From: stephen@sprunk.org   
      
   On 03-Jul-14 06:51, conklin wrote:   
   > "Robert Heller"  wrote in message   
   > news:xMGdnV2gbJFe4SnOnZ2dnUVZ_jWdnZ2d@giganews.com...   
   >> Unless the copper is falling apart (in places it litterally is).   
   >> Yes, it costs more to replace the *existing* copper with fiber, but   
   >> if you are going to *replace* the infrastructure, replacing it with   
   >> *old* [dead end] technology is just plain stupid. ... The cables   
   >> are old and it bad shape and need to be replaced. It is *dumb* to   
   >> replace them with copper.   
   >   
   > There is also the capacity issue.  With a huge number of new houses,   
   > the number of existing lines was exhausted.  Thus replacing copper   
   > with fiber is the only path to follow.   
      
   Um, no.  Higher-capacity copper lines do exist.  SLCs were used with   
   copper trunk lines for quite a while before the price of copper rose and   
   the price of fiber terminating equipment dropped; examples can be found   
   as far back as the 1950s.   
      
   But telcos _are_ replacing copper trunk lines with fiber and have been   
   since the 1980s.  The only real debate is whether to replace the leg   
   between the SLC and the consumer with fiber (FTTH) or leave it as copper   
   (FTTN).   
      
   The _only_ reason Verizon is doing FTTH is that they don't have to   
   provide CLECs access to fiber customers due to a bad FCC ruling; if it   
   weren't for that, they'd be doing FTTN just like everyone else.   
      
   S   
      
   --   
   Stephen Sprunk         "God does not play dice."  --Albert Einstein   
   CCIE #3723         "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the   
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