Dial Up Internet

If you are one of those who is having to access the internet via a dial-up connection, first of all, you do have the sympathy those of us who know how slow that can be, in this high speed digital world. Whether it is your only option at your location (yes, there are still those places) or you have chosen to go that route for due to the expense of other options in  your area, the key to surviving dial-up is simply recognizing your limitations.

1. Dedicated line – Since anything you do on dial-up is going to take extra time to accomplish, you will want to have two phone lines, one for the phone and one for your computer modem. Otherwise, you will always be having to choose, which is of more importance at the time.
2. Clear off your hard drive – The more room you have on your hard drive, the more efficiently your computer will operate. Run defrags often to keep your data well compressed.
3. Plenty of memory – The more memory you have available on your computer, the faster it will be able to deal with graphics and loading pages from the internet. Keep other programs shut down on your computer when browsing the internet. They eat up the memory you need available for browsing.
4. No pictures please. Let all your email contacts know that you are operating with a dial-up connection and would prefer that they don’t send you photos, videos or any other large files. Send out a reminder from time to time. People do forget, and you are the one who will pay for their forgetfulness.
5. Avoid Youtube. It would be best, if you simply forgot that Youtube even existed while you are limited to dialup. The amount of time it takes to stream a video and the play quality are simply not worth it.
6. Ezines Articles. If you want to find good quality information in a textual format, read Ezine Articles. You can find just about any topic you can imagine there and low graphics.
7. Forums. Since facebook and most of the other social networks are graphic heavy, you might find that text forums are a better place for you to connect with online communities. There are plenty of them out there that are niche specific, which means you’ll also have something in common with the other posters.
8. Nighttime downloads – If there are some things you really want to download that will take some time, get the download started before you go to bed and let it pull it in while you sleep. Say a prayer before you lay down that it doesn’t time out in the middle of the process though.
9. Patience – This should probably have been listed under number one, because it is a definite requirement for dealing with a dial-up connection. It is going to be slow. It will be slow to connect. It will be slow to down load items. It will be slow at loading web pages. So, find something else to do in between mouse clicks.
10. High speed day trips – Whenever you can, treat yourself to some high speed internet. It may be a trip to the library, or it may be at a hotel while you’re traveling, but take advantage of those times and enjoy some of the online material that you have been fasting from at home.

Those who endure the use of dial-up in this age, and have previously tasted the joy of high speed browsing…we salute you. Someone will probably establish a memorial in your honor someday, for you are truly saints.

There was a day when the sound of accessing the internet had a distinct pattern of noises. These noises were the sounds of your dialup modem making a connection. As high speed connections have become the standard, dialup connections have become a rarity. Here are ten facts about the decline of this once common mode of connection.

1. It’s still available. What a lot of people who use high speed internet access don’t realize is that dialup access is still available and there are a lot of people who are stilling using it as their means of internet connection. Usually this is in rural areas where the options are limited, but dialup has not yet totally disappeared.
2. High graphic websites. As the websites on the internet increased their graphic content, the slower these sites would load over a dialup connection. Even though the dialup connection speed had not decreased, the speed of browsing did. This made web browsing through a dialup connection more time consuming.
3. Email graphics. Initially, most email communication was in text format only, similar to writing a letter. However, as more consumers began accessing the internet through broadband connections and learning to upload digital photo images, email became a means of sharing photo images. With a dialup connection, an email with several photos could take a very long time to download.
4. Satellite internet. In rural areas where cable and DSL broadband solutions were not available, satellite internet offered a high speed option that would allow consumers a much faster connection than their dialup. In spite of the wide difference in price between the two options, many rural households opted for the faster satellite connection rather than put up with the slow dialup connection.
5. DSL – This form of high speed connection provided the consumer the ability to receive internet service over their phone line without sacrificing the use of the phone line while using the internet. After having paid for two phone lines for dialup, DSL became an easy option to switch to when it became available.
6. Cable – With cable television in so many homes, using the cable company’s as an internet provider was an easy switch. The difference in speed was the biggest advantage though.
7. Land lines. The fact that dialup internet connection required the use of a land line phone was one of the other declining factors. You were faced with two choices, either tie up your phone line whenever you used the internet and miss phone calls because callers were receiving a busy signal, or pay for a second phone line so that you had access to your phone line while you were on the internet.
8. Disconnects. Another issue with dialup that caused frustration to its users was disconnects during downloads and browsing. Since downloading information could be very slow, having to begin the process a second or third time due to a dropped connection could be extremely frustrating. It was a situation that would seldom happen when using a broadband connection.
9. Speed expectations. As people began experiencing higher speed connections in their work environments, a dialup connection at home began to seem much slower than it had before. Once people became accustomed to higher speeds at work, they wanted the same type of access at home.
10. Modems – When dialup was the main form of internet connection, most computers came with a dialup modem installed as a standard piece of equipment. Since dialup is now a rare form of connection, a dialup modem would have to be purchased as an add-on item.

