Is it possible to get internet service at home without a land line?

[Maddy McCall]

And without using satellite or cable?

Can you get DSL without a land-line phone?

[KitchenWitch]

1. I believe DSL requires a landline.

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. No DSL without a phone line

Whether you need to have actual phone service, I don't know, but I know that DSL is specifically that kind of broadband which is carried over phone lines.

And you don't want cable...

so that leaves the only option being some kind of satellite.

OR - get yourself a wireless card, and hope to hell you have a neighbor who's broadcasting wireless to the neighborhood.

[Wapsie B]

5. What's wrong with cable access?

People seem to be happy with the cable internet service around here.

[Rabrrrrrr]

6. I don't know - ask Maddy. She's the one who didn't want it.

I didn't say it was bad.

[Maddy McCall]

14. I would get cable internet if I could get cable.

But the cable company would have to run a mile of cable to provide service to me, and they don't want to do that, because I'm the only person who would receive their service here...I'm the only home on my driveway.

So that leaves me with DSL or satellite. I use bellsouth, but I want to quit paying a phone bill for a phone I despise to own and never use.

No neighbors, so I can't pirate my neighbors' signal :( :shrug:

[Rabrrrrrr]

17. How far out of town are you?

To have DSL you need to be within 3 miles of a switching point. If it would take a mile of cable to get to you, I'm thinking you rather removed from the beaten trail.

[Maddy McCall]

19. I have DSL. My driveway is on a main highway--my driveway is...

about a mile from town. But I'm on the back side of 40 acres, so add another mile. My DSL works fine, but bellsouth told me I had to have phone service to have DSL.

I hate my phone...I never use it. I want to retire phone service and keep DSL, but I don't think I can do that. So I'm looking into other alternatives.

Mainly--the Verizon broadband option with coast-to-coast coverage. But I'll have to wait until I am certain that my area is in that "coast to coast" area.

[Rabrrrrrr]

20. I see. I had a feeling that one had to have phone service to get DSL.

Maybe they'd let you take your phone service down to "emergency only" status? I'm not sure, but that might work.

:shrug:

Beyond that, I am of no help.

[Maddy McCall]

23. I don't know...I wish I could do VOIP and DSL and not have to...

fool with bellsouth. I adhore Bellsouth.

[merh]

3. Don't the dish networks provide internet now.

Satellite internet connections? :shrug:

:hug:

[Maddy McCall]

4. Yeah, but it's really expensive.

:hi:

:hug:

[merh]

8. Is it?

I thought it was actually cheaper than cable - at least for the minimum.
Heck, what do I know - I'm a dial up kind of gal myself! ;-)

:hug: :pals: :loveya:

[ChoralScholar]

13. Not to mention

high download speeds, SLOOOOOOOOW upload speeds. Some even require you use a phone line for uploads and acks. And don't get me started about the high ping times.

Cable is okay, depending on your provider. It's hard to beat the reliability of DSL.

Around here, cable is faster, but it's up and down.

With DSL, what was advertised is exactly what I got. 99.99999999999% of the time. I think like 15 minutes of downtime in 4 years.

[Wcross]

30. I have satalite (wild blue) up +down on the dish.

1.5mbps down and 256kbps up. It is rather expensive.

[trof]

7. I don't know how you would do that. Short wave?

:shrug:

[Rabrrrrrr]

9. Semaphore!

[trof]

12. Yeah, but it's REAL slow.

Morse Code is a little faster.
;-)

[ChoralScholar]

26. Semaphore is AWESOME

A W E S O M E

[jobycom]

10. So, no phone line, cable, or antenna?

The signal has to arrive somehow.

DSL comes over a regular phone line, right along with voice. So you'd have to have the phone line to use it. Maybe you could get a phone company to not charge you for a phone number--you'd have to ask them.

Or you could get cellular phone internet. I hear it's expensive.

[Maddy McCall]

28. I have a phone line, but I want a divorce from my phone and to keep...

DSL...but looks like that's not possible.

[AntiCoup2K4]

11. I believe Verizon Wireless offers cellular broadband access.....

...but it costs more than cable. I believe it's over $50/month (Definitely aiming for the folks who can write it off as a business expense, I guess)

[Maddy McCall]

15. I would love the cellular broadband. .. I think it's closer to 60 or 70 $

[In_The_Wind]

16. You can get internet service without a land line.

I have the same maneuverability with my laptop that I do with my cell phone.

[Maddy McCall]

18. That would be awesome.

That's what I want. Do you do Verizon?

[In_The_Wind]

29. I am using Cingular.

The cost will vary with the amount of air time you purchase.

They offer a $20.00 per month discount off the wireless laptop connection if you also have Cingular as your cell phone service provider.

[LaurenG]

21. Maddy, read this thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x5478023

[Maddy McCall]

24. Thanks!

[Momgonepostal]

22. My BIL and his wife have some kind of wireless DSL

They live way out in the boonies and traditional DSL is not available. They did say it is expensive, but she was going to be taking a few online classes and downloading lots of texts, so they felt like it was worth it. They are very pleased with it, as a whole.

[Maddy McCall]

25. Yeah, that's why I have to have broadband...

I have to download files for my dissertation, and can't do it on dial-up.

Thanks for the suggestion.

[Xithras]

27. Lots of wireless options nowadays. Try Clearwire.

There are all kinds of services offering wireless access nowadays. The only catch is that you need to live in a developed area to use them. If you don't, check you cell provider...I know many people who use Verizon Wireless for their Internet access, but that tends to be slow AND expensive.

[hickman1937]

31. Is sbc the only phone company you can use?

No AT&T, no MCI, etc?

[gollygee]

32. We have dsl and no land-line phone

the trick is to not try to get it through SBC because they won't do it. Find a provider who doesn't offer phone services.