links on the blink (fwd)

Sun Nov 5 04:40:37 UTC 1995

On Sat, 4 Nov 1995, Ross Veach wrote:

> At 2:48 PM 11/4/95, Michael Dillon wrote:
> >On Sat, 4 Nov 1995, Hans-Werner Braun wrote:
> >> Just let me ask you, as a customer who fairly
> >> frequently experiences 10% packet loss between major Internet locations
> >> across major service providers (no mom and pop shops in the middle or
> >> at the end points), how would you suggest I deal with that?
> >
> >Uh... Ignore it?
> >10% packet loss is quite within the normal range of parameters for a
> >packet switching network such as the Internet.
> 
> Sorry Michael, wrong answer.  1% packet loss is intolerable.  10% packet
> loss is all but useless for serious work.

My experience is different. I have use the web through MAE-East during 
periods of 18-23% packet loss and it was noticeable but not unbearable. I 
have also used telnet sessions to London England with 50% packet loss and 
it was still useable although less bearable, but what made it easier to 
accept was that I was not just on a frivolous telnet session. I was doing 
real work and I had a deadline to meet.

In fact, I once had to do some repair on a news server over a telnet link 
on which it would take between 2 - 5 minutes to receive a response from 
typed commands. EXCRUCIATING! But I was still able to fix the problem and 
get the server running over the course of a couple of hours and I managed 
to read a magazine while waiting for turnaround. That was when we were 
connected to INSINC/Sprint Canada and had to route through MAE-East and 
then ANS to bet to BC-Tel and my customer in a town not far from me.

My impression is that North American network performance has improved 
overall since the NAPS came onstream and NSF went bye bye. I would like 
it to be better but I see no evidence of incompetence or malice causing 
these problems. 

My opinion of the complainers is that they are swell headed bigots with 
their minds full of the 21st century who fail to realize that the level 
of today's network technology is about the same level of automotive 
technology when Model T Fords first started to roll off the assembly lines.

Michael Dillon                                    Voice: +1-604-546-8022
Memra Software Inc.                                 Fax: +1-604-542-4130
http://www.memra.com                             E-mail: michael at memra.com