The dialup connection is still being used by a number of households around the world, in spite of all the factors that have led to its decline. It is hard to say how long it will be before it no longer is a viable option.

Everything seems to be going faster these days. The cars go faster, the phones are faster and of course one of the big ones is the fact that the internet is faster. Everyone is on the go and they want everything else to go fast too.. This has some people switching to cable and dsl for their internet connection. The only problem is that these connections can cost quite a bit and besides for that they can be even higher if you do not get a “bundle” which means they are pushing their products on you. Let’s look at 10 good reasons to use dial up internet.

Speeds Have Gotten Faster

It’s true, when dial up was first out it was slower than a snail. I remember sitting at my desk and just waiting for one page to load. Between the slow internet and my slow computer I remember waiting 30 minutes one time – not cool! I tried to get a business started online and it was near impossible because the the internet was so slow. Now there are even accelerators that are connected with the service providers to make for an improved experience.

Dial Up Is Inexpensive

If you are not going to be constantly watching streaming movies and online all of the time having dsl and cable could almost be a waste of money. You can get dial up that will allow you to easily surf the web and gather the information you need at rock bottom prices because the dial up companies are serious about keeping their customers. You can get dial up internet for as little as 10% of what you would pay for dsl or cable.

Usually Includes Anti-Virus Software

Most of the time these ISPs are going to provide you with an anti virus software for your computer. This will save you a lot of money since paid anit virus programs can cost you quite a little bit of money.

Usually Includes Pop Up Blocker

If you have ever been hit with pop ups you know just how annoying they can be. Your dial up ISP will usually provide you with a pop up blocker as well. This will allow you to keep the speed of your connection. If you do not have a pop up blocker you may find that your computer gets frozen because of all of the graphics and quick loading that the pop ups require.

Unlimited Access

Sometimes there are providers that only want to give you a certain amount of access and then charge you extra. High quality dial up providers are going to give you unlimited access so that you can surf the web whenever you want to. Imagine being able to search for any type of information that you need and having no limitations on the amount of information that you can get.

Usually Includes Spam Protection

Sick of getting all of that spam into your inbox? Another great perk of having dial up is that they are going to give you spam protection. You will see spam zapped and your valuable time will not be taken fighting spam anymore.

No Credit Card Required

Some places are going to require you to have a credit card. Dial up providers understand that some people may not have a credit card. If you do not have a credit card then dial up may be a good option for you.

Locations Available

Many times DSL and cable are not available in areas that are far out of the way. This is why dial up is so great. You can get dial up anywhere that you can get a phone line and almost every house is able to get a phone line.

No Extensive Installation

Speaking of cable and DSL, you don’t have to get a hole put in your wall. Just plug in your dial up modem and install your software from a CD. You can do it all yourself, it won’t take an hour, and you don’t have to clean up after the cable guy’s shoes.

Reliable Customer Service

Dial up companies are serious about keeping their customers happy and giving their customers the best experience possible. Reliable customer service is important and they make sure that this is what they offer.

Now you know a little bit more about dial up and why it is a good option for you. These are just 10 good reasons to use dial up internet. I am sure that you can think of your own as you continue to use the service and learn more about it.

In more populated areas, the competition between internet service providers, or ISP’s, is fierce. You may be tempted to change providers by a lower price or extra services. Maybe you’re just not happy with your current ISP and think you can get better service with someone else. Think carefully about your decision before you take the plunge. The headaches you have to go through to make the change may not be worth it.

