lucketts.net Frequently-Asked Questions

For more information about this faq, please contact steve@lucketts.net

FAQ Revised: Tuesday 13 May 2008 16:22:17

Table of Contents

1. General
2. Security
3. Home Networking
4. Technical
5. Email
6. Invoices

1. General

1.1. What is a WISP?
Lucketts.net is a Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP) providing high-speed wireless Internet access to residential and business customers in the Lucketts Virginia area. Your computer connects to the internet through our radio network over 30 times faster than you can through most telephone lines.

1.2. How much does wireless service cost?
The Standard Service Plan is $70 per month and includes equipment lease, a connection that provides peak speeds of at least 1 Mbps, 5 email accounts with 100 Mbytes each of disk space that can be used for email or personal web sites.

1.3. What are the up-front costs?
For most customers the initial cost is $250 and $70/month each month there-after. Special radios or complex installations may cost extra. If you us to provide a router, that is an additional cost.

1.4. What is a complex installation?
Factors that can complicate an installation: Climbing tall trees, poles or steep roofs; Extra long wire runs from the antenna to your PC; Need for an amplifier to make up for poor signal strength at your location; Setting up a customer home wireless network; etc.

1.5. How fast can I get help if there is a problem with the network?
Between 9AM and 9PM you can call us at 703.349.3661. Leave a message if you get an answering machine (rare during business hours but it happens when we're busy) and we'll get back to you right away. Most problems can be fixed over the phone or remotely over the web. If there's really a network problem, we are probably already aware of it, but not always. Please call.

1.6. Can I put a business server on the network?
Yes, within the terms of service posted on www.lucketts.net/terms.html . We will not approve high bandwidth servers because of their impact on the other users' bandwidth. Dedicated bandwidth solutions can be negotiated for the business user.

1.7. How fast is the connection?
The standard plan provides a connection that is capable of at least 1 Mbps, usually more. Our goal is to provide a peak speed to each customer of over 5 Mbps. We have met that goal with some customers, and are working on the rest.

1.8. OK, how fast is 1 Mbps?
1 Mbps (million bits per second) is 20 times faster than a 50Kbps dialup connections. If anyone in the Lucketts Area actually gets 50Kbps on dialup, I'd be surprised. Usual dialup speeds here run around 30 Kbps, which makes the standard Lucketts.net about 30 times faster than dialup and often up to 100 times faster.

1.9. What kind of equipment do I need?
You need a radio that can connect to our network. The radio plugs into your PC or router. We lease the radio to you as part of the monthly service fee. We use 900MHz, 2.4GHz and 5.8 GHz radios.

1.10. How many computers can I connect?
We provide 1 static IP address so you can connect either 1 PC or a router to the internet. With the router, you can share your connection among more computers in your home or business. Lucketts.net is not responsible for building or supporting your internal network.

1.11. Do I get a Static or a Dynamic IP address?
Each customer is assigned 1 static IP address.

1.12. Can I get more than one static IP address?
Yes, for an additional $5 per month.

1.13. Can I get more disk storage space?
Yes, for an additional fee per month.

1.14. May I share my connection with my neighbor?
Uhh... no.

1.15. Do I have to sign a term contract?
No. Lucketts.net does not require term contracts for normal installations. You may cancel your service at any time. For exotic or high cost installations, a term contract may be requried on a case by case basis.

1.16. Can I sign a term contract?
Yes, sort of. Lucketts.net offers a $5/month discount if you pay 6 months in advance. The receipt for that is a defacto contract for service. You can still discontinue at any time and we will return the outstanding balance after prorated at the normal monthly price.

1.17. Will weather affect a wireless connection like it affects satellite internet services?
No, not directly. Our signal is not noticably affected by the heavy rain, snow or fog that will shut down a satellite signal. Attenuation of a 2.4 GHz signal is 0.01 dB/Km for 150 mm/hour of rain. Translation: 6 inch per hour rain-fall across a 2 mile link will produce a 0.04 dB loss of signal. Our average install has at least 5.0 dB of margin. Our signal is affected bysolid ice on antennas, or extreme amounts of wet vegitation.

1.18. If this FAQ conflicts with data on your web site or what you've told me on the phone, which is correct?
Whatever Tammy says. After that, I'd go with the most recent.

1.19. Do I have to install any software to hook up to Lucketts.net?
No special software is required to connect to Lucketts.net. You can use virtually any browser or email client program.

2. Security

2.1. How secure is wireless internet?
Wireless internet, like regular internet, is inherently insecure. But, just like the internet, the user can mitigate any security risks with the proper tools and techniques. Lucketts.net uses a variety of security measures to protect the data traveling across the network.

