From 2003 to 2023 - the rise and demise of ADSL

Jan

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The rise and fall of ADSL

South Africans are quick to complain when fibre network operators increase prices or cut cheaper, slower packages from their product portfolios to compensate for the weakening rand and rising inflation.

How soon we forget.
 
I always wondered who was behind ayce, perhaps a bit of early "braai marketing". ;)
 
I was living in the UK in 2004 and I remember coming back on holiday to SA and helping my parents get their ADSL setup and I was shocked at how backwards it was compared to ADSL in the UK at the time. I couldn't wrap my head around the 3GB cap, it just made no sense whatsoever.
 
I was living in the UK in 2004 and I remember coming back on holiday to SA and helping my parents get their ADSL setup and I was shocked at how backwards it was compared to ADSL in the UK at the time. I couldn't wrap my head around the 3GB cap, it just made no sense whatsoever.
To be fair, what were we going to use more then 3GB on? Couldn't really stream on anything less than 1mb/s and even then it was kak. Sure games would the biggest issue, right up until 2014 I still was on iBurst with 10gig cap and honestly we managed. Switching over to an uncapped ADSL 4mb/s line in 2014 didn't really shoot my usage up. Only when streaming started did caps really become hinderances I guess.
 
To be fair, what were we going to use more then 3GB on? Couldn't really stream on anything less than 1mb/s and even then it was kak. Sure games would the biggest issue, right up until 2014 I still was on iBurst with 10gig cap and honestly we managed. Switching over to an uncapped ADSL 4mb/s line in 2014 didn't really shoot my usage up. Only when streaming started did caps really become hinderances I guess.

I think the thing that blew my mind was that it was a hard cap without any way of increasing it, or buying extra data. If I remember correctly there were no other ISP's, it was either Telkom or nothing. There weren't any streaming services then, but Bittorrent was pretty popular in 2004. It was the only way you could get online content at the time.
 
I think the thing that blew my mind was that it was a hard cap without any way of increasing it, or buying extra data. If I remember correctly there were no other ISP's, it was either Telkom or nothing. There weren't any streaming services then, but Bittorrent was pretty popular in 2004. It was the only way you could get online content at the time.
There were ISPs, the line was Telkom, but you still needed an ISP, you could add more if you paid more for some packages. But it wasn't cheap, Yeah 2004 was an interesting time, a lot of people would share their content so you'd download some stuff a friend would download some stuff, but also it was I think max 512kb/s in 2004 for us? I was still on dial up at the time, but I did work at an ISP who installed ADSL the next year when I went on standby, but they'd only pay for the 192kb/s at first, eventually this went right up to 4mb/s, but being at the ISP I got uncapped (even with that I think I only ever hit 10GB). Sadly moved to an area without ADSL in 2010, not cause of Telkom but the complex was full of kak, eventually got it all turned around in 2014.
 
Yet there are still dozens of smaller towns and villages that still have no access to fibre at all.
 
Who recalls running two ADSL accounts - one cheaper Telkom local only account and one international account... and running @Gatecrasher scripts on DDWRT to split the traffic?

 
Who recalls running two ADSL accounts - one cheaper Telkom local only account and one international account... and running @Gatecrasher scripts on DDWRT to split the traffic?


Geez, that's brings back memories! Those Linksys WRT54G's were legendary. I used to run Tomato on mine.
 
Who recalls running two ADSL accounts - one cheaper Telkom local only account and one international account... and running @Gatecrasher scripts on DDWRT to split the traffic?

Those were the days.
You actually accomplished something when you could open www.google.com
Nowadays, it is too easy! :D
 
Who recalls running two ADSL accounts - one cheaper Telkom local only account and one international account... and running @Gatecrasher scripts on DDWRT to split the traffic?

I used the localonly 10GB OpenWeb one. Running on IS for IS News server. I think it was R69pm.

Beginning of the month you could reach international sites, as the days progressed reaching international got harder.
 
Great article, Jan. I remember arriving back here in 2003 after 13 years away, and could not believe the state of broadband in SA. That initial ADSL offering was so poor, and the feedback told a sad tale, that I stayed with my Diginet line for ages before switching over. You logged on after work on that Diginet line, and prayed that you didn't lose the connection during the night, so it would only cost R7, lol.
The MyBB forum was especially crucial during that period, was really the only place to keep informed of all the changes happening during that time - Thanks RPM :)
 
Who recalls running two ADSL accounts - one cheaper Telkom local only account and one international account... and running @Gatecrasher scripts on DDWRT to split the traffic?


But you try and tell the young people today that... and they won't believe ya'.

 
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