Internet 101 |
| The five tips you need to know to get started. |
| 1. Watch out for the non-cancellable account. |
| There are several variants of this business practice. AOL served as the original prototype way back in 1996 - they made a rule that the only way to cancel your account is to call an 800 number, and they understaffed the call centers so people have to wait on hold for an hour or more, only to have the phone call accidentally disconnected. Once you've narrowed down your list of ISP choices, make sure that when you decide to cancel that there are no cancellation fees. None of the ISPs we offer have cancel fees. |
| 2. Make sure to use a local access number to connect. |
| Make sure to find a provider with a local access number
in your area and you will avoid long distance charges on your internet connection. If you fail to use a local access number, it can prove costly if you spend a lot of time online. Contact your local phone company to make sure the access numbers you use are local to you. If you travel with a laptop and need to access the Internet while away, be sure to find a provider that has local numbers to the destinations you travel to on a regular basis. Also find out if you can access more than one dial in number without extra charges or fees. |
| 3. Know your modem speed. |
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The speed of your modem will determine how fast pages load while surfing and how fast you can download programs and email. Make sure your modem has a connection speed of at least 56k. The newer dial-up modems are called 'V92', and they allow you to connect to the internet, at speeds up to 200% faster than a 56k Internet connection and receive telephone calls at the same time.
Some of the providers we offer have V92 internet access numbers. The highest speed available right now to personal users is with DSL, but due to the higher cost of DSL or limited availability, many people find it is not in their budget. |
| 4. Technical support - is it really free? |
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One of the ways that an ISP can offer a REALLY low monthly price is to keep their expenses low. One obvious way is to not provide technical support. If you are signing up with an ISP, look to see if the technical support number is a toll-free call. Our recommendation on this issue: If you need toll-free support, sign up for Copper Internet. |
| 5. Don't overpay for your Internet service. |
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Keep in mind that most of the large ISP's use the same access numbers that as the discount Internet access providers that we offer here. Don't pay
$23.95/Month when you can get the same Internet access for over 50% less.
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