DSL (digital subscriber line) technology uses plain old copper phone wires to deliver data at high speeds to your home or office. It's the second-most-popular broadband service behind cable, and its subscriber numbers are growing. To get DSL, you'll need a phone line (your primary home phone line can work; you don't necessarily need a second line); a DSL modem, which usually comes with the service; an Ethernet card; and a company that's willing to sell the service to you at your current location. While DSL has become a lot easier to find over the last year or so--it's fast approaching mainstream status -- some common myths still abound. We'll debunk them and set you straight on the facts of DSL. Read on.
Myth: DSL makes Web surfing blazingly fast.
DSL is faster than dial-up Internet service but not change-your-life faster. In our informal tests, Web pages loaded about three to five times quicker with DSL than with dial-up -- nice, but about the same boost we got from cable. The real difference comes when downloading multimegabyte files, which can show up on your computer in minutes rather than the hours required for dial-up, provided you're downloading with a high-speed connection from a high-speed connection.
Myth: Getting DSL is a Nightmare.
While ordering DSL is no picnic, it's a lot easier now than it was even a year ago. To qualify for DSL, you still must be within about three miles of a phone company's central office (CO), and that CO must be equipped for digital Internet service. But many of the bureaucratic hassles -- incredibly long installation times, billing mistakes, and tech-support finger-pointing -- have disappeared, says Justin Beech, founder of Broadband Reports. That's partly because many small DSL providers have gone belly-up, leaving only one bureaucracy (the telcos) to deal with if you have a problem. Also, the phone companies have updated their databases and upgraded their equipment dramatically in the last two years. And many now offer self-installation kits, eliminating the delays waiting for an installer to arrive.
There are, however, a few caveats to note. It's much easier to get brand-new DSL service than it is to transfer existing service to a new address or switch to a new provider. If you're moving, you'll have better luck getting DSL service quickly if you get a brand-new phone number. If you're transferring to a new service but are keeping your old phone number, be prepared for possible delays; it's sometimes difficult to get your old provider to release its death grip on your phone line, and once that happens, the new provider has to provision, or take hold of, the line for itself.
Myth: They advertise DSL in your area, so you can get it.
Not so fast, slick. Even if you live close to a central office, you may not qualify for DSL. For example, your phone line might contain load coils, devices that boost voice signals, or bridge taps, where a phone line is spliced to serve other houses in your neighborhood, both of which stop DSL dead in its tracks. The only way to find out is to ask the phone company to test your line and fix any problems, if the company is willing to do so. Such repairs shouldn't cost extra, but don't expect your telco to be speedy about it. And unfortunately, the DSL company usually won't tell you if your line isn't suitable; you're more likely to find out by installing DSL, then discovering for yourself that it doesn't work.
Myth: You can get DSL only through your local Baby Bell.
Today America Online, MSN, and EarthLink offer DSL (and cable) connections in various parts of the country. A handful of smaller firms also sell DSL, mostly to small businesses. But in nearly every case, these small firms simply piggyback on your local phone company's equipment, as do the large providers, which can add to the time it takes to get your service installed.
Myth: One type of DSL is no different from another.
There are several types of DSL, each of which differs in speed, reliability, and price. Nearly all residential connections use ADSL. The A stands for asymmetric, and the term means that the speed at which you send data from your PC will be different from the speed at which you receive it. Most ADSL connections let you download data at up to 1.5 megabits per second (Mbps) and send data up the line at
128 to 256 kilobits per second (Kbps), but the rates will vary depending on your distance from the central office and on Net congestion. Symmetric DSL (SDSL) is used by businesses who need a reliable connection speed; it sends data at the same rate in both directions (typically from 256K to 768K) and is usually more expensive ($75 to $200 per month). There's also IDSL (for ISDN DSL), which costs about the same as SDSL and provides speeds of up to 144Kbps in both directions. It's primarily for customers who are too far from a central office to qualify for faster versions of DSL.Myth: Having DSL means your computer is always logged on to the Net.
Not necessarily. Some DSL service is merely always available -- meaning that you have to log on every time you turn on your computer. Logging on again is a minor hassle if you have programs running that expect constant access to the Net -- such as online backup software or an antivirus update utility -- but otherwise, it's no big deal, since the process takes only a few seconds and doesn't tie up your phone line.
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