 
rbright
Premium
join:2002-12-10
Lexington, KY
clubs:
edit:
February 7th, @05:27PM
| His Choice However, I see plenty of reasons to stick with my broadband connection. If he was unable to see the benefits, there wouldn't be much use in trying to explain them to him. | |
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NOCMan
Verizon Fios User
Premium
join:2004-09-30
Flower Mound, TX | Re: His Choice I think a page load from CNN is now nearly a meg.. god help you if you like the news on dialup. | |
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aztecnology
The Autumn wind is a Raider
join:2003-02-12
Murrieta, CA | Send him back to 2800 baud... | |
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aztecnology
The Autumn wind is a Raider
join:2003-02-12
Murrieta, CA | Re: His Choice I was actually thinking 9600 at the time... doing too many things at once...:D | |
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Dustyn
Premium
join:2003-02-26
Ontario, CAN
| I can understand how he feels. He just wants to use the internet without worrying about how much time he has to invest in learning about the dangers and threats. Dial-up provides a little better security from hackers.
Not everyone wants to spend every waking moment online seeing if they are up to date on the security front, antivirus, anti-spyware....ect...ect. It can all get too tiresome. 
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"You have no idea what I am capable of. People who have tried to cross me, have lived to regret it... ~Michelle Stafford (Phyllis) | |
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lyls
@tele.dk | Re: His Choice uhm no that wasnt why :P didnt seem like that at all anyway... you dont think you can get worms and spyware on 56k? =) | |
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Dustyn
Premium
join:2003-02-26
Ontario, CAN
| Re: His Choice said by lyls:
uhm no that wasnt why :P didnt seem like that at all anyway... you dont think you can get worms and spyware on 56k? =)
Of course you can...
I'm talking more about hackers.
There is LESS chance of being probed on an unsecured dial-up connection than there is on a secured DSL/Cable connection. Why? Because Dial-Up is in a completely different range than that of DSL/Cable. Hackers won't waste time trying to bring down a dial-up connection that doesn't stay connected for long.
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"You have no idea what I am capable of. People who have tried to cross me, have lived to regret it... ~Michelle Stafford (Phyllis) | |
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johndoe234
@starstream.net
| Re: His Choice Not really. I know plenty of people who got hit by worms like blaster who were using dial up. It may offer a slight security advantage over having a computer directly connected to the Internet over broadband, but it is by no means safer than being behind a router. | |
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| MM331
Premium
join:2005-01-22
Miami, FL | I am with Lightning bolt DSL here and My uploads are slower than Dialup at a whopping 0002 UP. Downloads are ok at 2k (+/-) 10% on 3k/384 line. I do have the use of the phone while online. | |
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Titus Pullo
I came, I saw, I slept
join:2004-06-26
 ·Embarq
| Did anyone read the article? Unless I need a college refund pronto, it's an essay on what some people do with their time once they have BB, not a debate on one access method versus another.
IMO, the author makes a valid point: There will always be people that spend most of their spare time on line even with a dial-up connection; the point -- I think, anyway -- is that once you obtain 'the need for speed' that BB provides, the possibility of worsening an Internet addiction, whether latent or full-blown, is certainly more likely. Sure, you can be a boozer w/dialup; what are you with T2 speeds and more?
An Internet addictive personality + BB, to some folks, would be akin to capturing a bear only to find themselves in the cage with it -- at least I believe that's what the article was driving at.
