Latest Reader Feedback on ADSL:

Mac owners looking for DSL service might want to check out Dale Sorenson's Mac-Friendly DSL Providers Page

Darin Ames of Boston wrote with a detailed story of how he got 384/384 DSL sevice for his Mac for $59/month (!). (Now updated with a reader's PAC Bell/Southern CA story).

Todd does a real end-around to get ADSL on his Macs:

" I was fortunate to move into an ADSL test town for Ameritech in Wheaton,IL but unfortunately, Ameritech is not supporting Macs...That didn't stop me from trying to come up with a way around this!

Unfortunately, Ameritech implements ADSL using DMT via an Efficient Systems ATM-25 card (who doesn't support Macs) that they install as a nic card and that is attached to an external Alcatel ADSL 1000 modem. Despite the fact that the modem does have an Ethernet port, the DMT implementation of ADSL that Ameritech is using does not support Ethernet connections.

For the moment I am using a PC (I now remember why i dumped Windoze 5 years ago) and am using Winproxy and a NetGear 10/100 hub to my SuperMac S900 (w/G3) and Powerbook, etc. (via TCP/IP)

Speed is GREAT!, but I have spent the last couple months trying to get a IXMicro Galeforce II ATM-25 Card to work with the ADSL modem (using PVC over ATM). I still haven't gotten it to work yet...

Also, Ameritech has been slow to roll out ADSL. It is only availabe in Royal Oak MI and Wheaton,IL for the moment.
best
Todd Buchanan "

DSL family network (This is what I want!):

" Vay up here in Minneapolis, MN USWest has a pretty good DSL offering. We were one of the first ones to get it installed at our house. They fully support mac's and pc's, yet to see a reason why anyone wouldn't, install was free.

They wouldn't set it up to our in home network, so we just set it up on a laptop that was in the area. After the "techs" left we moved the connection from the computer to our 3Com SuperStack 1100 24 port switch. Now every computer on the network, mac or pc, has access to the internet via DHCP or one of our 5 IP addresses. We have our own mail server, ftp server, web servers running using USWest DNS servers.

They gave us a domain, which we then assigned "sub-domains" to certain computers, if they needed it (routable IP's only). We have had very little trouble and are looking at getting a second line installed as our current 768k/768k line is getting a little over used. We pay around $120 month total, for this setup. Not too bad in my book.
-Louis "

More on Flashcom comparison:

" Just a little more on the adsl. I was reading comments from other readers about comparisons about bell atlantic/flashcom comparison. For "power" mac users there is no comparison. BA ADSL is extremely slow on the upside and there is no static ip.

Having dealt with BA in T1, ISDN installs you will never find a more unresponsive organiziation. I have attached a screen capture of the flashcom individual pricing [too large to post - see Flashcom's Pricing Page. Noteworthy is 768/768 for $199 [corrected-Mike] plus total setup is $99. You get a static ip and they have stated to me many times they are well in favor of NAT due to shortage in IP's. Their service is impeccable, and if you have dealt with the phone company on any coast you know what lack of service truly means.
caz thrush "

A reader sent his Q&A with GTE on Mac support:

" To: online.customer.response@gte.com
From: kevin09@xxxxxxxx
Date: 1999-02-25 10:58:48.0
Subject: Re: New Message Tracking Number: 990222-316-1

Does your company support the Macintosh platform ? All devices we own currently have a minimum of a 10mbs ethernet port.

Do you charge extra for Commercial accounts ?
Thanks,
Kevin

[Reply]

Mr. Schuster, With regards to Macintosh, we regret to inform you that GTE Internet is not supporting it at this time. You would need to sign up with another ISP that supports MAC. Again, that address is www.gte.com/dsl and click on Participating ISP's. Also, the charge is the same for business and residential accounts. The price for ADSL alone is as follows:

Bronze $35.00 per month
Silver $55.00
Gold $70.00
Platinum $100.00

This price does not include Internet.
We hope this answers your questions.
GTE Advanced Products Group "

An ISP responds with some important factors to consider:

" Network management (how well the ISP's network is run), customer service, and connectivity to the major backbones are all more important than a few extra bucks a month..

[SOAPBOX]
It should be noted that, as an ISP myself, I'm biased. But I'm also closer to the issue than most folks, and get to deal with these schmucks (the telcos) on a daily basis. That said...

The telco's pricing is predatory. They're trying to push ISPs out of the market by selling access below their cost. For example, PacBell charges $40/mo for the ADSL line, and only $10 for the access. They're subsidizing your net connection by overcharging you for the line, which you'll have to buy whether or not you use them as an ISP more than likely. That way if you go to another ISP besides PB, your total price will very likely be quite a bit higher than PB's. Much like my idealogical stance against Microsoft, I also take a stand against crap like this. If this type of business practice doesn't bother you, no biggie. That's your choice.
[/SOAPBOX]

Other things to look for in an ADSL account:

-Do you get a static IP address?
-Can you get extra IPs?
-Run a proxy (NAT)?
-Do they block any incoming/outgoing ports?
-Traffic restrictions?*
-Can you expect to get the full b/w at any time?
-Are they going to do reverse DNS properly for you?
(Some don't, and without it, you can't get to restricted sites like Netscape's 128-bit download page.)
-Will they let you choose a name for your IP address?
(Not real important, but very handy.)
-How many mailboxes? Is a web page included? A dial-up?
-Do they force you to use a cache (bad)?
-Do they have a cache to use at all (good)?

