FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. How does the two satellite broadband work
A. The satellite modem transmits a microwave signal from the computer to the satellite dish on the roof to a satellite approximately 36000 Km above the earth, in geostationary orbit, then relays that signal back to the ground station at Belrose in NSW. The data traffic is then sent out to the world wide web through the Optus infrastructure
Q. Can I use VOIP (Voice Over IP) on the Harboursat two way satellite broadband connect
A. Harboursat do not support VOIP at all. The physical distances involved in transmitting a signal from the dish to the satellite then relaying it back to the earth causes an inherent delay of about 2.0 seconds. Therefore, normal telephone conversation has a two second time delay and becomes difficult.
Q. Why is the internet slow
A. The inherent delay in transmitting a signal, via the satellite, gives the appearance that the internet is going slow. In actual fact the data download rates are comparable with a line connected ADSL connection.
Q. What is my circuit ID and CPA number.
A. When your satellite is installed the new user is supplied with a sheet that has this information. If this information is not supplied please contact the service desk on 1300 307 832 or email the service desk on harboursat@harbourit.com.au .
Q. How do I check my usage
A. Go the web site http://www.harboursat.com.au/ and click on the member login link. Enter your circuit ID and CPA number. These numbers are supplied on the installation paperwork should of been given to
Q. What is the Broadband Connect program?
A. The Broadband connect program is part of the Government’s $1.1billion Connect Australia package, giving all Australians access to better telecommunications services. The program provides incentives for registered Internet service providers, such as Harbour IT, to offer metro-equivalent high speed Internet access to people living in regional, rural and remote areas.
If you are eligible, the High Cost Incentive Payment covers the cost of a Satellite dish and the physical installation of the dish for high speed Internet access.
Q. What is Satellite Internet?
A. Satellite Internet is a broadband Internet service provided by a 2 way satellite. This means that information is both sent and received by the satellite dish. As all the information is sent via this Satellite, you are able to have a constant Internet connection without having to use a second phone line.
Q. How do I find out if I am eligible?
A. Call 1300 366 169 to find out if you are eligible under the Broadband Connect program.
Q. What equipment do I need to have to use Satellite Internet?
A. The minimum system requirements for using the Harbour IT Broadband Satellite system are a Pentium 3 system running Windows 2000, Windows XP or Mac OS X. Your computer must also have an Ethernet port (looks like a larger version of a phone plug) for the Satellite cable to be plugged in to. Additionally, Internet Explorer version 6 or 7 is recommended.
Harbour IT also recommends Trend Micro, AVG Free edition or Kaspersky software for Virus Protection. We do not recommend Norton software.
Q. How long does it take to install? How soon can I get it?
A. Harbour IT can organise and carry out your installation in approximately 2 weeks. The complete installation, depending on the weather, should take about 4 hours.
Q. Are there any cancellation fees, from you or the government, for cancelling my contract?
A. If you need to cancel your contract for any reason, you will need to pay out the remainder of the monthly payments. Please speak to us about arranging for the new owners to take over your existing contract, as the government grant for your satellite only applies once to each residence.
The government have no cancellation fees.
Q. How long do I have to sign up for?
A. We currently have contracts for 18, 24 and 36 months, so you need to sign up for a minimum of 18 months.
Q. How and when do I pay?
A. Harbour IT uses Direct Debit to deduct your payments from your nominated bank account. Deductions will come out of your account on the 1st of each month, or if this date falls on a weekend or public holiday, the next business day. Your payments will begin on the 10th of the month or as soon as possible thereafter after your installation has occurred.
Q. Is there a warranty?
A. The Satellite modem and dish are covered by a 12 month warranty. In the event of a failure in the dish or satellite modem within the first 12 months, Harbour IT will provide you with a replacement modem or dish. Responsibility of the installation of the replacement item lies with the customer.
Q. What happens if I move?
A. You are able to take your satellite dish with you, however there is a relocation fee depending on how far you need to move it. If you are moving to another Broadband assist area, you are encouraged to apply again and receive another grant and new equipment.
Q. How big is the satellite dish?
A. The satellite dish ranges in size from 90cm to 1.2m in diameter. The further west you live, the larger size satellite you will require to pick up a strong signal. The satellite dishes are mounted to your roof and need a relatively clear path to the North at a 50 ° angle to work to their fullest potential.
Q. What happens if I get a new computer or need to reformat my current one?
A. Please contact our help desk on 1300 307 832 Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 9.00pm and 9.00 am to 3.00pm on Saturdays, Sundays and pulic holidays. There may be a charge for this.
Q. How secure is the satellite dish? Are other people able to use my satellite. Internet connection without me knowing?
A. The only way someone else could access your Internet connection is if you had arranged to have a wireless connection. Anyone who has a wireless card and is in approximately a 50m radius could then potentially log onto your Internet connection. Otherwise, the only way to access the Satellite Internet connection is to be directly connected from your computer.
Q. Can I have a wireless connection with satellite Internet?
A. Yes, at an additional cost we can organise wireless router to be configured and sent either during the initial installation or afterwards. You can purchase your own wireless router but it will not be support by the helpdesk. We will however provide all the required settings.
