🚀 go-pugleaf

norman@pagesat.net (Norman Gillaspie) writes:

> 
>Complete installation is simple and easy, and can be completed in as little 
>as 1 hour with ordinary screwdriver and pliers. 
> 

I really like Norman's system (I have been using it for a month or two)
and I agree with most everything he says in his post, but "1 hour"
installation is a gross exaggeration. 

If you have never been a Usenet administrator, you can have no concept
of the difficulties involved in managing 100-200 MB per day of news.
This alone requires full days, if not weeks of work, even if Norman
himself flew to your site to install the dish. 

If you are not running a Unix based system, you will have trouble.  If
you are not running at least 16550 UARTs, you will have trouble.  (I
have an i486, SVr4 Unix, and a Digiboard intellegent serial card.  My
load average over 24 hours is 35% CPU/IO utilization to support the
feed.) If you expect a plug-n-play system on a typical Windoze consumer
PC, you will have trouble. 

As for the antenna installation, to DO IT RIGHT takes about 6-8 hours (IMHO). 
If you have to pour concrete for a base, you may not be able to do all
the work in one day.  The tools you will need vary depending on your
situation.  I used a wall mount, which required several different
drills, various hardware, including threaded rod, files, cutters, a
sturdy ladder, UV resistant wire ties, coax cable clamps, and outdoor
RTV. 

I hate paying the phone company for anything.  I love getting a full,
unedited feed.  NNTP over 9600 baud slip is a dog.  I like having
the news database on disk -- nn runs super fast.  If the price stays
where it is, Norman is very competitive with other means of getting
news. He has a great system. 

Just don't expect to install it in an hour. 


-- 
73 de KD3BJ (Chris Nadovich, chris@kd3bj.ampr.org)