gEDA-user: OT: FPGAs, SDSL, Ronjas...

[Samuel A. Falvo II]

On 11/2/06, Michael Sokolov <msokolov at ivan.harhan.org> wrote:
> Do you think that ISPs have nothing better to do than go into the low
> level debug features of their DSLAMs, look at individual packets in hex
> etc. to detect that I started using a different implementation of their
> line management protocol?

Having worked for a company that manufactured and designed what are
known as "IP flow classification" chips (specifically, Hifn, Inc.; oh,
and they could be reprogramed for protocols other than IP too,
including but not limited to ATM, and can do so at OC-192 speeds in
real-time), yes, it is entirely possible to do this, **and to do this
in an automated fashion**.  No human intervention is required.

Whether or not they actually take advantage of these chip features is
quite another issue; that's a policy issue.  But when/if a policy of
protocol enforcement goes into effect, it can happen instantly and
without warning to any customers.

> If my ISP were like that, I wouldn't be their customer!  Although of

Some countries don't give you a choice.  Many of their rules are
inspired or mandated by the telecommunications laws of their presiding
governments.

> Rather useless for me as there's nothing but horses and cows in a 20 km
> radius of my facility.  I'm rather amazed that we have a Covad DSLAM
> here.  Are Americans now spoiled to the point that even horses and cows
> can't live without high speed Internet any more?

I don't know if this means anything or not, but my family got
high-speed broadband just last year.  It was the first time they'd
ever heard of a cable modem.  And not because they're techno-inept
either.  Rollout is slow.  But rollout is complete.  Eventually.

Just my two cents.

-- 
Samuel A. Falvo II