Agree, this is a great discussion, akin to a recent Cook Report accounting of best effort considerations. Several startups (now going into year two) have addressed the cable-HF/C constraints you've mentioned. You may be interested in perusing these two: http://www.narad.com Another, Rainmaker Technologies... http://www.rainmakertechnologies.com .... appears to have fallen on hard times while seeking later round funding. Not sure of their disposition at this time, but doing googles on their name reveal some good articles on their approach to using wavelets to improve bit gain over black coax/fiber systems to homes and businesses. Metcalfe has financial backing hooks and input into Narad, and Mark E. Laubach of COM21 fame (ATM over HF/C) heads up (headed up?) Rainmaker's technical pursuits. [[As an aside, I'm finding increased interest in corporate parks (especially those that are boondocks-bound) where MSO fiber-based offerings are being seriously considered for WAN access, both of the type discussed above and enterprise- tailored rings coming off local head-ends.]] Frank On Sun, 30 May 2004 08:47 , 'Christopher J. Wolff' <chris@bblabs.com> sent:

Folks,

This is a great discussion. I'm interested in understanding these types of limitations in the context of HFC cable networks. In my opinion, HDTV channel bandwidth (30mhz?) , increased demand for voip, and growing demand for IP connectivity is going to stress the cable network model as well, forcing cable operators to convert everything to IP before going out across the wire. Any input is appreciated.

Regards, Christopher