Specialists say they have worked out the bugs that recently made it difficult to connect to the Southern Minnesota Internet Group (SMIG) for some Internet users.

Wednesday, January 31, 2001

Specialists say they have worked out the bugs that recently made it difficult to connect to the Southern Minnesota Internet Group (SMIG) for some Internet users.

Down-time during a system upgrade made connecting difficult at times, but new fiber optic cable and equipment should make

getting information from the Internet faster and easier, they say.

SMIG added fiber optic cable and extra bandwidth, replaced systems and equipment in its Albert Lea facility to allow more customers to access information at the same time and faster, said Theresa Tucker, information technology specialist for SMIG.. The upgrade was done at the same time SMIG moved its Albert Lea office from the old Albert Lea High School (ALHS) building to 227 South Broadway.

SMIG used to run Albert Lea operations from ALHS, but can’t set up in the new Tiger Lane building, Tucker said.

&uot;To set up a DSL, the digital subscription line, you have to be within three miles of the phone company,&uot; she said.

&uot;As long as we had to do the move, we updated all the equipment, systems and everything,&uot; she said.

But the transition didn’t go as well as expected. Some users had difficulty connecting with the Internet while SMIG got the new system up and running.

&uot;Not as smoothly as we would have liked,&uot; she said. &uot;There was some down time.&uot;

Now that the new system is in place, users can expect uninterrupted service, she said.

SMIG is always looking at updating systems and improving service to subscribers, Tucker said. That is the nature of the business.

&uot;It’s the kind of business that you have to expand and grow to keep up with things, so we’re always looking at expansion,&uot; she said.

SMIG, a non-profit Internet provider begun in 1995, has around 7,000 subscribers. SMIG’s Albert Lea office does not have public hours or employees, but enables Albert Lea area users to connect to the Internet on a local call, Tucker said. The equipment is remotely controlled from SMIG offices in Austin.