1. Email address changes – Your Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail accounts will stay the same, but if your main email account is through your ISP, then that will change. No matter how careful you are about contacting everyone about the change, it never goes smoothly. There’s always someone who didn’t get the message and gets cranky about it. You also take a chance of missing an important email in the transition. Remember that you have to change your email address everywhere. This includes websites, E-newsletters you get, stationary and business cards. Chances are you’re going to miss something and it’ll come back to bite you.
2. Contacts – Now you will have to trust that all of your contacts that used the old email will put your new email address in their system and delete the old one. As I said, this never happens. Some people never set up contacts in their email accounts and just go by whatever they used last time. This also may haunt you for days, weeks, months and maybe even years.
3. Cancel contract – Another big drawback may be in your current ISP contract. You’ll need to check on whether there’s any cancellation fees involved. If you’ve paid ahead on your monthly fees, then you may not be able to get a refund if you switch providers. In any case, you’ll have to cancel your current contract or you will continue to get billed for the old service.
4. New equipment – Changing providers may also require you to get new equipment such as modems, network cards or connector cables. You’ll need to find out if your new provider will require the change and if they will cover the cost or if you will need to purchase the new equipment.
5. Change settings – You’re not going to be able to just switch ISP’s and expect everything to work the same as it did before. Settings need to be changed in your email software and, if you’ve never had to do that before, it can be confusing and frustrating. If you’re like me, you know how to turn on the computer and expect it to work. There are certain items on various menus that you don’t know what they’re for and don’t ever want to know.
6. IP address changes – Even more confusing is that your internet router needs to be changed to the new IP address. Unless you’re a computer geek, this can be tricky.
7. Lose features – Your current provider may have features such as spyware, pop-up blockers, and anti-virus protection bundled with your service that you just take for granted. Switching ISP’s could subject you to annoying pop-ups and you may even run the risk of getting a virus.
8. Disrupts business – If you have a website or do any kind of business over the internet, the disruption can be devastating. If anything goes wrong, you could lose tons of money in a very short period of time. People are impatient and easily frustrated on the internet. If your website is down, they’ll move on in a heartbeat.
9. No better service – After all the hassle, what if the new ISP isn’t any better than the old one? Sales pitches always make you think they’ve got the best thing since zippers were invented, but seldom live up to high expectations.
10. Hate change – Of course, if you’re like me, you hate change of any kind. I’m such a creature of habit and don’t like to have disrupting changes to my usual routine. Changing internet provides would be a major problem for me.

Of course there are times when changing your internet provider is unavoidable. If you move, or your current provider goes out of business, you will be forced to find a new ISP. I hope you will take steps to make sure the transition goes as smoothly as possible. Keep in mind that there will probably be some glitches and try to minimize them.

People are spending more and more time on the internet. Their activities vary from person to person but there are a few activities that can definitely be listed as the most popular, across the board.

1. Email – Reading and sending emails is still the internet activity that almost everyone has in common. However, the younger generation seems to be moving more in the direction of instant messaging and text messaging, rather than the traditional email message.
2. Games – This is an internet activity that has no age limit. Children as young as two play games on the internet and adults of all ages have found internet games a fun pass time. There is almost to limit to the types of games that can be found online. From old classics like checkers to the newest animated games, and everything in between, you can find it on the internet.
3. Social Networking. Social network sites have become the digital town square, the ongoing family reunion, the neighborhood party line and the company water cooler, all rolled into one. It is the place to keep up to date on what is going on with everyone you know. If you want to know what is happening in your circle of friends and family, this is the place to be.
4. Shopping – The convenience of shopping online has drawn increasing numbers of consumers to surf the web with their credit card in hand. Whether it is auction sites like E-bay or retailers like Amazon and Walmart, the internet is the mega-mall of today. It’s guarantee of no waiting in a checkout line has been a big draw.
5. News. Why wait for the 10 o’clock news when you can go online at any time of the day or night and get the latest information, locally, nationally and globally? You can even visit the websites of your favorite newspapers and television news programs online. In addition, you can sign up for RSS feeds that will bring it all right to you.
6. Weather info. This may be then second biggest use of the internet, particularly for people who live in regions where the weather is very unpredictable. Many people have their local weather on their desktop for constant monitoring. Others have a weather website set as their browser’s home page.
7. Travel – Booking reservations for flights and hotels has become almost an exclusively online activity. Searching travel destinations and leisure activities is also done online more than through any other medium. The internet has become the one-stop travel agent who can meet all our vacation and business travel needs.
8. Health info – A visit to a doctor is very expensive and time consuming. Many people will consult medical websites first before making a doctor appointment. After they have seen a doctor, the internet may be used to get a ‘second opinion’ or further information on their diagnosis. With searchable information available on symptoms and treatment, the internet has become a trusted source for health information.
9. Hobbies – Regardless of what your hobbies are, you can use the internet to enhance your participation in that activity. The internet can be used to increase your knowledge and to connect with others with the same interests.
10. Entertainment – The internet has become one of our greatest sources of entertainment and entertainment information. We can watch movies and TV shows online. We find humor online in all sorts of forms, and we can simply surf the net looking for new and interesting things.

The hours spent online are quickly replacing those spent watching television. The variety of activities available are not limited to channels or time of the day. You can find what you want, when you want it. Instant gratification has a tremendous pull to it.

The internet is filled with great things for kids of all ages. Unfortunately, it is also filled with potentially harmful contacts and sites that they should not be accessing, for both their benefit and the health of your computer. There are lots of ways to control your kid’s internet access to protect them and your computer.

1. Net Nanny – Net Nanny software is available in Windows, Mac and mobile applications. A full-featured program that allows you to set different criteria for each child. It not only protects from inappropriate sites, but also predatory messaging and email. It also allows you set date and time restrictions for each child, and provides monitoring reports to you.

