DSL Question?????

[Crazee Carroll]

Hey gang! Just a real quick question for you guys... I am close to making an offer on a home here in northern IL. The owners at one time had DSL so having it set up will not be a problem... My question is has anybody used TDS Metrocom as their DSL provider? How well does it work? How easy is it to set up and operate? I currently have TDS as my phone provider and have been very happy so giving their DSL service a try will be great for me with the price I can get it at. Thanks for your help... CC

[Five Hole]

Some people might be able to pipe in with their experience but the website below will probably be of better help to you.

http://www.dslreports.com/

Do a search of TDS Metrocom and it should bring up some results.

[HappyGoLucky]

Hey gang! Just a real quick question for you guys... I am close to making an offer on a home here in northern IL. The owners at one time had DSL so having it set up will not be a problem... My question is has anybody used TDS Metrocom as their DSL provider? How well does it work? How easy is it to set up and operate? I currently have TDS as my phone provider and have been very happy so giving their DSL service a try will be great for me with the price I can get it at. Thanks for your help... CC
DSL is a pretty standard commodity, so from one company to the next it is very similar. Now, the varying speeds and prices can be much different, but the actual circuit itself is pretty standard. Setup is typically very easy. You put line filters into all of your phone jacks (that splits the signal between voice and data, so your voice phones, fax, modems, answering machines, etc. don't interfere with the DSL data and vice versa). Your DSL "modem" gets plugged into a "raw" jack (without a filter, or using a splitter/filter that has a raw and a filtered jack), which is then connected to the computer.

[Mark Holtz]

Not necessarily, Happy Go Lucky. You can also have a NID splitter on the line so that you have a dedicated line going to the DSL modem and the rest of the house phones don't need filters.

Before you get the DSL, see if they authenticate using PPPoE or PPPoA, and if they use CHAP or PAP authentication. This might play a factor in purchasing DSL equipment.

[HappyGoLucky]

Not necessarily, Happy Go Lucky. You can also have a NID splitter on the line so that you have a dedicated line going to the DSL modem and the rest of the house phones don't need filters.

Before you get the DSL, see if they authenticate using PPPoE or PPPoA, and if they use CHAP or PAP authentication. This might play a factor in purchasing DSL equipment.
Most phone companies charge a significant fee to do a "home run" line to the DSL modem. BellSouth here in Atlanta charges minimum of $80 (more depending on time/materials) to do that, where as they give a package of filters for free.