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"The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppose." -- Frederick Douglass | |
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Sailor Enlil
@pldt.net
| Here's my take (which I submitted to the form on that website with the report but I'm not sure it will get published). Once I got hooked on ADSL I never looked back at 56k. One of the biggest problems of Dial-up internet in my locality is a Busy phone line, which happens too often, especially during peak hours, and moreso with the popularity of pre-paid dial-up internet cards, thus dial-up servers these days bite off more than they can chew. What good is a "cheap" connection if you can't get through most of the time? And what's more, I often had to resort to staying up at the ungodly off-peak hours (like 3 in the morning!) to use the internet more effectively with dial-up. And given how sophisticated webpages are now with graphics and flash animation and stuff, loading a webpage alone can take eons these days on dial-up, which also means lots of minutes of connection time, which increases the charges (in fact I found that I often ended up with much higher bills with metered 56k than I have now with flat-rate ADSL because of necessary connection time). No thanks, my "need for speed" has to be satisfied and I won't settle for anything slower than 384kbps. Oh and another thing, 56k dial-up just won't do for the 3 Networked PC's in my house that share our internet connection. | |
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davebenham
join:2002-01-31
Round Lake, IL
edit:
February 7th, @05:29PM
| what a power user He was probably using his broadband connection just to check his email once a day. | |
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Redlight
Rarr
join:2001-12-01
Bridgeport, OH | Ugh no way I could never think of going back to dial up! | |
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fegul
Premium
join:2004-08-23
united state
| Re: Ugh no way said by Redlight  :I could never think of going back to dial up! Life B.B (Before Broadband) was rough. Life B.C (Before Computers) would be even worse!
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The true might of an empire.»www.fegul.blogspot.com | |
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Dustyn
Premium
join:2003-02-26
Ontario, CAN
| said by Redlight :I could never think of going back to dial up! Me either! 56K is okay for casual web page surfing but not when you want to download the latest service pack from Microsoft. I also don't want to go back to dial-up because I can appreciate being able to use the phone and the internet at the same time. I find being able to use the internet+phone at the same time pretty cool when you have a DSL line.... how it's done is neat.
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"You have no idea what I am capable of. People who have tried to cross me, have lived to regret it... ~Michelle Stafford (Phyllis) | |
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atangel
Now What??
Premium
join:2002-02-18
Bronx, NY
| He' Got a Point, But Not For Me Well, he's got something of a point actually. Unless you are downloading volumes of music or shareware or get large attachments, regular Web (not Internet) content just doesn't require it yet.
It is a lot to pay for standard e-mail and google surfing only. | |
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Vamp
5c077
Premium
join:2003-01-28
MD
 ·Verizon FIOS
| said by atangel : regular Web (not Internet) content just doesn't require it yet. WRONG, you know how freakin slow browsing pages with dialup is? specially stuff like ebay, etc. | |
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lxAstrosxl
Premium
join:2000-10-13
Carol Stream, IL
clubs:
| Re: He' Got a Point, But Not For Me said by Vamp : said by atangel : regular Web (not Internet) content just doesn't require it yet. WRONG, you know how freakin slow browsing pages with dialup is? specially stuff like ebay, etc. i have 56k and ebay and other sites load just fine and within an understandable time. matter of few seconds longer then broadband. | |
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| | | miniponyboy
join:2005-02-07
Chelsea, QC
| Re: He' Got a Point, But Not For Me said by lxAstrosxl :i have 56k and ebay and other sites load just fine and within an understandable time. matter of few seconds longer then broadband. I don't know what is up with other people who noisly complains but I agree with you there lxAstro
kill the huge ad (leave them as still small jpg banners)...shun Flash back to only for games or 'online' programs....write websites better (pointing to particular webmasters) then there...its already manageable for any kind of supportable dialup modems [that is 28.8 to 56 ones]
mpb | |
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The Flash
You don't win friends with salad
Premium
join:2002-10-17
Toronto, ON | . at least we know he wasn't horny. | |
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John Galt
Premium
join:2004-09-30
Oceanside, OR
| Re: . said by The Flash :at least we know he wasn't horny. He's British....!
Just kiddin', mates!
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A is A | |
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KeepOnRockin
Music Lover Forever
Premium
join:2002-11-08
Beaverton, OR
 ·Comcast
·Verizon Online DSL
| Re: ...
Well, if P2P did not exist in some form (or was outlawed) I would seriously consider going back to 56k.
Truth be told, I can check my email and surf the web just fine on a dial-up (I know, I did it for years).
I pay $65.95 a month for broadband and I make sure I get my money's worth of use out of it every month.
