By Robbin Schindele

ADSL sounds like a dream, a small business dream, a telecommuter's dream, or a web surfers dream. Anybody who does business on the Web is interested. Every enthusiastic cyber amateur is interested. It has all the things we all want from the Internet. It's better, faster, cheaper. 

It's better. For the first time, high speed, (256kbs) Internet access is potentially available to anyone with standard phone lines, at a reasonable price ($40.00). It's better because voice and data transmission operate simultaneously over the same line. The service also travels over the same pair of twisted copper wires that carry your current phone service. It is always on, no more busy signals or dial-up problems. 

It's faster. 256kbs is just the beginning. Want more speed? ADSL has it. Service is also available at 512 and 768Kbs, and you're still looking at under a hundred bucks. It tops out at 7Mbs downstream and 1M up. That's fast. In fact at it's slowest ADSL service is faster than ISDN and at its fastest it's just barely slower than a T1 (DS1) connection. 

It's cheaper. $40.00 is very cheap for 256k speed. For home based or small businesses, enthusiastic gamers, telecommuters, or anyone else who uses computer telephony services as a business tool or a major part of their recreational activities the difference in their phone bill will probably not be a factor. For people paying the average $45/60 a month for two phone lines there might be some savings. Especially if one line gets changed to ADSL and the other is abandoned. 

That's the dream. The reality is different. The better, faster are real, the cheaper is too, sort of but it really doesn't matter because ADSL service is an important stride forward in the Internet world. 

Why is DSL important? Because people's impression of the Internet is based on speed. While millions of people have become connected in the last two years, without the kind of speed/price advances ADSL presents, the Internet and the World Wide Web will never achieve the status of the other information/communication appliances (telephone, TV, radio) we use everyday. Widespread implementation of relatively low cost DSL service will have significant impact on destroying the naysayers perception of the Internet as the World Wide Wait. Last week US West announced the availability of their MegaBit Services in the Twin Cities. MegaBit Services is the brand name they are applying to their DSL offerings. 

DSL is an acronym for Digital Subscriber Line and it comes in a variety of kinds. As a group they are called XDSL, the one we are interested in a is ADSL, Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line. ADSL has the capability of delivering 1.5 to 9Mbps downstream and 16 to 640kbps upstream. (Downstream is from the Internet to you, upstream is from you to the Internet.) 

MegaBit Services uses RADSL (Rate Adaptive DSL) for the subscriber end service delivery, and ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) for host end connectivity. RADSL simply means USWest can control the rate which data is transmitted over the subscribers connection, hence Rate Adptive. It is based on a hub and spoke model. The hub is the host location, either a LAN or your Internet Service Provider. The spokes are subscribers connected to the LAN or ISP. It is basically the same model most people currently use. Many of us are connected to a LAN or Intranet at work, at home, most of us use a dial-up connection to an ISP. 

Better

While an ADSL connection is better (it's digital and much less subject to line interference) than a standard dial-up modem and even a dedicated ISDN line. But, as with most things, it's not quite that simple. Not everyone can have ADSL. To get the service you need to be loop qualified. That means that the line coming from US West needs to meet certain physical characteristics before it is capable of carrying the signal. The root of the physical here is physics, not appearance. If the electrons won't flow, the data won't go. 

DSL is distance limited. If your house or office is more than 18,000 feet from your US West local Central Office you're out of luck. End of story. Central Office is a bit misleading. They don't mean the US West central offices in downtown Minneapolis or St Paul (although they do too). They mean the central office for your exchange, e.g. 698-XXX or 944-XXX. In some areas that distance can be less (in Phoenix, where the program was released in January, the distance is 12,000 ft because of the intense heat) or more (in some cases (very rare) the conditions are good enough to stretch a signal 24,000 feet). Either way the distance is based on resistance, and resistance is affected by temperature and wire gauge. 

Wire gauge is itself a factor. If there are many changes in wire gauge between you and the TCO it may inhibit ADSL. Some phone loops may start as low as 19 gauge wire, then go to 24 gauge and then to 26 gauge. Each of these changes may cause additional resistance on the line and make it look longer to test equipment. 

If the wire to your house is served by Digital Loop Carrier (DLC) equipment you can't get ADSL service. A DSL is a multiplexing device in the telephone network used to deliver economical voice services to high growth and suburban areas. There are plans for deploying prototype solutions later this year but as yet they aren't there. If DLC is in, you're out. 

