Please help this person get internet in his apartment?

Question

I've asked a couple questions concerning internet service in the apartment I live in. My apartment provides internet by a company that I refuse to do business with. My phone and cable (TV) provider are the same company. If it is possible for me to get internet without using the service offered, please let me know. My computer/networking know-how is pretty basic and I don't understand a lot of technical jargon so you'll have to break it down for me.

I need all the help I can get and thanks in advance:)

Answer 1

I've been in similar situations, and your options when it comes to internet boils down to two things: 1) Whats available in your area and 2) What will your landlord allow you to install? The apartment I lived in, the landlord wasi n cahoots with Directv so there was no installation of cable allowed period -- they didn't want anyone making holes in their walls (or taking their commissions from directv). If you can't install cable you can't install cable internet, fiber optics, etc. So it all comes down to DSL -- an internet that comes over you telephone line. So you're going to need to use a phone service....whether you buy that from your cable company or telephone company depends on what your apartment management permits. Good luck!

PS. In case you were wondering, my apartment had all the rooms wired for "high speed" internet access using a company that would pay them commission for subscribers -- my roomate and I were paying $50/month for an absolutely terrible connection (it often was slower than dialup because EVERYONE in the entire complex shared the internet) you had no control over bandwidth, port forwarding, etc. So in our case, dumping them and switching to Qwest DSL (which was cheaper) and gave us more bandwidth was a beautiful and successful option.

Answer 2

Your broadband connection speed will depend on where you live and how close you are to the telephone exchange. The connection speed which I receive in a 'rural' area in North Scotland is 5.6 which is adequate for 2-4 people... I know that because my niece and her friends were using my 'wireless' connection for their separate i-pods to download music. The only way that you and your roommates will receive 19Mb or more is if you 'live' in an area where a network has fibre-optic cables e.g. Virgin media in the United Kingdom or BT which are starting to 'roll-out' their fibre-optic network through-out the country. Having worked for Tiscali customer services... a word of warning when telephoning different internet providers e.g. Talk Talk, Tiscali, Sky broadband do not let them 'bluff' you into saying that you will receive a 'higher' speed than their rivals because they cannot, for the simple reason that they themselves only rent their 'lines' from British Telecom so unless BT has a fibre optic network in place, then you only receive the standard speed availabe to your apartment. You can check what internet speed you will receive if you an an ISP comparison check on-line. Also when telephoning internet providers to enquire about their service,never ever give them your bank account details until you actually decide which company you choose...otherwise you may well find yourselves 'stuck' in an 18 month contract with the worst company in business. Be careful what time of day you download music or movies always do it off-peak and not peak time Hope this helps, Kindest regards from David P.S. I have been with BT broadband and BT Vision for a couple of years and find the deal I am terrific.