1. Control Kids This is a Windows based software. It monitors all websites visited and all computer keystrokes, in addition to blocking specific websites or types of content. It also blocks credit card transactions.

1. Cyber Sieve – SoftforYou provides this internet control product. It provides the typical website blocking of inappropriate content and allows separate settings for different individuals accessing the computer. It also sends reports to you with screen shots of your child’s activity to allow you immediate and complete control from remote connections.

1. PureSight PC – Monitor chats and facebook, access reports and alerts from anywhere, set time limits to internet and chat use, all with this software. In addition, this software has a high level of language protection that looks for bullying tactics.

1. CYBERsitter – In addition to monitoring facebook and chats, this software also has an additional mobile app, CellTRAKR, that will monitor your child’s mobile activities. With ongoing reports, you can know when and where your child is using their cellphone and in what way.

1. K9 Web Protection – FREE and yet thorough, this downloadable internet control package incorporates all the standard web browsing protections, including very strong and customizable search engine filtering.

1. Web Watcher – Monitor and control your kid’s internet, email and chatting. This software will record and report on every aspect of your child’s online and offline activity, in addition to setting web content filters and timing restrictions. It also captures screen shots so that you don’t have to try and interpret reports.

1. Kidswatch – There are some nice extras in this parental control software. The ability to set one-time passwords to override time limits for special situations like online homework assignments. It also has special options for restricting access to Windows settings for the computer savvy teen. You get all the other top child protection features, including immediate email alerts when your child has experienced a danger zone activity.

1. PC Homesoft – If you’re looking for software that will provide your computer protection, as well as your child, this may be what you’re looking for.  It provides options for protecting Windows files and your registry from changes, preventing the download of software without a security password and also allows you to hide files that you don’t want accidentally accessed or changed by your kids or others who use your computer.

10.  Physical control – In spite of the sophistication of these parental control software packages, kids are often times more computer savvy than their parents and can find their ways to avoid the limitations of those softwares. If you truly want to control what child or teen accesses, the best ways are good old fashioned physical actions. Sit with your kids, or at least be in the same room while they are on the computer, so you can see what they are doing. If you don’t want them sneaking onto the computer at night or when you are out of the house, hide the modem or take it with you.

Don’t leave it up to your kids to monitor themselves, they need their parents involvement and oversight in this area.

Let’s admit it, we are there.  There will never be a world without Internet service again.  Our lives depend on the rapid mode of getting information we need at a moment’s notice.  And because of that our need for bigger and better internet service providers will constantly grow as our need to surf the information superhighway grows as well.

According to your age you may never have had to use “dialup”.  I was glad to have it as I had nothing else to compare.  There may still be remote areas that are forced to use the dialup mode. But be patient, in time, things will change to another more up-to-date one and you will be proud.  The dialup (also referred to as analogue) is strictly that; Using a modem connected to your PC, users connect to the Internet when the computer dials a phone number (which is provided by your ISP) and connects to the network. Your type of internet service largely depends on where you live and what is available to you as well as how much you are willing to spend.

If you are using a cable service for your television reception, the cable companies also can provide you with internet connection that is faster than the dialup.  The fee varies per month, but according to what you use your PC for, it would be wise to pay the extra bucks to get better and faster service.

Also A Cable modem is a type of internet connection that allows connection via cable TV lines. The Cable internet connection uses TV channels for data transmission. Cable internet provides fast internet access. Cable TV uses coaxial cable, which support higher bandwidth than telephone lines do according to www.computertooslow.com.

Satellite connection provides uninterrupted internet connectivity. Internet over Satellite uses a communication satellite that is on a stationary position in orbit. Due to the huge distance the data has to be transmitted, the speed of satellite is a bit lower than Broadband types of internet connections.  (www.computertooslow.com)

ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscribers Line) connections is one source I know little about, but after research I find this type of connections are becoming more and more widely available and can provide an excellent internet connection.

The connections work by splitting your phone line into two separate channels, one for data (internet) and one for voice (phone calls), which means you can talk on the phone and be connected to the internet at the same time.

As there are many sources available for internet connection, there will be as many more in days to come.  These mentioned are for sure 5 among many, but as I said earlier it is according to what is available in your area.

One more to mention has been around awhile and that is Fiber Optic. Fiber optics is the next generation of speed but always pay attention to whether the company touting its products is actually offering you fiber optics to your door, or simply to your local telephone exchange box. As the speed differences can be large.

Companies such as Verizon and ATT do say they offer high speed Fiber Optic service, however going to their web page and entering your zip code, you may find it isn’t true for your area.  That is the problem I ran into here in my neighborhood.