Written by a wise woman in the village who could not be at the Delegates Assembly:
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In talks of cutting Wi-Fi, we are missing the point: Wi-Fi represents a savings. It's shortsighted
to think of it only as an expense. It will save residents money by taking Internet costs
down from $30-40 for I month closer to $3-even $10/month would save $20/month. We should
be looking for other cuts or a more gradual method of building up reserves. Let's look for a
better solution-or decide to make the short-term investment for a longer-term gain. We
voted for Wi-Fi several times, a lot of work has gone into developing the right plan and we
should not give it up so easily.
And regarding concerns that some people can't afford increases: We need to take care of
and be sensitive to the poorest among us. We should do everything to help them with the
programs and considerable resources available. But we are not a community for the indigent.
We need to attract more residents who can afford to invest in keeping the place they live
viable and vibrant; we need a balanced community. Wi-Fi is a statement that Century Village
is a modern, up to date community. It's the only chance our most disadvantaged residents will
have to enjoy the benefits of the Internet.
We need a better solution than cutting Wi-Fi. We shouldn't vote to cut savings.
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Very wise words Grace.
ReplyDeleteWhoever the wise woman is, she nails it. As she points out, even if Wi-Fi were to end up costing us $10 per month, it would STILL save our residents a LOT of money. In cutting out Wi-Fi, as she says, we would be cutting out a way to SAVE money. It would be like sawing off the tree limb one is sitting on.
ReplyDeleteThe trend is going to be, and already is, that more and more of our residents own and are able, at least on a rudimentary level, to use their computers.
I believe the malcontents have it all wrong. Their "solution" won't work. They won't like me saying this, but Dave Israel has expertise from years spent in cryptography at the highest level in the US government. It's just a stroke of luck we have him for this Wi-Fi issue. He may not know be an expert on paving. He DOES know about electronic transmission of data. I'm not saying the mals don't believe what they say, but I think they (or at least some of them) are blinded by their dislike of Dave. I hope we do NOT listen to them.
Hi Lanny,
ReplyDeleteAugust 1, 2014 at 5:40 PM,
The problem here, is a subtle deception.
Salisbury I is a wooden building. Wood and sheet rock offer little attenuation of Rf signals. So when Jean says it works, that may be true for her type of building.
She shows no concern for Concrete Block and Steel (CBS)buildings, which attenuates and reflects signals everywhere.
So "working" in Salisbury is not working Campus wide; which means interior to all units, and exterior in all areas of our Village.
Don't fall for the Malcontents No-Fi, We have 4 proposals in hand for real Campus-Wide Wi-Fi, wait for the real thing.
Dave Israel
"It works in our building- it will work in yours!"
ReplyDeleteNo it won't.
I live in a late phase garden apt. building with three-house configuration and concrete dividing walls on the first floor. A router in our laundry room will have to shoot signal through four or five reinforced concrete or concrete block walls and jump from the center building to my apt. in the wings.
Not gonna happen.
Running cable between apartments to repeaters is also a no-go; piercing those firewalls is a major code violation.
I suspect that other members of the "no-fi" group- and by that I mean those who have actually implemented the Comcast system- live in buildings similar in construction to Ms. Dowling's. The rest are just mouthing disinformation in order to discredit the real WiFi project.
Either way, Ms. Dowling's solution is not campus wide WiFi.
Starting next month, the Snowbirds will begin to return. Our seasonal residents are the Wifi Project's biggest source of support. For these homeowners, the benefit of the new amenity is not just cost savings- it is about convienence. For Snowbirds (and Snowflakes), walking into their units and turning on their devices WITHOUT HAVING TO CALL COMCAST will be a huge improvement. Nobody likes calling Comcast, and Snowbirds have to do it twice a year.
Jean D. has usually been on the mark in years past with many things, but she is NOT correct now with her Wi Fi decision. She opted her building out of Brown and Brown insurance--- a bad idea too considering the insurance fiasco with the last UCO administration.
ReplyDeleteSo Jean has patchy Comcast wifi for her building, is everyone paying even if they do not have a computer? The Comcast Biz charge/bldg is $120 per month I believe. Does she let residents opt out! This Comcast service does not benefit the whole village, the fire dept, or the cameras coming to our enhanced security, etc.