I hardly ever paid a monthly fee for dial-up when I used it (I bounced from free providers and services like MSN that gave me a lot free months). I would only be paying for the physical land line. | |
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Techless
sole survivor
Premium
join:2002-07-19
The 70s | Guess he never got the Viagra spam | |
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TheGiant
Next Year Is Here.
join:2001-03-28
Knoxville, TN | Why? That would be like going back to Black and white TVs Who needs color? Might as well get the old 486 fired up and give that P4 away while he is at it. | |
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Dominokat
Who me?
Premium
join:2002-08-06
Boothbay, ME
clubs:
·RoadRunner Cable
| 56k is FAST! Before Adelphia provided cable broadband to my house, my DAIL UP was 26.4k AT BEST. 56k would have felt like broadband to me.
Now I have true broadband and I will NEVER consider going back to dial up speeds.
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The Following Statement Is False; The Previous Statement Is True. Welcome To Our Corner of the Universe. (“Andromeda”) | |
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Dude111
An Awesome Dude
Premium
join:2003-08-04
USA | Re: 56k is FAST! Why would anyone wanna go back 2 56k,it doesnt make ne sense!!  | |
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| | Roop
join:2003-11-15
Ottawa, ON | Re: 56k is FAST! i couldn't go back to 56k, primarily. i have dsl and cable. when those both go down (power outage) then i use 56k on my laptop. it's not fast but i can check my email and post on bbr. | |
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| | | packetl0ss
join:2004-12-10
edit:
February 7th, @06:32PM
| Re: 56k is FAST! Try downloading the latest Linux distributions on dial-up. Get back to me next week when you are done downloading only one distribution. | |
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| | | | BosstonesOwn
join:2002-12-15
Everett, MA
clubs:
·Comcast
·Comcast Formerly ..
| Re: 56k is FAST! said by packetl0ss :Try downloading the latest Linux distributions on dial-up. Get back to me next week when you are done downloading only one distribution. haha at 20 megs a second on 56 k it takes more then a week solid to get the whole dvd lol. 5 cds at 600 megs each is 30 hours each cd in optimal speeds.
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"It's always funny until someone gets hurt......and then it's absolutely friggin' hysterical!" | |
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| | | | DSL Oberst
join:2001-11-29
| Try downloading the latest Linux distributions on dial-up. Get back to me next week when you are done downloading only one distribution.
Again, that is for power-user or a gamer. If all you do with the internet is check and write email once, maybe twice a day, then do you require broadband? | |
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| | | | | packetl0ss
join:2004-12-10
| Re: 56k is FAST! Sure. Writing one or two emails a day might tie up the phone line long enough to miss a call coming in during that. There are people who merely use broadband to ensure they don't tie up the phone line and miss a call when reading and replying to emails once a day. | |
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SRFireside
join:2001-01-19
Houston, TX | Re: 56k is FAST! Only if the cost of having the phone line free is not too excessive. Some people might not see that "what if..." scenario be enough to justify a $25-$40 monthly cost. | |
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Aggie Dan
Stop... Reverse That.
Premium
join:2001-01-30
Frisco, TX
clubs:
| Oh, I *could* get away from broadband (and my computer at home) for a month... In fact I gave up using the computer for any sort of recreation for Lent a few years back. Talk about a rough 40 days.
But, for me broadband is a necessity. It actually improves my quality of life and that of my spouse. We both work in the telecommunications industry and do programming and data analysis.
Since we live 30 miles from either of our jobs, having broadband in order to remote into our jobs is a life saver. Especially since the round trip (without getting out of our cars) is an hour.
Admittedly, we are technophiles with six computers in the house (2 run Windows XP, 2 dual boot Windows XP and Gentoo Linux, and 2 run Gentoo Linux exclusively) sharing a Linksys B/G router with speedbooster.
