Broad Band

[xelasnave]

Now remember I am a decade behind all of you in most things and dont get to talk in person to anyone, I dont want to mention it to my Son as he will rope me into a work situation so I wish to do it by myself, and keep it to myself as it were.. so in that context may I ask what do I do to get broad band, I have a phone line in Sydney but have been using the same dial up sevice I access up North.. which in truth is not my service. I dont even know how to go about getting that on.. Where should I go, how much will it cost can I do it with out a credit card as I try to avoid the temptations of spending cash I dont have.. I am a litle too enthusiastic about things and would spend any limit very unwisely..and fast. They send me card applications as they must to everyone . Any guidance will be very much appreciated.
alex

[duncan]

G,day Xela,

Whoever your dial-up is through will be able to put you in the right direction for BB.Just look them up on the net or ring them up.They'll send out the new modem etc. and you can usually pay by direct transfer or by post.
Hope this helps.So long as you have a landline there are heaps of servers out there.I'd probably stick to one of the big ones to start with,eg. Telstra Bigpond, AApt, the list is endless.

Cheers,
Duncan

[GeoffW1 (Geoff)]

Alex,

This is easy enough with a phone line, presumably Telstra's. The type you will be looking for is called DSL. If in a free-standing residence you can also get cable broadband in most suburbs.

There is a guide and plan selector at Whirlpool

http://bc.whirlpool.net.au/bc-plan.cfm

There you can find plans for $40 per month, download speed 24 Mbit/sec peak nominal (you will never actually get to this figure in practice), and 5Gb/mo data limit, which is probably adequate.

GeoffW1

[xelasnave]

Thank you very much Duncan Thank you very much Geoff.. so I need a new modem?? This is a free standing cottage so do you think cable is better?
I will look at your link Geoff that will move me forward.
Thanks it must sound such a silly thing thanks for helping.
alex

[xelasnave]

I am on the case thanks again
alex

[GeoffW1 (Geoff)]

Originally Posted by xelasnave

.. so I need a new modem?? This is a free standing cottage so do you think cable is better?

alex

Hi Alex,

Yes, you will need a new modem for broadband. The provider will usually supply their favoured type with the connection.

I have Optus cable, and I would have to say no, there is no terrific advantage these days overall with cable. There was years ago, before DSL, but much less so now.

GeoffW1

[xelasnave]

Thanks Geoff no decision yet. I am going home as soon as I am happy Dad is ok so I am waiting until my return before jumping in.. you would think that if you bought a lap top recenty as I have they would be built in..next batch maybe.
Thanks again all for the help at least I have some idea to talk to folk now.
alex

[g__day (Matthew)]

I strongly suggest you connect this modem (whether it be cable or ADSL) to your PC via a cat 5 or 6 (blue cable) into a network card, rather than use a USB connection if they give you the option.

Broadband traffic uses a 7 layer stack, and if you connect your broadband modem into a network card, instead of a USB port, more of those seven layers get managed in hardware - so they are far more reliable.

If you connect via USB more of the TCP/IP (layers 4 and 3 respectively) get implemented via software - which can get corrupted over time - and that's a pain in the arse to flush your connection and re-configure your IP stack.

Save yourself alot of pain - avoid USB connections for broadband!

PS

If you're going to be always on - get a great firewall to to protect you from nasties. I'd recommend Zonealarms Suite 6 - stick away from Nortons!

PPS

If you want to connect more than one PC at a time to your broadband connection, buy a Netgear or D-Link Router (which has a hardware NAT firewall too) plug the cable modem into that and simply connect any PC to the router and multiple PCs can all have fast internet access.

Good luck!

[xelasnave]

Thanks very much for that advice G day other events are putting action on this back but now I feel only about 9 years behind the times.
alex