Setting the record straight

At the end of November you received an ISP newsletter about Network World's DSL installation woes in our Washington, D.C., bureau.

Unfortunately, some of the information is incorrect. I wrote three versions of that newsletter as details were being clarified by our IT staff. The wrong version was e-mailed to all of you subscribers, and we apologize for that.

Our company did order DSL service through UUNET in September. The order was confirmed and we were informed that Covad Communications, one of UUNET's DSL partners, would install our service on a specified date.

Covad showed up to install our DSL service a month before we were scheduled to move in and a month before office construction was even completed. Finding the office unoccupied, Covad cancelled our installation.

Our IT folks contacted Covad after the failed installation to reschedule a new install date. As our move date approached, our folks contacted Covad to confirm our installation. There was no record of the new install date with Covad. After researching the problem Covad came back with apologies and the unfortunate information that we would have to place a new order.

As I wrote before, we were told that our 384K bit/sec DSL Internet access connection would not be installed for three to 12 weeks.

What is truly sad about this entire incident is that we still do not have a specific installation date from Covad three weeks after we moved in.

We apologize to Covad and to UUNET for the erroneous information in the Nov. 29 newsletter. Nonetheless, we can't believe that we still have to access the Internet using a dial-up modem.

Denise Pappalardo is a senior editor for Network World, covering ISPs, VPNs and related topics. Reach her at denisep@nww.com.

Internet Services archive
Past newsletters.

Covad announces layoff of 400 workers, Network World, 12/04/00

BLECs are building a name in broadband for buildings
Network World, 12/11/00

Intermedia serves up national DSL with security
Network World, 12/11/00