And I admit I'm spoiled. But, I know how bad it can be. I've been around long enough to remember when 14.4 was REALLY fast. I also remember when 6 guys I knew all chipped in to buy a 1 x speed CD burner that was over $1,000. Plus, when I visit my mother, the fastest that I've ever connected on her computer is 26.4K. Working from her place was unbelievably slow.
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Note : The statements made by myself are my own and not the opinions of my employer or of my coworkers. 15.81 GHz Crunching Power | The Ryan Foundation for MPS Children | |
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JammerMan79
Premium,VIP
join:2004-05-13
Prince George, BC
edit:
February 7th, @07:03PM
| said by BlitzenZeus :People who can't do without broadband need to be separated from their computer, and internet connection for a month to straighten their priorities Dial-up is what most people need if they need a internet connection, while its not fast anymore, most of the people spoiled by broadband likely never used computer in the days when 14.4Kbit modems were the fastest connection possible unless you were just extremely rich, and when 28.8/31.2KBit modems came out, they were amazing at the time... have you ever tried talking on the phone while a dialup connection is running?
I remember when 2400 baud was cool | |
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| | | SNOldak924
join:2003-06-15
Bethesda, MD
| The problems aren't with the users. They are with the obnoxious web developers who love to make splash screens, full-flash sites, background music, hundreds of flashing gif advertisements, etc. Try waiting a whole minute for a popup to load, and you'll be begging for broadband in no time. | |
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| | underscore
join:2004-04-20
Fairfax, VA
| said by Dude111 :Why would anyone wanna go back 2 56k,it doesnt make ne sense!! Read the article, he clearly states why. He reverted to 56k because he had an internet addiction. The limitations of dialup stopped him from wandering the web endlessly and wasting away on the computer. | |
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| | | techjunkie13
join:2005-01-18
Covington, IN
edit:
February 7th, @10:35PM
|  Re: 56k is FAST!
Using that logic I extended the idea to: I tend to drive over the speed limit on the interstate. I should sell my car and get a bike? Obviously I have no self control and can't abide by the law!
This is silly in my opinion. By the time I pay SBC 20.00 a month for a second line and anywhere from 10.00 to 20.00 for good dial-up service I have spent as much if not more than my Broadband connection. (Yes,in my opinion, a second line is necessary if you have to use the internet for work of any kind and use dial-up.)
Good grief have a little self control! I get sick and tired of people making excuses for simply not being responsible and having self control. So it is Broadband's fault that you are piddling away your life on the internet and breaking the law. Give me a break!
Ok my little rant is over. I wanted to say all of the above to the gentleman that wrote the article but vented on all of you instead.
My apologies but I just couldn't control myself and it is all Broadband's fault! | |
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SRFireside
join:2001-01-19
Houston, TX
·RoadRunner Cable
| Re: 56k is FAST! Maybe his reasons were extreme, but dialup still serves a very useful purpose for a lot of people. For one dialup can be had for around $10 or less a month. Over 50% less than the cheapest cable or DSL offering from the major players. And with some people that cost makes all the difference. All they do is check email, go to a site or two, and maybe visit a chat room. The wait time for them is worth the savings. Then you have the people who are still not in an area where they can get broadband. Sad reality in this day and age.
Of course broadband is great. It gives you much more bang for your Internet buck. Just saying not everybody wants to get the most out of their Internet link. | |
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| | | | | techjunkie13
join:2005-01-18
Covington, IN
| Re: 56k is FAST! I can't argue that for some people Dial-Up is enough. I guess I am arguing with the logic that the man in the BBC article used for going back to Dial-Up and that was basically a lack of self control.
At least that is how I viewed the entire article. Maybe I ranted somewhat but when people make decisions based on a lack of self control and then try to justify it by arguing that: Well dial-up is just about as good as Broadband and keeps me honest, I just want to scream.
Well at least I feel better for venting my frustration. And I still blame my broadband for my lack of self control. | |
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| xlimitx
join:2001-12-31
Wilkes Barre, PA | I guess you could always use one of those dial-up accelerator programs that some ISPs use. Even then, it can't be that much faster. | |
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EFudd
Premium
join:2001-09-08
Brownsville, OH
| I've been around long enough to remember the VIC20 and a 300baud modem. When we went to 1200baud it was sooo fast we had to learn how to stop the scrolling so we could read the text that just flew by.