Q. How many free email accounts do I get? Am I able to request more in the future? Do they cost extra?
A. We will initially set you up with 2 email accounts. These are included in your set-up fee. If you want additional email accounts, either straight away or in the future we are able to organise this at your request.
Q. What do I do if I am experiencing technical difficulties?
A. Please contact our help desk on 1300 307 832 between 8.30 am and 9.00pm Monday to Friday and 9.00am to 3.00pm on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays. They will try to assist you the best they can, however if it is a problem with your computer they may refer you to your local PC dealer.
Q. How do I keep tabs on how much I’ve used each month?
A. Your Data Usage is reset to zero on the first day of each calendar month. Your Data Usage applies to Downloaded and uploaded data.To check your data usage log onto http://www.harboursat.com.au then click the Members Login link then enter your circuit ID and CPA number. If you do not have these contact the helpdesk on 1300 307 832 or email Harboursat@harbourit.com.au.
Q. Can I connect more than one computer to the satellite broadband service
A. In order to connect more than one computer to the satellite modem a router will need to be installed and configured. You can purchase a pre-configured router from our sales office and this is supported by the helpdesk. If you purchase your own router then you will have to have it get it configured by the seller as it is not supported by our helpdesk.
Please note that using a hub will not work and internet sharing between two computers is not supported and does not work either.
Q. What Operating Systems are supported by Harboursat.
A. Only Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft XP Home, Microsoft XP Professional, all versions of Vista and Mac OS X or higher are supported.
Q. My internet is not working what do I do
A. Before you call the service desk ensure that you turn off the Sky Edge satellite modem at the power point. Wait 10 seconds then turn it back on. In about two to three minutes the four green lights will appear. Try the internet then. If less then four solid green lights appear after five minutes on your satellite modem then please call the helpdesk on 1300 307 832.
Q. My network card is connected at 100mbit/sec. Why is my Internet connection not as fast?
A.When you see the network icon in the System Tray with the connection speed, whether it is 10/100mbps or 11/54mbps (wireless connections), this simply indicates the speed of the link between the computer and the satellite modem. It is not an indication of the data rate. As a guide Harboursat must provide 60% of the theoretical maximum speed for 75% of the time.
Q. What is a browser?
A browser is program that interprets HTML documents and displays them to the user. This type of program is required to view Web Pages. There are lots of different browsers, the most popular of these being Microsoft Internet Explorer, Opera and Mozilla Firefox.
Q. How do I bring up a Web Page?
A. To view a Web Page you need to open your browser. This will usually be Internet Explorer or Modzilla Firefox. If you have the address of the site you wish to view, simply enter this address directly into the address line of the browser and hit enter. The page will then load into your browser.
Q. What is a Start Page and how do I set it?
A. Start page or home page is a Web Page that automatically loads when you open your browser. You can set your Start Page to whatever you want it to be. We recommend your start page to be www.harboursat.com.au to provide you with easy access to the members login page where you can check your usage.
Q. How do I perform a search?
A. To perform a search you need to use a Search Engine. There are a number of different Search Engines. Harbour IT recommends Google as a search engine which is one of the most popular search engines. To perform a search with Google! click here.
Q. If I just browse the Web without downloading anything, surely I will be able to use as many hours as I want.
A. Everything that you view, whilst connected to the internet, requires downloading of data. It is the action of transfer of information from the internet to your computer screen. Web sites like Youtube stream video which is also a real time sending of data to your computer.
Q. How many megabytes is an email, a Web page, a song or even a video?
A. The size of anything will vary depending on entirely on how many components the web page has. This may include text, video, photos, embedded applications and animation. All components are downloaded to the temporary internet folder then re-constructed into the intended page by the browser.
Q. What is a Computer Virus?
A. Computer viruses spread from computer to computer. They can cause your computer to erase data, your hard drive to crash and even your mail client to spread an email virus to everyone in your address book.
Computer viruses spread when certain programs are executed onto your PC. Your computer may become infected by a computer virus when installing copied programs from a disk or downloading programs from the Internet. Viruses can only spread from computer to computer in a limited number of ways. The most common way is for an infected program to be copied or downloaded to a computer and then run.
There are a number of ways that software can be transmitted over the Internet. Programs can be manually downloaded from Web and FTP sites. They can be sent via email. They can be passed around using the file transfer capabilities of online chat and down services (Torrent, Bit torrent, Lime Wire, U Torent etc.). They can even be downloaded from newsgroups.
Q. Can I collect my E-mail from a different computer?
A. Yes. You will need to go to www.mail2web.com and login with your full email address and password.
Q. What is latency, packet loss and transfer rate mean?
A. Latency: Latency is the period of time taken to move information from one location to another - it is the delay in moving a packet of data. Satellite has a latency of between 1300 ms to 2000 ms
Transfer Rate: (often called 'download speed' or 'throughput'): This is the rate at which data is transferred over a connection between your computer and the internet. It is often expressed as a speed in Kilo Bits (there are eight bites to a Byte) per second or in Kilo Bytes per second.
Q. I can not view my internet banking page
A. Try going into the bank site home page first then selecting the internet banking site and not go to the internet banking page that is stored in your favourites. If this still does not work then we recommend using the Firefox browser. It can be downloaded free from this site http://firefox.org/news/ then double click the installation file to install firefox.
