OUR INTERNET will blow you away Bits&Bytes A NEWSLETTER FROM YOUR FRIENDS AT BUTLER-BREMER COMMUNICATIONS Cornerstone Group © 2025 SUMMER 2 0 2 5 Butler-Bremer Communications 715 Main Street / PO Box 99 Plainfield, IA 50666 Phone: 319.276.4458 24/7 Tech Support: 1.866.276.8253 Office Hours: Mon - Fri, 8am - 4:30pm Office Closures: Monday, May 26 for Memorial Day Friday, July 4 for Independence Day Email: comments@butler-bremer.com Online: butler-bremer.com Congrats to Grads, Thanks to Teachers As the school year winds down, BBC recognizes the hard work of local students who will graduate and the teachers who have educated them. We congratulate all our graduates and wish them luck with their next chapters. We also express our thanks to teachers, and encourage you to do the same, during Teacher Appreciation Week, May 5 - 9. You’ll enjoy incredibly fast speeds How do you experience the speed of invisible forces? For example, you can’t see wind. You can only see the movement of things, such as the hair on a friend’s head, that wind picks up. It’s a little like an internet connection. You can’t see data rushing through fiber-optic cables, but you can see the results of that powerful speed in your home—including buffering-free streaming, effortless video conferences, and next-level gaming. See what faster speeds will do for you! CALL 319.276.4458 FOR AN INTERNET UPGRADE
BUTLER-BREMER COMMUNICATIONS • 319 . 276 . 4458 • but l er-bremer. com Some of the most beloved movies made have been about baseball. Spring is the perfect time to step up to the plate and enjoy them. Field of Dreams (1989) Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) is inspired by a voice he can't ignore to pursue a dream he can hardly believe. He begins the quest by turning his ordinary cornfield into a place where dreams can come true. A League of Their Own (1992) During World War II, sisters Dottie and Kit join the first female professional baseball league and struggle to help it succeed amid their own growing rivalry. Tom Hanks plays the crusty manager. Moneyball (2011) The movie about math and data in baseball has a cheerful love of the sport, too, and Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill are an oddly perfect team. Major League (1989) The new owner of the Cleveland Indians puts together a purposely horrible team so they'll lose, and she can move the team. But when the plot is uncovered, they start winning just to spite her. Eight Men Out (1988) A dramatization of the Black Sox scandal, the worst in baseball’s history, when the underpaid Chicago White Sox accepted bribes to deliberately lose the 1919 World Series. The Natural (1984) A middle-aged unknown (Robert Redford) comes seemingly out of nowhere to become a legendary baseball player with almost supernatural talent. Bull Durham (1988) Watch it for the funny conversations on the mound, the tricks for getting out of a slump, and the romance between a baseball player (Kevin Costner) and fan (Susan Sarandon). To watch these and other baseball movies, check out the libraries of popular streaming services. Need help figuring out which streaming services best match your viewing preferences? We offer the easyto-use StreamNow guide at gostreamnow.com/butler-bremer. Spring Is for Baseball and These Movies Are Home Runs Get Answers About Annoying Robocalls Check out the FTC’s responses to these frequently asked questions: Are robocalls illegal? A robocall trying to sell you something is illegal unless the company got written permission, directly from you, to call you that way. To get your permission, the company has to be clear it’s asking to call you with robocalls. The company also can’t make you agree to the calls to get a product or service. If you’re getting robocalls trying to sell you something, odds are the calls are illegal. Many are also scams. Why do I get so many robocalls? Because it’s cheap and easy for scammers to make robocalls over the internet from anywhere in the world. How can I get fewer robocalls? Call-blocking and call-labeling services can help. The option you choose will depend on whether you’re getting calls on a cell phone, landline, or VoIP phone—see what services your phone carrier offers. Also look for highly rated callblocking apps in your app store.