2.2. OK, now I'm concerned. How do I make my internet surfing secure?
First, buy and install a good anti-virus program. Second, install a software or hardware firewall. Third, be careful when transmitting sensitive information across the web. Always use a secure connection when shopping or banking.

2.3. Can my neighbors see where I'm surfing?
The network is configured so that it does not permit one user to see the traffic generated by another user. If a snooping user were to hack the network, they may be able to monitor any traffic. Once. Then they would be an ex-user. Lucketts.net has hardware and software dedicated to monitoring the network for hacking and intrusion.

2.4. Is the network encrypted?
Sometimes. Encryption is one of the tools available to help secure the connection, but it is not a cure-all. Encryption of the link is activated as the situation warrants, but email encryption is available now so that your password is protected.

2.5. Can a hacker get my credit card info?
Yes, if he is a waiter at a local diner. If you maintain a firewall, use anti-virus software, and use secure connections when contacting banks or shopping, then the hacker will be out of luck - just like regular internet.

2.6. Can't a hacker intercept the radio signal?
Yes. Any radio that can tune to the proper radio band can receive the signal. Putting together all of the pieces and reading what you are sending or receiving is very difficult but possible. Lucketts.net will use various methods and tools to give the hacker a hard time, but we cannot guarantee absolute security of the data link, which is why you need to use secure https connections when banking or buying things over the internet.

2.7. How can I ensure security so that I can work from home?
If your work requires a secure connection, use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Most workplaces with sensitive information will be able to help you set up a VPN between your home and office. With a VPN, all of your traffic is encrypted and cannot be intercepted by anything less than the NSA.

2.8. Is your 900 MHz network more secure than the 2.4 GHz?
In some ways it is. The 900 MHz has built-in encryption that we cannot turn off. The trade off is that the 900MHz unts are much slower.

3. Home Networking

3.1. How can I get an internet connection to all of my computers?
You can set up a home network to share the lucketts.net connection with all of your computers at home. You need a broadband router, network cards for your PCs, and some cable. Under $100 to network 2 PCs or Macs, about $25 for each additional machine.

3.2. Should my home network be wireless or wired?
You can use either. An unfortunate fact of the wireless business is that, all else being equal, wired networks are better than wireless. They are faster, more reliable and easier to maintain. If your home is already wired with cat 5 cable, then that solution is the way to go. If there are many PCs to connect and no cat 5 cable in the walls, the an in-home wireless solution may be the best choice.

3.3. Will lucketts.net set up my home network?
Not as part of the standard free installation. We will install service to 1 computer and/or router as part of the standard installation, and for anything beyond that we may charge extra.

3.4. Which wireless router should I buy?
Buy a simple 54 MBps 802.11G router. Most brands are OK, with differences being a matter of personal taste. That said, we are happy with Netgear routers. The newest model from Linksys (WRT54G v5) demonstrates unsatisfactory performance on our network. Older Linksys model do well. Avoid buying the 108Mbps versions, as they use multiple channels to get the higher speed, and that could conflict with your signal from Lucketts.net. Pre-N routers will interfer with other wi-fi devices, so we do not recommend buying them at this time. Your neighbors will thank you.

3.5. My PC says it has no wireless connection. What is wrong with your service?
The wireless connection refers to the connection between your PC and your wireless router. The homeowner is responsible for connections between their components. We will make sure the signal gets to your router, but you take it from there. If you buy a router or wi-fi bridge from us, we will install it at no additinal charge if we're there already.

3.6. But you installed our router. Can you help us?
Yes, we answer basic home networking questions over the phone, and help debug problems, at no charge. But the free support is limited, usually about 15 minutes. For serious problems we can send a technician out to fix your home network for a fee.

3.7. My new bluetooth-enabled laptop will not connect to the wi-fi router you installed for us. Your technician said he couldn't help us fix that, and I heard laughter in the background. Is this another example of your poor service and lousy customer support or what?
Honest answers are not always good for customer relations. But we'll try to at least stifle the laughter in the background.

4. Technical

4.1. What does RF, dB, dBi, dBm, SNR and all those other initials mean?
That's a semester's worth of information. Here's a quick tutorial.

4.2. What is the difference between a static and dynamic IP address?
A static IP is a set of 4 numbers seperated by dots that is assigned to a computer as its permanent address on the Internet. Computers use IP addresses to locate and talk to each other on the Internet, much the same way people use phone numbers to locate and talk to one another on the telephone. It would be simple if every computer that connects to the Internet could have its own static IP number, but when the Internet was first conceived, Al Gore didn't foresee the need for an unlimited number of IP addresses. Consequently, there are not enough IP numbers to go around. To get around that problem, many Internet service providers economize on the number of IP addresses they need by temporarily assigning an IP address to a customer computer from a pool of IP addresses. The temporary IP address is called a dynamic IP address. Those ISP are betting that not all of their customers will be online at the same time, so they need fewer IP addresses. Lucketts.net customers are connected to the internet 24x7, so we must have at least 1 IP address for each customer.

