Satellite Internet (advice needed)

[GoSeahawks]

In my most recent move I've figured out that DSL is not available in my area (nor will it be any time soon). I have concluded that Satellite Internet is the only somewhat comparable alternative to DSL. I realize it's very expensive but I hate dialing up enough to pay the $500+ for the setup and $70 a month.

Does anyone in this community use Satellite for to connect to the net? What are things to look at before purchasing? I would really appriciate any help on this topic. Lastly, who are the major service providers? So far I know of StarBand and Earthlink.
Thanks

[Draft Dodger]

the one thing that sticks in my mind is the receivers/modems are a USB connection, not an ethernet connection (meaning you can't hook it up to a router to share between computers)

[Draft Dodger]

I have NO idea if I'm actually correct, btw - just that it sticks in my mind

[GoSeahawks]

Originally Posted by Draft Dodger

the one thing that sticks in my mind is the receivers/modems are a USB connection, not an ethernet connection (meaning you can't hook it up to a router to share between computers)

So my router is useless huh? Does that mean that only one computer could use the internet at a time?

[Draft Dodger]

Originally Posted by GoSeahawks

So my router is useless huh? Does that mean that only one computer could use the internet at a time?

possibly. truth is, I don't really know, but that should definitely part of your investigation

[Airhog]

also, from what ive seen, you can only download through a sat connection. Upload speed is still through the land line. Of course this could have changed since i last read up on it.

[GoSeahawks]

Originally Posted by Airhog

also, from what ive seen, you can only download through a sat connection. Upload speed is still through the land line. Of course this could have changed since i last read up on it.

I believe you are correct. Something I was reading said that uploads speeds are still at 56k.

[Tasan]

Actually, they do have sat upload units now, but they are still about as slow as dialup, around 60kbps.

[Tasan]

Dola

Have you looked into ISDN service in your area. Its not the fastest, but it will be very reliable and your up and down should be a constant 128kbps. I used it for a while when I worked for an ISP and couldn't get DSL. It should run around 80 or so bucks. I would actually go with it instead of satelite. If you go that route, I've got an ISDN router I could send you real cheap too, as I'll probably not need it again.

[Glengoyne]

Originally Posted by Tasan

Actually, they do have sat upload units now, but they are still about as slow as dialup, around 60kbps.

Yes this is true now. You do not need a phone line for uplink. The big thing to be concerned with is latency. You might have a lightning fast download capability, but I am not certain how will it would serve you in a online game setting. I used to play way too much everquest, and I too live in a rural setting where I only have access to 56k dial up internet. I was always scared of the latency I might have when dealing with a satelite connection. I think it would be too far out of synch with the rest of the world for it to me a workable solution. The same problem would apply with telnet sessions I would use to connect to the office. Type a letter...wait....see it on the screen, is just too big a hassle to put up with. If you just want to download, then it should be fine.

[finkenst]

online game setting on a satellite link = useless.

22000 miles up, 22000 miles down = 44000 miles for the packet to traverse from the ground station to your receiver... that's a fairly instant 250 ms. fare worse than dialup.

[finkenst]

dola,

oh, and another thing, latency is usually far more important and noticeable than transfer speeds for lots of applications.

[Franklinnoble]

I think a satellite ISP might be good for web surfing and e-mail, but not a whole lot else.

[GoSeahawks]

Originally Posted by Tasan

Dola

Have you looked into ISDN service in your area. Its not the fastest, but it will be very reliable and your up and down should be a constant 128kbps. I used it for a while when I worked for an ISP and couldn't get DSL. It should run around 80 or so bucks. I would actually go with it instead of satelite. If you go that route, I've got an ISDN router I could send you real cheap too, as I'll probably not need it again.

Anotha Dola
What is ISDN? And who was your provider? I am doing a quick search to see what I come up with...

Also I should be clear that I live in a pretty secluded area. The nearest cable connection is probably 15 miles.

[Franklinnoble]

Doesn't ISDN usually charge a per-minute fee?

[GoSeahawks]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

Doesn't ISDN usually charge a per-minute fee?

It is 1 cent per business minute. hmmm

[finkenst]

ISDN BRI service (the usual residential line) is 2 B channels + a D channel for signaling. It gives you 64k/B channel or 128k is you are doing multilink ISDN to your provider.

Billing rates vary depending on if it is residential or business... In ohio, IIRC, ISDN cost ~65/month for the line and unmetered billing for local calls.

[Yossarian]

the one thing that sticks in my mind is the receivers/modems are a USB connection, not an ethernet connection (meaning you can't hook it up to a router to share between computers)

This is techincally correct
but you dont NEED a router to share connection


Get the USB connection
Get a seperate network card for each PC
Set up 'primary' pc with USB connection to internet
set up 'windows connection sharing' on primary pc
set all other pc's to use primary pc as gateway

and boom

shared internet

[Franklinnoble]

Suppose I live on a dirt road, and my dial up connection is usually so crappy I get excited when I connect at 26k. Would that affect my ISDN performance?

[finkenst]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

Suppose I live on a dirt road, and my dial up connection is usually so crappy I get excited when I connect at 26k. Would that affect my ISDN performance?

since it's digital, it shouldn't. You either connect at 64k/channel (or 56, depending on switch types) or you don't connect at all...

i seem to recall back in the day, there was a distance limitation for how far you are from the your central office.

call up sbc if they are your local provider to find out.

[Taur]

What about the wireless internet?