Cornerstone Group © 2025 You may be hearing a lot these days about the 5G home internet offered by cellular providers. But what exactly is it, and how does it differ from fiber internet? Before we compare these two internet technologies, let’s clear up a common misconception. The abbreviation 5G refers to the fifth generation of wireless technology for cellular networks, which was initially released in 2019. The “G” in 5G does NOT stand for gigabit and has nothing to do with internet speeds. 5G HOME INTERNET How It Works 5G home internet uses the 5G network towers of a cellular company to provide a fixed wireless connection. Speeds will vary by location, depending on how far the customer is from a local tower or transmitter. Speeds Speeds offered by 5G home internet average just 150 Mbps. What’s more, several factors can adversely affect speeds, including network congestion and line-of-sight issues from obstacles such as buildings or terrain. Even inclement weather can slow things down. Reliability 5G home internet can get bogged down by high-traffic demands and technical issues stemming from poor cell service. FIBER INTERNET How It Works Fiber internet uses fiber-optic cables consisting of bundled strands of glass, which are buried under the ground to provide a direct internet connection. Fiber is the gold standard. Speeds A range of fiber internet plans are typically offered, with speeds up to 2 Gbps (2,000 Mbps) and more. You may also be able to get symmetrical speeds, meaning your uploads are just as fast as your downloads. Reliability Fiber internet has a much larger capacity to carry data and is less prone to technical malfunctions or slowdowns. This results in a connection you can count on, with a proven track record of 99.9% reliability. How Does 5G Home Internet Differ From Fiber Internet? It’s clear that despite the hype around 5G, fiber remains the go-to connection type for extremely fast and reliable internet. Simply put, you can’t do better than fiber internet. It’s the preferred connection—and the best overall value—for large households with multiple users and devices, people who work from home, online gamers, and streaming enthusiasts. To learn more about BBC’s fiber internet plans, visit butler-bremer.com. 3 Signs It Might Be Time to Replace Your Wi-Fi Router You probably don’t spend much time thinking about your Wi-Fi router. But don’t ignore it entirely. After all, your router is important —it enables your home’s devices to wirelessly access your internet connection. Like any technology, routers are regularly updated with new features and capabilities, and you’ll want to stay current to take advantage of them. Watch for these signs you may need a new router: 1. You’ve noticed slower internet speeds. Routers rarely show outward signs of decay. Instead, performance may start to decline, such as slower than usual speeds. 2. It keeps rebooting. When a router reboots itself multiple times, it indicates potential hardware issues or an inability to handle the existing traffic load. 3. Overheating happens regularly. This a strong indication that your router is struggling to handle the workload and may be on the verge of hardware failure. If you’re considering a new router, call us at 319.276.4458 and ask about our Ultimate WiFi.
715 Main Street / PO Box 99 Plainfield, IA 50666 Phone: 319.276.4458 butler-bremer.com Instructions: 1. Cook tortellini according to instructions. Prep and chop all other ingredients and set aside. 2. When tortellini is cooked, strain the water and then rinse with cool water for a few seconds. Add the tortellini to a medium or large bowl. Add in the spinach, tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, and garlic. Pour over the olive oil and balsamic vinegar, then add the Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Toss the salad well to combine. 3. Chill until ready to serve. Toss well to redistribute the olive oil that is on the bottom of the bowl. Add more olive oil if salad seems too dry. Add a drizzle of balsamic glaze just before serving. Ingredients: 20 oz cheese tortellini, uncooked 10 oz cherry tomatoes, halved 8 oz mozzarella pearls 1 cup chopped spinach ¼ cup chopped basil ½ cup olive oil 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar 3-4 garlic cloves, minced ¾ tsp Italian seasoning ½ tsp salt and pepper Balsamic glaze, optional BUTLER-BREMER COMMUNICATIONS • 319 . 276 . 4458 • but l er-bremer. com Cornerstone Group © 2025 Tortellini CAPRESE SALAD Employee Spotlights Joel Rider, Network Technician Years of Service: 17 Hobbies: Hunting, traveling, attending car shows, riding UTVs with my family, and being in the great outdoors Lacy Fisher, CSR Years of Service: 12 Hobbies: Traveling, cooking, and spending time with my family and friends
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