4.3. Does Lucketts.net block any ports?
Yes. We block all traffic on ports 67, 135, 137, 138, 139, 445, 593, 1080, 1434, 1978, 2002, 3127, 3128, 4156, and 4444. Other ports are occasionally blocked or filtered to prevent abuse. If you need access to a blocked port, we can open any port to specific users.

5. Email

5.1. How do I set up my email in Outlook Express?
Follow these instructions

5.2. What email domains are offered by Lucketts.net?
As a Lucketts.net customer, your email address can be from @lucketts.net, @taylorstown.net, @glynntarra.net, @bvwisp.net, @catactinweb.net, @evanspond.net or @leescrossing.net. We can also host your private domains.

5.3. Why are there multiple webmail links on your homepage?
Lucketts.net has two primary email servers. One hosts the @lucketts.net addresses and the other hosts the rest of the domains provided by lucketts.net, such as taylorstown.net and vilgreen.net. Users must log onto the machine thats hosts their email accounts. The plan is to migrate @lucketts.net accounts to the 2nd server.

5.4. What are the addresses for the pop3 and SMTP servers.
They will vary depending on what domain you belong to. Use this link to get the current information.

5.5. My email was working fine, but now it has stopped working. What should I do?
See if you can get to the lucketts.net homepage. If you are successful then you have a good connection. Go to the correct webmail option on the home page and try to log into your mail account from there. If you can log in, the mail server is running and you have the correct password. If you can log into webmail through our wireless connections but not through an email client, then most likely the problem is in your computer.

5.6. How can email stop working because of a problem in my computer?
Recent changes to XP and anti-virus programs such as Norton have been known to disable secure email. If you are using a firewall, try turning it off and seeing if the mail starts back up again. If that works, you will have to train your firewall to allow email. This has happened to a handfull of customers recently. To learn how to correct the problem, try searching Google with error code your email client gave you the name of your firewall program. If turning off your firewall doesn't fix it, give us a call and we'll try diagnosing the problem from this end.

5.7. How do I change my anti-virus program to allow secure email?
Turn off the scan email & privacy protection options. Both of these try to read out-bound emails, but are blocked by the encryption. Your PC takes too much time trying to decrypt the email and the email server disconnects you. Norton has posted this issue on the internet, and explained that it doesn't decrease your security, as your PC is still protected against any viruses.

5.8. What if I would rather have Norton AV rather than encrypted email?
If you would rather have email scannning allowed by Norton, you can turn off email encryption. We believe email encryption is more important than email scanning.

5.9. How do I stop SPAM?
Lucketts.net uses SPAMAssassin to add " [SPAM] " to the subject of any email we believe may be SPAM. You can use filters in your email client program to automatically delete those emails marked as "[SPAM]" or to move them to a SPAM folder for later review. You can also use our webmail interface to set up your account to automatically delete the SPAM.

5.10. What is SPAM Assassin?
SPAMAssassin is a program running on the lucketts.net servers that examines emails coming into the network and tries to determine if any of them are SPAM. If so determined, the email is flagged as potential SPAM and passed on to the customer for disposition. Lucketts.net does not block any email from reaching the customer, we just flag it for you so you can filter it out if you so choose.

5.11. When I log onto webmail I get a blank screen. What should I do?
You have probably exceeded your alloted storage on the email server of 100 Mb per email account. Webmail stores copies of all messages it sends & receives. If you use webmail you have to clean out those folders occasionally. If you have more than 20 MB of mail you will be quite slow, even with broadband. If you have too much mail, you will not even be able to see the message screen because there is not enough space left to create the temp files needed to run the program. If you're locked up give us a call and we can clear the files for you. We recommend you use an email client program such as Outlook or Outlook Express for best performance.

6. Invoices

6.1. Can we use a credit card to pay for the service?
Lucketts.net accepts VISA, Mastercard AMEX and Discover. You can call us and pay over the phone, or you can use our online billing to pay at a bank site, or we can bill your credit card automatically each month.

6.2. How are we invoiced?
We email invoices to the customer each month 10 days before the invoice is due. If you prefer US Postal service, we have a mailing service that will mail invoices and correspondence to you in a nice envelope for $2.50 per month. We prefer to use email, as we're sure all of our customers have internet access.

6.3. How do I open my invoice in the webmail program if I get errors?
The webmail interface will sometimes not launch links because of interactions with security settings in your browser. To see the invoice, you can do any of the following: 1) right click on the view invoice button and choose to open in a new window 2) change your webmail users preference to view emails as text 3) use an email client program such as Outlook Express to view your email. It works better and is faster than webmail anyway.

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