Going back to a modem connection in my area would not be going back to 56k, but to less than 28k because the phone line quality is terrible( this in a newly built house, its the telephone lines outside the house ).
The guy in the article switched back to dialup because he couldn't control his internet use. He was reading everything and doing everything he could both at work and at home. He was a true broadband 'junkie'. He noticed the problem and is now doing the equivalent of cutting up his credit cards.
I can understand where he's coming from, but from a computer perspective before broadband was available. I quit computers completely around 12 years ago and stayed away from them for about 5 years because they consumed my life. I got back into computers and networking when a friend brought me along when he was setting up a small business network. When I saw what he was doing, and that he was really getting paid for what he was doing, I became a computer junkie again... and have loved every minute of it every since.
The guy in the article will be back... its only a matter of time.
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Do you SetiAtHome | As you place limits and controls on me, you place them on yourselves. | |
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Dude111
An Awesome Dude
Premium
join:2003-08-04
USA
edit:
February 7th, @07:45PM
| I remember 2400 baud on my commie!!!!! (Ah the commie,a classic friend!!!!)
I remember some guy @ a computer place tell me that 2400 wouldnt work on the commie,it was too fast.....Heh,i was told on some sites (bbs's) that it would work........
I went out and got the best 2400Baud modem i ever had.....A Supramodem 2400 -- It was wonderfull on My commie!!!
I was also told that You could run 9600 on it,i didnt ever try that....I do know though the processor wouldnt be able to keep up with a file transfer @ 9600 though,CPU not fast enough.....But regular surfing via a term program would work (I have ccgms 13.3) -- My commie's right here next to my other computer
I remember doing some funny shit,i 3 wayed a voice mail box and my call to a BBS together,i recorded the data,then i logged off the site,called the voice mail back,played the message back and typed atx3d with my modem and it hopped onto the recorded data (I was watching myself on the site from before,perfectally!!! 2400 baud recorded w/no problems,etc.....1200 wasnt so good,but 2400 worked fine)  | |
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BIGHUSKER
join:2002-01-20
Minneapolis, MN
edit:
February 7th, @06:08PM
| You almost need broadband just to surf the web... With all the images/flash/ads, many pages (cnn, cnnsi, espn) take a few seconds to load even on my 4mbps cable connection. It would be hell on 56K. He'll be back. | |
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animepenguin
join:2001-04-29
Arecibo, PR | p2p He probably kept getting those letters for sharing movies or music
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Annoying people here for 3 years :-P | |
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sbrook
Premium,Mod
join:2001-12-14
H0H 0H0 | Re: p2p Remember that in the UK, broadband can be anything from 128K up! | |
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OreoleO
Wanna Settle This Outside??
join:2004-05-22
Feasterville Trevose, PA
·Verizon FIOS
| And this And this deserves a head-line, pfff.
I would never be able to go back to dial-up, i download movies and etc. once in a while, but the thing that got me most annoyed was the fact u needed a free line unless you want to not be available all the time. | |
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digital k
Premium
join:2003-12-25 | omg "there isn't really that much I can do with broadband."
::stumbles....then faints::: | |
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| attsbcisgay
join:2003-03-18
Beverly Hills, CA | Re: omg not impressed? lol. Me want faster connection plus lower prices too.
Amen. | |
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DrewCapu
Giant Diehard
join:2001-12-19
California
clubs:
| If it comes to it... I can still do everything I need to do on 14.4 or 28.8.
I can still use lynx/links to do all the browsing I need to do. I can check my webmail through lynx just fine thank you very much. Whatever your connection speed is, text still transfers quite quickly.
