sneak preview.

I've been looking at Sprint and Visible to solve the 1.5Mbps internet speed problem I have with Windstream. I've ordered a phone from Visible that can be used as a 5Mbps hotspot. They have one-day shipping. I ordered it yesterday, but it was after six. Still no tracking number. I've been doing speed tests with my current phone. I can get over 4Mbps near my computer with some tests around 6Mbps and spikes up to 10Mbps. Weather affects speed. It's been raining a lot. Sometimes I get 2 or 3Mpbs. The phone that's coming has more 4G spectrum bands than mine. I'm hoping for at least a solid 5Mbps for the hotspot limit and higher with the phone alone. Time will tell. Next week I plan to have a post about my experience and whether using a cell phone hotspot for internet works in the real world.

It turns out I can get Visible unlimited for $25/month.

Rabbits are having a virus problem of their own.

The government is sending out pre-paid debit cards. Since it involves two cities, this may be a test run for future "stimulus" payments.

The other day I quoted a permanent job loss figure of 42%. YouTube recommended a video that explains that figure. It's based on surveys of businesses combined with historical data. The explanation is within the first minute.

Have a great weekend.

Internet Problem Solution? Part 2

Last week I detailed a possible solution to my 1.5Mbps internet speed problem. Sprint has a 100GB per month 4G LTE plan for $60/month that throttles down to 2G after 100GB is reached. Well, hang onto your hat. It gets better. Visible has an even better plan. It's 4G LTE on Verizon and is unlimited. No data caps. No throttling. It allows tethering/hotspot usage. The catch is that tethering is limited to 5MBps, and that's what I'd be doing, tethering my computer to it with a USB cable. Windstream is $98 and change for 1.5Mbps. Hmm, less than half cost for 3.3 times the speed is something I can live with.

The sad thing is I ordered a cheap, $20 Sprint phone, arriving Monday, to test the signal strength where I live. The order was made hours before YouTube recommended a video about Visible. On paper Visible is cheaper and has more data. It still might not be the better deal. Visible has deprioritization which means they can throttle the speed to give preference to regular Verizon customers. Since Verizon owns Visible, it would be strictly enforced. In my rural location I don't think that would be a problem. Another problem is, due to my location, I only get one or two bars with Verizon. If the Sprint signal is stronger, the speed would be much better. Even at $20 higher per month, Sprint might be a better option. I'll know once the phone gets here. Another problem is device cost. The Sprint hotspot is $240. A new phone for Visible(they have massive restrictions) is $129. Those are upfront costs if I wanted to pay outright, which I usually prefer to do.

What I'm leaning toward doing is getting Visible for internet and switching my normal cell phone to Sprint on Red Pocket Mobile. Every once in a while, Red Pocket will have a double data or more deal on Sprint or ATT but never on Verizon. I could pay 6 months in advance or however long and have plenty of data. Other resellers have sales, too, just not on Verizon's network. For instance, the cheap cell phone I just ordered from Gen Mobile comes with 5GB of Sprint data for $15 instead of 1GB for $15. I'll be able to run speed tests like crazy and stream video to see how reliable Sprint is, etc. There are also Black Friday sales with lower prices and extra data.

Before throwing money around, I'm kind of waiting to see what Congress does with the next stimulus package. Assuming I went with Visible, I'd have to test them for a month to see how it works in the world before driving a stake through Windstream.

Internet Problem Solution? Part 3

This video has some statistics about unemployment and job losses. I find this guy to be kind of annoying, but the information is more important than that. 91% of people think they'll be going back to work. 42% will never go back, at least not to the same job. There's more than just that, of course. It's worth a listen. His angle is talking about stimulus payments. Let's look past that. If these stats hold true, I don't see any way forward without a basic minimum income. Forget a stimulus check. That won't work. Even stimulus checks for a year won't work. It would have to be a permanent basic minimum income. Unemployment is around 25%. That's the real figure, not the official figure which hasn't been accurate since cold war times due to national pride reasons. After seeing the stats and the continually rising unemployment, I expect Congress to do a multi-month stimulus check for the near future. Anything less would be letting the economy die. My opinion is that whatever they do will either be a basic minimum income or transition into one.

In a recent blog I said that it was obvious New York should have been quarantined. Research suggests people traveling from New York in early March caused 65% of the cases in the rest of the country.

One of the arguments for universal basic income or basic minimum income is robots taking over jobs. That argument feels weak to me. However, robot stalks people. Another link to that.

In another country drones are being used to disinfect from Covid-19.

Some patients are seeing robots before seeing doctors.

Other robots are screening patients in India.

It's interesting how quickly robots were programmed and deployed for these tasks. Maybe we actually will see more robots taking jobs.

 Children can die from the virus. However, it's rare and nothing to freak out about today.

Will there be enough food?

 

Have a great weekend.

Internet Problem Solution?

I've bemoaned how my ISP, Windstream, received $130 million from the Obama administration to upgrade internet speeds but ended up pocketing the money. I posted about when they went bankrupt for lying to another business the same way they lied to me about upgrading my internet speed. I've recounted the good news that Verizon has a 5G unlimited internet service for $70/month no contract that will be in my area in 2021(unless SARS-CoV-2 throws that off). I may have more good news. Windstream's days as my ISP could be numbered.

