Completely fatuous inquiry about ISPs. Holp!

[MlledeLaPlumeBleu]

Hey dollfaces-

Long ago, when diplodocus was still considered a real dinosaur and not two unrelated skeletons haphazardly spliced together by eager men of science, a boyfriend of mine gave me AOL.

Not much of a gift, right? *laugh*

Anyway, he stuck the monthly charges on his credit card, and apparently he's still unwittingly paying them, wherever he is....

but here's the problem.

I HATE AOL. I hate AOL more than uncle abusers and dog-hickey givers.

I must switch to a real DSL provider...does anyone have any recommendations of a good ISP?

I can't take it anymore.

This is a plea to your basic humanity. Help me or take me out to the barn with Pa's old rifle.


blue-y

 

[destinie21]

I have a cable modem through my local cable company and it's grrrrreat provided that I don't forget to pay the bill
Internet service is faster and I can download large files in no time(which I need to do to get my art from one computer to another.)

 

[bridgeburner]

My first inclination is to say that anything is better than AOL. Couldn't he have just given you crabs or something you'd be rid of already? Yeesh.

I've currently got Earthlink DSL and haven't had any troubles with it. I had SBC and probably would've stayed with them but their customer service is sucky and when my old roommate moved out we wanted to switch the phone into my name and SBC was going to charge me brand new set-up fees as if I hadn't already had service for a year. At the time Earthlink was running a deal so I went with them

Now, of course, SBC is running a deal that's $20 less a month than what I'm currently paying Earthlink. So I'll be calling Earthlink and asking them to reduce my bill or lose my business.

Friends of mine have Netcom and like that. If you can find a good local provider that's always an option as well. I miss all the little guys, but they've mostly been swallowed up by Sprint, AT&T and SBC and the like.

Good luck!

-B

 

[Chicklet]

I have a cable modem through my local cable company and it's grrrrreat provided that I don't forget to pay the bill
Internet service is faster and I can download large files in no time(which I need to do to get my art from one computer to another.)

I do this too - I have comcast...

 

[TheEarl]

Long ago, when diplodocus was still considered a real dinosaur and not two unrelated skeletons haphazardly spliced together by eager men of science, a boyfriend of mine gave me AOL.

I think there are clinics you can go to for that. I personally use LineONE, although I'm not sure whether that ships in the USA.

The Earl

 

[KillerMuffin]

This is assuming you do not travel a lot and rely on a dialup connection to get online.

Start with broadband and work your way down from there. Cable is usually easier to configure if you do it yourself and you have a network. DSL isn't.

Cable and DSL are comparable in some areas but not in others. Locally, DSL gets 330kbps to 600 kbps. My current cable is getting 1700 kbps.

Analog modems (56k modems) are going to be a thing of the past before much longer. Websites are beginning to have content that cannot be feasibly accessed on a 56k line and I imagine this will only get more prolific as time goes on.

Some broadband can use a usb port, but I think that's kind of rare. Almost all broadband uses a 10/100 ethernet port. It looks like a phone jack in your computer, only larger. If you don't have one, you can get and install one yourself for like 20 bucks.

If you go with dial-up, though, find a cheap local provider. They'll be a lot cheaper, usually have someone around until pretty late to help you, and you don't have to fight with millions of others to connect during peak hours. Analog services are pretty much all the same.

If you travel a lot and need dialup you can get from cheap hotels or relatives, then you're looking at national dialups of which I know nothing about.

 

[MlledeLaPlumeBleu]

Wow.

Thanks. I appreciate the pointers. You all obviously know a lot more about this than me.

I've been lazy, but you know what they say about the lazy...

They get AOL.

 

[pop_54]

Hi love

Sorry can't help darling, I don't think you get Tesconet over there, I do sympathise though, because we do get AOL over here and I know it's crap, I tried it a year or so back.

Tesconet is run by our big supermarket chain, dial up but very reliable and cheap'ish. £12.95 / month for unlimited internet access 24/7 nothing more to pay.

Broadband is available in our area but a bit pricey, it comes via the normal phone line and a V92 modem. I haven't bothered with it yet, may do soon when I've saved up £100 to get connected and sort out all the bits.

Good luck with your quest love, and so sorry you've got the AOL infection

 

[The_Fool]

1. Broadband is basically DSL, Cable and some Wireless Providers.

2. DSL is distance limited. Not everyone can get it. Cable modems depend the same cable as your TV so if you get cable TV then you can probably get Cable Internet if your cable company offers it. Wireless requires different hardware and has a completely different infrastructure. Wireless access is dependent on coverage just like a cell phone. Just like a cell phone it can be subject to blind spots. Also Wireless can sometimes be affected by weather, depending on type.

3. All three require additional hardware which is a cost to you. Expect to pay at least $100. The handoff to your pc is usually an ethernet connection, sometimes USB, but very rarely. Just about any pc built in the last three years has one.