The story changes once you have to accomplish some work uploading or downloading large image files. Everything else is mostly for play. | |
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| digital k
Premium
join:2003-12-25
| Re: If it comes to it... Even for the most basic of browsing, broadband is a must. I have been at friends' homes using their dial up and its frustrating waiting 5 minutes for a page to load. You might say you could live with 56k that its 'more than enough' , switch back right now and report back in a weeks time...lol | |
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| techjunkie13
join:2005-01-18
Covington, IN
| Remembering a month ago when I did not have DSL and trying to share a 56K connection with two children. (shudder)
Maybe dial-up is ok for limited use such as e-mail and limited browsing but in a multi user environment broadband is a must and really not more expensive than a second line and good dial-up service.
I can NEVER go back, just the thought makes me dizzy! | |
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calvoiper
join:2003-03-31
Belvedere Tiburon, CA
| On rejecting technological advances.... There are people who have given up their cars, who no longer wear watches, or who don't own a television.
None of these are "news", and neither are a few folks who, for one reason or another, exercise their personal right to choose not to subscribe to broadband.
The BBC is either suffering a slow news day or looking for a misleading boost in their loosing war against Internet based news outlets....
calvoiper
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VoIP--the death knell of remaining voice monopolies! | |
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| nozzer
join:2004-06-25
Waltham, MA
·Verizon FIOS
| Re: On rejecting technological advances.... No dude, its about "getting a life". Going out and meeting people, that sort of thing.
A downside in the US is the lack of decent pubs. In the US the "bar" is usually a dark place sad people go to get drunk. In the UK the pub is a place you can nurse a beer for an hour or two and have an intelligent conversation with total strangers, or make new friends.
noz | |
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piptech
join:2002-11-02
11900
| Doesn't bug phone line
TV episodes are legal, right? He should get a webcam. | |
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oliphant
I Have 8 Boobies
Premium
join:2004-11-26
Corona, CA
edit:
February 7th, @07:21PM
| Not alone... After years of being a warez whore and all that personally I've grown a bit bored with the internet. Content is stagnant. Now it's less entertainment and just at tool which is why I'm not quite ready for going back to dial up but would be interested in a dirt cheap 128/128 or something like that.
Save for online gaming there really isn't anything I do with my DSL that I couldn't do on dialup. IMO, broadband kinda killed the internet by it allowing developers to create high bandwidth crap like flash everything. To me macromedia has done more the ruin the internet experience than anything. I liked it better when it more was simpler and too the point. Like most things, commercialization has killed it to the point you have to have broadband to download all the friggin' ads. So I for one long for the days of Netcom netcruiser, 5 minutes to download a single jpg of pr0n, run through separate uue decode software just to find out the chick is haggit with a giant hairy bush. Of course that is a step up from a BBS. But that's just my rant on an internet message board about how the internet sux. 
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Don't get it, demand it! The Anime Network www.theanimenetwork.com | |
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markopoleo
join:2003-04-02
Bonne Terre, MO
·Charter Pipeline
| Dialup is almost as expensive as broadband now You spend about $15-20 a month for a 2nd phone line like most did with dialup,then another $10-20 for ISP. Your getting close to Broadband prices. Heck lots of computers don't even come with dial up modems anymore so you have to fork over a few bucks there to get started.
I mean to each its own, I know broadband is not for everyone, but you will still be cheaper than dialup even if you get lowest DSL/cable package offered.
Why does he worry about security anyways? Everything is autoupdateing you don't even have to care about it with a router. lol | |
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| dibbb
join:2003-09-19
 ·Time Warner VOIP
| Re: Dialup is almost as expensive as broadband now I would cut off my TV and phone service before I quit broadband! Like the other guy, my first modem was 1200 baud, and there was nothing to "surf" to at the time, it was only local bulletin board services with not much on them.
I've got a 2 year old baby, and thankfully she'll never have to "suffer" with dial-up in her life...
Kids don't know how good they have it! She has her own PC, I didn't get mine until I was 15, and it was a 1MHz Tandy. Yes, ONE MHz.
lol
Welcome to the 21st Century guy. | |
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Going Back to 56K
Re: His Choice