ReplyDeleteHi Elaine,
ReplyDeleteAugust 2, 2014 at 6:08 AM,
Don't forget cost, $5.00/month/unit for local building LAN!
Double the anticipated UCO WiFi cost for Campus wide WiFi.
Dave Israel
Another thought:
ReplyDeleteLet's say that, in some bizarre alternate universe, my Association decides to implement Comcast Nofi.
Given the piss-poor state of Comcast customer service, guess who becomes the default Association IT troubleshooter? ME!!!
Lady upstairs can't get into her email- guess who gets to explain to her, in half-ass French, that forgotten passwords have nothing to do with Comcast? ME!!!
My Dad can't get into Facebook to see his Grandkids- guess whose door he knocks on? MINE!!!
With Comcast Nofi, there are, essentially two service contracts, one between Comcast and Association and another between Association and Homeowner. The Association becomes a reseller, and when a Homeowner, who is paying the extra five bucks, has a problem, they will go directly to the Association and tell the Association to deal with Comcast.
No thanks.
Our Association has decided to
ReplyDelete"Op Out"..due to lack of interest...
Only 2 full time resident's have
computers and have made their own
arrangements..Our seasonal's(snow flakes) should they be part of this era, can access WI FI at the Pools or CH. The other's have no computer's nor smart phones..Why then burden them with addt'l chgs.
OK B- valid point. But how does this "selective opt-out work"? If WiFi is approved by the Delegates, will your Association's members deduct the cost of the new amenity from their monthly payments? When your two smartphone equipped members pick up the wifi signal from the air and make a free phone call, will they make a free-will, honor system payment to WPRF?
ReplyDelete"Come to the meeting and I will explain it to you". No thanks. Timeshare sale tactics. Not for Donald.
Most important question: will your Association consider opting out of UCO entirely over the cost of the new amenity? Unlike the legally shaky "selective opt-out", total opt- out of UCO is something that you can actually do. I hope that you never consider it.
I was here during the two summers before there was UCO. It was not a pleasant place to be. Everybody was screaming at each other, and there was a fence at the Clubhouse that looked like the one that Waldman put up at Golf's Edge. Looking back, as an adult, I realize that CV was at a crossroads, deciding whether to become a Community or a Ghetto. When UCO was formed, the Road to Community was chosen. If the Associations start talking about bailing on UCO, the Ghetto Road again becomes a possibility, and there are people here that, if they can't control UCO, would rather see it destroyed, and our Community with it.
I am certain that the "selective opt-out movement" is actually the seed of yet another attempt at a class action lawsuit, this time over interpretation of the telecommunications clause of the Bilateral Agreement. For a group of CV residents, a class action suit is the Holy Grail. Roadways? Lawsuit. Golf Course? Lawsuit. Hurricane? Lawsuit. And so it will be for WiFi. If Google offered to wire up the whole Village for free, with free Google Glasses for every resident, I guarantee that a lawsuit would be filed, and the names on the docket would be familiar to all of us.
So, Bettie, you don't want Wifi? Fine. Go to the Delegate Assembly and wave your slip (the paper one that they give you in the lobby, not the other thing). Can't be there? Give me your proxy, and I will vote against it for you. You can check up on me on Channel 63 to make sure I did the right thing. But please, don't leave our Community over this, and let's all just turn our faces from this constant lawsuit mongering.
Enough already.
Don:
ReplyDeleteNO MORE FISH! I happen to be a
Delegate,& have been for several yrs.,we will continue this discussion when next we meet...
PS- ATT is my WIFI provider..
nor would I ever consider changing.
Opting out? How about associations with nobody using the bus system--can they opt out? In that instance it would be almost the reverse of opting out over Wi-Fi. Instead of it being the elderly not using computers, it would be the younger people not using the bus. Sometimes you need to do the best thing for the nation (all of CV), not just one's own state or community (association).
ReplyDeleteWe'll put Lanny, We need the help of all residents, with or without WiFi devices. My 26 unit has 19 units that use WiFi(in season) That is not computers only, but Nooks, Kindles, Tablets. I am answering this on my IPad . I now pay $40. A month and am looking forward to a savings of about $35.a month. No brainer is it not?
ReplyDeleteKen
I have Wi-Fi in condo and it is great. I would not complain about paying a few more dollars so that all the village has Wi-Fi. I pay for buses that I don't use either. that is condo living.
ReplyDelete