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Date:      Sat, 12 Apr 1997 02:07:12 -0500
From:      "Jeffrey J. Mountin" <sysop@mixcom.com>
To:        Vincent Poy <vince@mail.MCESTATE.COM>
Cc:        isp@FreeBSD.ORG
Subject:   Re: TS Holy War (was Re: Some advice needed.)
Message-ID:  <3.0.32.19970412020711.00c98818@mixcom.com>

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At 05:49 PM 4/11/97 -0700, Vincent Poy wrote:
>>   $3k/month T1 to net
>	$1.45k/month T1 to the backbone

Not bad is that port and line cost?  Port being your provider and line for
what you pay the telco (in case you don't know :).

>>   $325/month per PRI(or $410 per 23 analog lines)
>	Not sure about this one.

Check on this, as well a channelized T1, which may be signifcantly cheaper.

>>   $1000/month office space, etc.(rent, utilities)
>	We don't need this since it's already a audio business.

One...

>>   $5k+ employees.  You save on this if you go with no help, but it sucks.
>> = $9k/month expenses without leasing equipment.
>	Everyone who works is part of the company's ownership so this
>eliminates that part.

Make that 2 advantages.

>> Startup equipment:
>> 
>>    $17k  Max 4000.
>	What is a Max 4000?

Uh, I won't comment, except to say that you should consider Livington PM3
units and they have an excellent leasing program.  Similar price, fully
loaded.  The 4000 is outdated and is replaced by the 4004, so you
definately DO NOT want it.

>>    $1500 Cisco 2501.
>	Doesn't a Cisco 2501 cost more than $1500?  A FreeBSD based PC
>with a ET card costs about the same I think or should be less.

Or you could get a 1005, which has only 1 serial port.  The price is right
and IHMO a stand along router and not a PC-cum-router is the way to go.

>>    $???? computers/servers(at least 1, call it $2k per)
>> =  $20k startup.  You really need more, i.e. seperate news/mail/web.
>	Hmmm, can't the mail, web be the same machine while news is on 
>a dedicated machine?

Certainly!  Best way to start.  Why admin several machines, but I would
recommend that you have a spare server and update/mirror it.


>> Of course, I _might_ be inflating the number here.  It was actually
>> considerably more expensive to do this two years ago.  But I'm not
>> considering startup costs for the T1 or PRI.
>	Oh okay, are the costs of T1 lines going up or down these days?

Hard to say, but setup fees are generally over $2000 and contracts are
cheaper for longer term contracts.


>> No.  We pay $325/month/PRI with no "per usage" pricing.  The hitch is it's
>> incoming only, but I think we'll live.  Outgoing is $.05/minute.
>	So it works more like a business analog line then, paying for
>outgoing but incoming is still free.

Depending on where you are the outgoing may be per minute or FOC, but
outgoing may not be a big factor.


>> That's my argument about using BSD boxes.  They're cheaper to start up
>> with.  When you get to the point that $14000 doesn't phase you, THEN you
>> get the big boxes.
>	How much cheaper are BSD boxes compared to the big boxes?

Much!  A person a one local company sneered at us and another provider
about  us not having a Sun, let alone an Ultra.  My thought was "all rev'd
up, but going nowhere" for the cost and customer base size they had.

IMHO, term servers are good for dial-in shell access.

Since you have the space and personnel, the biggest thing is to build a
customer base.


-------------------------------------------
Jeff Mountin - System/Network Administrator
jeff@mixcom.net

MIX Communications
Serving the Internet since 1990



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