I live in a very rural area and do not have access to cable TV so I use DirecTv for my television. I believe a company in my town has recently built a tower for internet service. By putting an antenena on my home to connect to their tower I can get a broadband intrenet connection?

I just saw an info segment on my local public access channel detailing all this, but missed out on the beginning. He said he was getting speeds around 350 with a little mobile setup that he had hoojked up to his laptop around the county.

Anyone else here about this wireless internet?

[SackAttack]

I imagine that depends on whether the company is doing it as a public service, or if they were just stupid enough to set it up for their own internal use (but left it unsecured).

[Ksyrup]

I guess I'm the "expert" on satellite internet connections here, since I had it for about 2 years. I had service through DirecWay.

Here's the deal...I was in the same situation you were - the only connection I had available in the subdivision I moved into was dialup, and that topped out at 33.6. DirecWay ran a deal where I could buy the equipment interest-free over 12 months, so it ended up costing me $600 over 12 months, plus $200 install fee, plus the service cost of $60 a month.

Installation was an eye-opener. Apparently, only certain people licensed or regulated by the FCC can install the thing, so not even a satellite TV installer can install satellite internet. I had to call a company in South Carolina for installation, and they subcontracted with a place in Jacksonville, who sent out a couple of guys to drive all the way to Tallahassee to do the install.

The satellite is oval and 2-3 times the size of a DirecTV satellite. They tried to install it on the roof, but couldn't get a good enough signal, so they installed it on a 6-foot pole in the middle of my backyard. The good thing is that there are FCC regulations which permit you to install wherever you can get a signal, so the homeowners association - which tried to get me to take it down - couldn't do a thing about it.

Connection speed...download speed is pretty good, about 1.5GB. Upload is useless, even the "two-way" connection that doesn't require a land line basically is dialup speed. Latency is a huge problem, although it didn't bother me much since I don't play games online. It did make connecting to my firm's system difficult, as typing an email and seeing the letters come up 10 seconds later sucked.

Another biggie - really, my biggest issue of them all - DirecWay limits downloads to about 169MB at a time, meaning they essentially shut you down to 56K speed once you've downloaded that much within a certain period of time. It's their "fair access policy." They have upped those limits, but only if you pay about $90 a month, which is ridiculous.

As far as connectivity, I found it to be less reliable than DirecTV. It was almost a weather predictor of sorts, since I would lose connection and about a minute later, it would start pouring rain. It went down far more often than my DirecTV connection does.

I checked into sharing the connection with a laptop, and there is a way to do it with the brand-new modems they use. I never did upgrade, since it was $300-400 dollars. I think in order for it to work, you have to leave your main computer on while the connection is shared. But I never got a laptop, so I didn't follow through on that to see what worked.

I know this all sounds negative, but honestly, since I used it for 2 years, I feel like I got my money's worth, at least compared to 2 years in dial-up hell. We finally got Comcast cable, so I made the switch, and the difference - in terms of speed and amount I am able to download - really can't be compared. But if you don't have that option, there's not much else you can do.

Finally...if you are serious about getting satellite access, PM me. I just took down all of the equipment in my backyard, so I have a satellite, modem, software, some of the wiring, etc., that I was going to throw away because I didn't think it was worth trying to sell on Ebay for $100 or so. I'd be willing to sell it to you. You'd need to get the service, of course, and have a licensed installer put it up for you, but it all worked as well as it did Day 1 when I switched over to cable. Let me know.

[Taur]

Been running around the Qwest site and I have to wonder what I am missing. It sounds like all you don't even need a phone line for their DSL service...1.5mps/896kps

It also sound like I could take my DSL modem on the road with me and use it at motels. If I provide my own ISP the DSL service is as low as $15.00 bucks a month???

Just how far off the path am I? I am currently stuck in 56k hell so this would be a huge improvement.

[CraigSca]

I live in a rural area where cable isn't available. My initial reaction was to get DirecWay, but then I heard about the latency issues. I three my hands up in disgust and decided to call the local Radio Shack to see what they could recommend. Turns out the local Radio Shack owner sells wireless network hook-ups in our area.

I've had it for a year, and it's GREAT. It's exactly the same as my old DSL except faster, and I've had no problems with it whatsoever. The latency is minuscule and I can online game to my heart's content. Before I had it, I didn't think it would be reliable or even work - but it does. Even if cable were made available in my area, since I'm a DirecTV customer I wouldn't switch.

Go wireless - it rocks

-Craig

[finkenst]

Originally Posted by Taur

Been running around the Qwest site and I have to wonder what I am missing. It sounds like all you need is a phone line for their DSL service...256K

It also sound like I could take my DSL modem on the road with me and use it at motels. If I provide my own ISP the DSL service is only $15.00 bucks a month???

Just how far off the path am I? I am currently stuck in 56k hell so 256k would be a huge improvement.

well, that would usually need a qwest connection at said motel.

Having said that, MANY motels offer broadband internet access in each room. All you do is plug in your NIC into the appropriate port on your laptop, flip on IE or netscape, and away you go.

This is essentially the same sort of thing that Panera's (aka St Louis Bread Co) and Unos do at their wireless bars, restaurants, etc except it's with wireless ethernet.

--tim

[Ragone]

Goseahawks.. one thing you need to know about Satellite's is the meg limit and the burst connections.. if you plan on playing any sort of online games (fps's.. mmorpg's etc) forget about it.. you'll lose connectivity ALL the time..