Incoming data odometer?

Hello, folks.

I have a satellite ISP (loosely labeled "broadband" and I need to watch my data useage. I'd love to have a little resettable/adjustable desktop widget similar to the tripmeter on my car to help me measure how much data I've brought in during a day (or whatever period). Does anyone have any useful suggestions (hopefully freeware)?

I could rant heavily about this ISP. For the nonce, suffice it to say that the customer experience is far less than satisfactory. As soon as I have a viable option, I shall take it.

This issue drove me to cancel my Hughes.net satellite feed and switch to Wild Blue (through Dishnet, my TV satellite).

for one thing, Wild Blue calculates usage on a 30 sliding window, rather than a 24 hour fixed window. This means, roughly, that if I don't use my daily bandwidth it accumulates.

But more to your question, it includes a *useful* FAP bandwidth monitor, which HughesNet does not.

I have been very satisfied with Wild Blue (via Dish).

Thanks, Lee.

I'm using WildBlue as well, and I know they're better than Hughesnet but that does not change my assessment.

By "useful" bandwidth monitor, are you referring to the 30-day rolling bargraph available under "View bandwidth useage" on WB's website? (or am I missing something?) I'd like to be able to read/reset it on a daily basis.

Do you have problems with WB's FAP? Can you manage to spend more than a few minutes a day inworld w/o them choking your pipe? How long/often are you inworld?

I subscribe to thier most expensive plan, their highest level of service. Although they advertise "speeds up to 1.5Mb/sec", they allow me 17000 Mb in a 30 day period, over which they punish me as an "abuser".

Having done the math, this allottment works out to just over SIX MINUTES PER DAY at the advertised speed. Six damnedable mninutes.

I'm prepared to stipulate the existence of some sort of fair access pollicy. Nevertheless it is grossly disingenuous to advertise a certain speed, imply unfettered access, and then brand your own HIGHEST-PAYING customers "abuser" if they actually have the nerve to use what they were promised (and PAY FOR) for more than ...

... SIX MINUTES PER DAY.

Such a policy is dishonest.

It is the equivalent of a restuarant offering buffet pricing, then bouncing any customer who lingers for more than six minutes.

It is the equivalent of your auto insurance carrier cancelling your policy if your drive your car more than six minutes per day.

... and that's the treatment received by the HIGHEST-PAYING customers.

I will accept no "it was in the user agreement" argument, either. The marketing is intentionally deceptive and the user agreement is intentionally obfuscated ... and yes, I KNOW that download speeds seldom match the published theoretical maximums - that changes nothing. It is plain dirty, slimy policy to juxtapose 1.5 Mb/sec advertised speeds against a 17000 Mb "abuse" threshold.

The product itself is adequate to the task. Administrative policy, however, is below "poor".



Oh, and for nearly the first year WildBlue literally failed every time the wind blew. They eventually did seem to get control over that aspect.




I REALLY look forward to hearing how much time you are able to spend inworld.