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What Software Should ISPs Distribute and Support?

Posted by timothy on from the mozilla-galeon-gaim-and-xchat dept.

BroadbandBradley asks: "Many ISPs give their customers a software package to install with their service like a branded browser/email package. Some also include network diagnostics tools, even remote connection VNC packages for technical reps to do remote support. The ISP will then tell customer that they'll only get help if they're using that package. What features are good or bad, and what should or shouldn't be included on the client side? My question to Slashdot readers is, what software and services should ISPs distribute and support?"

4 of 336 comments (clear)

  1. Don't take this the wrong way, but... by Zen+Mastuh · · Score: 5, Interesting

    the answer is "only products that you have researched and are familiar with". That means that the software is well documented and that you have links to known bugs & other issues. It helps if you have an inside person in that company too. Keep a knowledge base for your employees to eliminate redundant wild goose chases.

    On a side note, you must be pretty brave to be starting a business in a saturated market during an economic downturn. Know something we don't? Most ISPs have already been absorbed by the national chains (AOL, Yahoo, etc...). Good luck.

    --
    "What is the sound of one belly slapping?"
  2. This is a pretty stupid question. by MisterBlister · · Score: 5, Interesting
    This is a rather dumb question...

    Go ahead and mod me down for being a troll or offtopic, but take a look at the other posts here. They prove that the question was dumb to begin with.

    To be more explicit, this question is unanswerable in its current form. More information is needed:

    What user base are you going after? Linux users? Windows users? What OSes are you going to support? What does your technical support organization look like? Are you gunning for experienced surfers? Total newbies?

  3. RFCs by revscat · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I've gotten CDs from various ISPs over the years. The only one I've ever kept (or even used) was one that had every single RFC ever written burned onto it. Massively helpful, instructive, and educational from a historical standpoint.

  4. Re:There's an idea... by shyster · · Score: 5, Interesting
    the GURU ISP, make the user take a test if they want to open an account. If they cannot answer some reasonable networking questions, tell them thanks and refer them to another ISP.

    You must mean like this one. Selected quotes:

    We don't have a tech support staff, so you have to know what you are doing. When you do sign up, you will just get a USERNAME, PASSWORD and MODEM PHONE NUMBER. Nothing else.

    We don't run Microsoft stuffs (like FrontPage, IIS or Access) and never will.

    56K connections are the bane of all ISPs. 56K is so dependent on line conditions. You get what you get. No ISP in the world can gurantee 56K speeds, or anywhere close to it.
    If you say that your "other" ISP had better 56k connections, then you best go back to that ISP. Really folks, a 3K or 5K difference in connection speed is nothing.

    do you want to bitch and bitch, or connect?

    No need to tell us anything, so please don't. I get way too much email as it is.

    If your question could have been answered by you reading these pages, then most likely I'll just delete your email without a response.

    And the winner....
    "As a general rule, America Online users are not computer savvy or it seems, capable of the level of technical sophistication necessary to operate a computer outside of an AOL environment."