Finally, get a good look at their acceptable use policy, so you know exactly what you can and can't do, and what they can and can't do to your account.

With all that out of the way, let me say that ADSL is a great technology. I use a 384/384 link from my house and it rocks. I get sustained 45-50 kbyte/s downloads and uploads on a consistant basis, it's never down, and Quake/Unreal/etc are incredible. Sub-60 ms pings on a lot of servers. I can't say enough good things about it.
Jon Rust VCNet, Inc

* IMHO, traffic restrictions are a Good Thing(tm).You don't want to be on a network where Warez kiddies can download 10 Gig a day, because your connection will suffer. No, you don't want unrealistic restrictions etiher, but a few gig a month is more than enough for most people. Even 1 Gig a month, is more than 30 Meg a day. Everyday. For 30 days. That's a lot of downloading. I'm what I'd consider a heavy user and I suck about 750 Meg/month. As your ISP signs on more people, you'll be happy they have these restrictions. Anyway, it's just MHO. "

Adam Dluzniewski writes with a detailed comparison of rates:

" Hello Mike,
I follow closely the development of ADSL in New York since I am personally interested in getting it when it becomes available at a reasonable cost. I think that your reader's comments about Flash vs. Bell [from 2/26/99 daily news] are bit incorrect, so I'd like to add few comments.

While Flash's offer is quite good, considering the special for symmetric 384Kbps for $59, it is overall not as good as Bell Atlantic's offer. InfospeedDSL from Bell Atlantic is not available in all New York areas yet, like mine for instance (should be in May) so for impatient people Flash is a good choice. I am seriously researching Flash offer myself. However, few things need to be cleared. Definitelly the good thing about Flash is that I can have it now.

If you're looking for a mid-value ADSL Flash is OK. But if you're looking for a budget solution or high-end package, it is not a good value anymore.

Most budget minded people would prefer asymmetric ADSL at lower cost since it actually is the downstream speed that will make the difference for most casual users.

If I want a high-end solution, for around $100/month I can get 640Kbps upstream and 7 Mbps down from Bell. What do I get for $100 from Flash? 200K both ways for $89 or 416K for $139 ­ definitely not a good value.

If I want cheap ADSL, $39 for 128K up and 640K down can't be beat by any Flash offer.

Also saying that Flash includes Internet account is meaningless. Neither Flash nor Bell offer web space in basic ADSL package. Flash throws in one email address, which adds very little value to their service. Email accounts can be had for as little as $6 a month, not to mention free email (I know it's baaad). I currently have 200MB of server space, full cgi support, 5 email addresses, ftp server, tons of features for $14 a month from Hostway (http://home.hostway.com/). [Ouch! I'm paying $200/mo for my new Mac server to sit on my IPS's T1-Mike]

Flash offers free connection on some services, but Bell also has good promotions in different areas, like free modem with annual subscription, free connection for ISDN customers, etc.

Bell has also committed to Mac support. They already support iMac and Mac support is coming this or next month.
Cheers,
Adam Dluzniewski (MiM)

PS: If anyone is interested, here is the run-down for services in New York area:

Bell Atlantic (asymmetric):
Infospeed 640 Kbps (128Kbps upstream and 640Kbps down) $39.95
Infospeed 1.6 Mbps (128Kbps upstream and 1.6Mbps down) $59.95
Infospeed 7.1 Mbps (640Kbps upstream and 7.1Mbps down )$109.95

One-time charges include the following:
Service Connection Charge: $99.00
DSL Modem: $325.00
Turnkey Home Installation: $99.00

Flash Com (symmetric), they don't mention modem prices, if it's free then it'd be nice:
144K/144K $79/month installation $99
160K/160K $79/month installation free
192K/192K $89/month installation $99
200K/200K $89/month installation free
384K/384K $59.95/month installation $99
416K/416K $139/month installation free
768K/768K $199/month installation $99
784K/784K $199/month installation free
1.04M/1.04M $249/month installation free
1.1M/1.1M $249/month installation free
1.5M/1.5M $349/month installation free "

Garret writes on a deal for California residents:

" I just got my DSL line (384Kbps up to 1.Mbps downstream/128Kbps upstream) hooked up through Pacific Bell. The price is amazingly low: $10 for the Pac Bell Internet ISP account (with 3 e-mail addresses and two aliases, extra analog modem account, static IP) and $40 for the DSL line telco charge. Their website says MacOS 8.5 is not supported, but you can ignore it because it's their Navigator/FreePPP package that won't work correctly. Plus, you do have to live in California.

http://www.pacbell.com/products/business/fastrak/dsl/index.html

It's very speedy, but I also have a PowerForce 400/200 running at 435Mhz. :)
Hope you're feeling better, Mike. "