Does your Home Phone need to be active to use DSL?

Answer 1

Sure does.. but you can get rid of phone service if you have cable internet.

Answer 2

To get DSL service you need an active phone line. Here's why:

DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) acts in much the same way as good old dial up did. You turn on your computer, dial in to a server, and your online! The difference between dial-up and DSL though, is that DSL travels as a ditigal signal that you cannot hear when talking on the phone. So while someone talks on the phone and you surf the web, their voice and your data are simutaneously traveling the same line, just at different frequencies.

If you don't have an activite phone line, it might still be possible to activate DSL service, but in 99% of cases this is simple not possible. Because your phone line is not operable you won't be able to dial into a server and connect to the internet.

If you have cable, wireless, or Satellite internet, you can nerf your phone line and use a service like Skype or Vonage to get phone service. Why does this work?

Because cable, satellite, and wireless (Wi-Fi connections, don't mistake a wireless DSL network in you home for a Wi-Fi network) connections don't travel across phone lines. Therefore. it doesn't matter whether or not you have phone service or not.

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Please note also that many people will mislabel high speed connections. Cable internet travels through a cable routed to your home, just like cable TV. DSL travels across phone lines and is not provided by cable companies. Wireless Connections are sent through the air from a centrel source. A wireless CONNECTION is different from a wireless NETWORK, which routes an existing connection between computers in your house.

Answer 3

Yes, DSL data travels through your phone wire and it must be active for them to send data through it.

The line must be activated, but you may not have to get a phone service with it. It all depends on your DSL and phone provider. Very few companies will let you use DSL without phone service.

Cable is a different story since they send the data through the cable TV wire. Some people seem to be confusing the two.

For a definitive answer:

"What is Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) service?
DSL is an innovative technology that turns your existing phone line into a multi-channel data-delivery system. One channel transmits voice services exclusively, so you can surf the Web while talking on the phone or faxing. The second channel transmits data downstream at high speeds, and a third channel transmits data upstream."

http://promo.yahoo.com/verizon/about_faq.html?.u_vers=&.u_done=#question2

Answer 4

Yep it sure does!

I've wanted to discontinue my "land line" phone and use only my cell phone, but if I do that then I will lose my DSL service, so I've got to keep my land line phone going too!

If you want to get rid of your land line but still have internet access, you could check with your cable TV or satellite TV provider -- more and more nowadways the TV companies are offering broadband internet service as well.

Good luck!

Answer 5

No it doesn't. If you get your DSL through your cable provider you don't need a home phone. That's what my oldest daughter did. She and her husband only have cell phones so they got their DSL through their cable provider and that way they didn't need to get a home phone.

Answer 6

yes u have to have a home telephone line and it has to be activated, usually the dsl service is thru ur telephone comapny.

Answer 7

ure phone company will tell u if you can have dsl in your area, but if your phone lines are dead I think you need to get them turned them back on. :)

Answer 8

DSL does not use phone lines, so, no

I guess I was also confused. Thanks for good answers below. Yea, I've learned something today on Yahoo Answers

Answer 9

Yes, it needs to be activated. I tried doing that and it didn't work.

Answer 10

No, we are leasing a house on the gulf and using our cell phones. The house has comcast wireless and we do not have a land phone line.