I have cell phone service from Red Pocket Mobile, an MVNO.  MVNOs resell phone service from the big carriers at hugely discounted prices. I pay $15/month for 1,000 minutes, unlimited texts and 1GB of data. I've never run out of minutes or data. When I logged in to check my data usage one day, I noticed Red Pocket was running a sale on their plans that gave double data or more. The $15 plan was offering 3GB of data. I looked into it, but it turned out that it was for Sprint(and ATT?) customers. I'm on Verizon through them. Verizon never gives a break on data, ever. I thought 3GB was a lot compared to one, so I did some searching.

Sprint has a $60/month data plan with 100GB on 4G LTE that throttles down to 2G after 100GB. It's not phone, just data. I use an estimated somewhere between 30GB to 60GB per month through Windstream. I don't know exactly how much I use any more, but I don't stream movies or television. On 1.5Mbps, who could? At one point I had a data monitoring program installed. I may do that again if my router doesn't store that stat.

So, I may switch to Sprint until Verizon arrives, assuming I'm still here then. I don't know if Sprint works in my location. Their map says I have a great signal here even indoors, but that's on paper. I would have to buy a cheap Sprint phone and activate it on an MVNO for $10 or $15 and run speed tests and see how it performs in the real world before committing. Even if the phone test works flawlessly, Sprint wants over $200 for a mobile hotspot. I'd want to research a cheaper alternative.  I'd also want to test Sprint for a month before cancelling Windstream.

The money adds up fast for all that. I'm waiting to see how the next stimulus round does. If it's closer to the generous Democrat proposals and farther from the nearly-absent, stingy Republican proposal, I'll be ordering a Sprint phone very soon. If that works, I'll have real internet speed within a month.

Internet Problem Solution? Part 2

Book Stuff

I finished going through Book 2 and started going through the part of Book3 that's already written. I'm not sure what I'm going to do about book covers for the novella or Book2. I'm going to try to paint them if I can. I'm not sure I can.

 Florida, where they don't report deaths.

Bad news in the Middle east for Iraq. And it's not the only oil country being demolished by low oil prices. This kind of instability could lead to a war in that region. It looks like it has major prophetic significance.

The Plague Continues

Captain's Log

Stardate 73797.2

The plague continues. Scientists have been unable to find a cure. The best results of a global effort have only produced mild to moderately effective treatments. A small but very loud group of citizens no longer accepts quarantine. Regional governments are caving to their demands, and the plague will spread. Data shows that warmer temperatures do not stop the virus. I anticipate a spike in cases toward the middle of May followed by more quarantines. This will likely prove to be a cycle as governments seem to be gearing up to periodically flood the healthcare system with patients in order to more easily manage the deaths. It will be a cycle of quarantines and reopenings until herd immunity is achieved.

A promising treatment, hydroxychloroquine with zinc, has been rejected by the political elite in favor of a less-promising treatment, Remdesivir. Hydroxycholoquine is an older, cheaper and more easily available drug. Remdesivir is new and expensive. Remdesivir has had a clinical trial. Hydroxychloroquine plus zinc has not. Profit seems to be the driving force.

Fortunately, the fatality rate still hovers above 0%, but I expect that to change over time. In my country about 60,000 people have died. A random sampling of citizens indicates that 10% or more of the population is infected. The computer projects 500,000 to 600,000 people will die in my country alone if a cure is not found.

End Log

Stimulus 4

So far, the government has been willing to throw money at everything but the people who need it. Big corporations who don't need money? Bulldozers full of cash. Small businesses instead of the employees who need it? Send more cash.

It seems everyone but the people who need it are getting bailouts. $1,200? That's crumbs in the real world. Stimulus 4 was supposed to be for the people. Democrats want to bail out Democrat-controlled states that have been fiscally irresponsible with their tax revenues. That's pure politics. They need to go bankrupt. In a bankruptcy the states would not go broke. They would have to restructure to pay everything off. An outsider would run their finances. They would be forced into responsible government. You see why Democrats are screaming. Their form of government would be exposed for what it is, and people in blue states would look at red states and wonder why they're not bankrupt. The danger would be high that the people would vote Republican in order to have a responsible government that works.

So what about the $2,000/month for 6 to 12 months? We'll know more around Monday. The Senate will return from its vacation then. The House was supposed to return then also but has decided to extend their vacation out of fear of the virus. Instead of money for the people, Republicans have floated some scheme to give it to businesses instead. Why in all these bailouts can the government not see that people are the ones who work in businesses? Because they're using the stimulus money to pay companies back for their campaign contributions and pay off their wealthy business friends. I mean aside from that.

Book Stuff
The novella is finished. I've begun going through Book 2 to make sure it's compatible with the changes in the novella. The plan is to release them at the same time or not far apart.


What if we could track everything happening on Earth in real time? And — even better — what if all of that data was readily accessible? Microsoft wants to build a planetary computer.

Doctors report people in their 30s and 40s are having strokes.

North Carolina governor blames Christians for the spread of Coronavirus[sic] despite the abscence of scientific evidence.

China is trying to become a global superpower.

Have a great weekend.