4. Cost overall is usually pretty close, look for the special deals. Also look for package deals. See if providers offer a package deal such as Internet and Voice or Internet and CATV. Locally SBC is offering a package combining Voice, Internet and Cell Phone with one bill.

5. If you travel, look for a company that offers complementary dial accounts.

6. Wireless and Cable are considered to be "shared" media. That means if your neighborhood is saturated with broadband internet users, then you may have periods of slowness. Also some wireless technology competes for frequency space with other activities. DSL is not a shared media at the user level, but as stated is distance dependent. The further you are away from "the box" the worse your service could be.

7. Be careful with smaller companies and ask about uplink speeds from the ISP. The bet is, that not everyone will access the Internet at the same time, so they "oversubscribe," meaning that several people are meant to share bandwidth. Also smaller companies are usually at the mercy of larger ones because they resell Internet Service they purchased from somewhere else.

8. Just like cell phones watch out for long term contracts.

9. Look at additional benefits, how much the package costs and will you use those benefits. Benefits include multiple emails, web hosting, content services just to name a few. Look at these services and determine if you really need them.

10. Almost all broadband technologies are asynchronous. That means that the uplink speed from your computer to the Internet is slower than the download speed from the Internet to your computer. Download speeds vary from about 128kbits/sec to 384kbits/sec. Uplink speeds vary from about 256kbits/sec to 6Mbits/sec. This is usually not an issue unless you are hosting a web server at home or unless you push LOTS of data from your computer to the Internet.

11. One thing you are doing right is asking about different services here. Good place to start. Even more important is to ask in your local area. Hopefully you can find people that have different types of service. How often are they down? How often are they slow? How hard is it to call in for help? How hard was it to set up? How often does there bill amount change?

12. Do it. You will never go back....


Fool

 

[Guest]

Wow,

Fool, I don't know whatthefuck you said but I am so aroused when men seem to know what they're talking about.

panting, Perdita

 

[The_Fool]

Re: Wow,

Fool, I don't know whatthefuck you said but I am so aroused when men seem to know what they're talking about.

panting, Perdita

Talk a great line of shit, don't I?

I kinda have to deal with this shit on a day-in day-out basis.

And all you have to do is post and I'm aroused.

 

[Guest]

The further you are away from "the box" the worse your service could be.

That's all I understood, by the way.

Liking you more, Fool.

Perdita

p.s. Svenska christened this AV "the naughty virgin".

 

[The_Fool]

That's all I understood, by the way.

Liking you more, Fool.

Perdita

p.s. Svenska christened this AV "the naughty virgin".

Damn, "the naughty virgin." With that AV in mind, sounds like a story where the sweet beautiful innocent girl desires to perform every sexual act known except for a certain type of pene-tration. Someone should write that one...

 

[Guest]

Crap,

Now I'm thoroughly unaroused and confused, Fool. Go back to talking about ISP thingies and asynchronousness.

Oh, nevermind. Trying to recapture a moment like the one we had above never works.

Perdita

 

[The_Fool]

Re: Crap,

Now I'm thoroughly unaroused and confused, Fool. Go back to talking about ISP thingies and asynchronousness.

Oh, nevermind. Trying to recapture a moment like the one we had above never works.

Perdita

So, would you like me to terminate your fiber? When's the last time you upgraded your software? The ends justify the means in the search for a ubiquitous network. Wireless access can be so...liberating. He with the largest amount of bandwidth wins the game of speed and service. If I can find a route, then I can get to you. Multicasting information allows you to "touch" the most people without sacrificing all your bandwidth. When troubleshooting networks, one must start at the lowest layer and work your way inward, stripping off each layer as you proceed. Ease of access is always important when considering placement of the equipment rack. Cooling and Power are of primary importance when considering the placement of your nerve center. Heirarchical design allows growth as required. The thoughtful designer always provided for failover modes in the event the primary path is blocked. Efficient design is habit forming. Knowing the needs and business of the customer allows the designer to provide for fullest penetration.


Fool

 

[Guest]

Fool: no go. You're just foaming at the mouth now, whereas above you were authoritative and coming to a mlle's needs.

cooly, Perdita

 

[The_Fool]

Fool: no go. You're just foaming at the mouth now, whereas above you were authoritative and coming to a mlle's needs.

cooly, Perdita

 

[Guest]

Fool, there's a haiku for you on MG's haiku thread.

 

[ffreak]

Simple solutions, Mille:

1. Cable is so fast you will never settle for anything less if you try it - at about $40/month - if you go this way, and if you travel get Earthlink because they have the largest list of local telephone numbers across the nation and it doesn't cost you if you're one of their cable subscribers.

ITMT

2. You can continue to do it freebie by using AOL to get to the internet, then use IE to avoid all their crap. Just click on that blue e on your desktop after you connect and browse away like a real internet user.