The last limiting factors are bridge taps and/or load coils. Load coils are inductive coils added to voice lines to enhance the quality of the signal on a long loop. They work using the line power and boost the signal towards the end user. These are both older technology devices and US West has plans in place to remove them. 

Do you qualify? The only way you can be absolutely sure you qualify is to call US West. As of this writing (mid May) you can call 1-888-634-2879 and they will tell you in a couple minutes whether you qualify or not. If the answer is no, you're out. No court of appeals in the laws of physics. US West say they are working to find a technology solution to this problem and they probably are. ISDN, a similar high speed twisted pair technology employs signal boosters to overcome similar distance limitations but it is a much older technology. 

If you are currently using a modem to connect you'll need a different one. Remember DSL is Digital Subscriber Line. DSL operates by using frequencies above 4,000 Hz (normal POTS frequencies are much lower). To accomplish this it needs special equipment at both ends of the connection. We're all used to analogue modems. Our traditional telephone systems are analogue systems. The modems/faxes most of us use take digital data from our computers, turn it into analogue data, and send it over the analogue lines. That digital-analogue translation is not necessary with ADSL it's digital from one end to another. Again, normal (called POTS, Plain Old Telephone Service in the industry) phone lines and the telephonic devices attached to it are analogue, once your line is switched from normal service to DSL service you need to install microfilters on the phones connected to the line. These microfilters (two or three usually come with a modem) are designed to prevent interference between the modem and phone set. They also reduce the effect of POTS generated noise on the ADSL transceiver. If you have a LAN and want to connect, you'll need a router between your Network hub and the DSL line. 

Either way, single user or LAN, you'll have to connect through an ISP to get to the net. Larger bandwidth intensive businesses who run their own servers will probably end up becoming MegaCentral subscribers. That is the same program many small to mid-size ISPs will be using to supply the home market. The program rate is based on bandwidth use. The product offerings are structured with enough sizes and options to accommodate most small to midsize businesses. 

ADSL is always on. Just open your browser application and you're there. If you've ever encountered repeated busy signals when trying to dial-up your ISP you'll immediately understand the value of that. Until now "always on" connections were only possible if you had a dedicated connection to you ISP. Dedicated lines are very expensive. Checking prices with a few local ISPs places a dedicated 2 channel ISDN connection between $200 and $300.00 per month. A two-channel ISDN connection runs at 128kbs. ADSL gives you twice the speed at one-seventh the price. 

Faster

256kbs is fast and it's the slowest DSL goes. How fast is that, well it's five times faster than a 56.6kbs modem, nine times faster than a 28.8. These speeds are hard to imagine but easy to demonstrate. The day of the DSL offering (May 13, 1998) US West had two identical computers running side by side at the Strictly Business tradeshow in Minneapolis. One of them had an ADSL connection the other was running a 56.6k modem connected at 51+. A rep would gladly load the URL of your choice into both of them and on the count of three. . . click. The DSL computer would load and the 56 computer would lag. The difference was more than discernable, it was dramatic. 

US West has even faster offerings. Remember though, the faster you go the more you pay. The MegaOffice is the next step up at 512kbs. The MegaBusiness gives you 768kbs. All these products are priced below $100.00 per month, considerably below it. Compare this to other high bandwidth services and you'll scramble to that 888 number. 

If you need more bandwidth you can have it. The top end US West MegaBit offerings are 1M up and down; 4M down and 1M up; and 7M down and 1M up. The reason for the differential in up and down stream speeds is rationalized by this logic; more speed is needed when downloading from, than when uploading to, the Internet. Experience and common sense gives the logic credibility. Most of my wait time is spent downloading files from the 'Net. When I want to upload I, and most people, use an FTP program. 

If you've never experienced speeds like these you're in for a treat. Did you ever see a demonstration a computer demonstration that jumps instantaneously from one web site to another? Have you seen the TV commercials where a Tuareg chieftain is watching live action video on a laptop while checking his email. Lots of people have. Lots of people believed the World Wide Web was that way. They bought into the promise and were then dragged to a dead stop at the reality of a 28.8k connection that made downloading their infant grandson's photo an all day affair. At the office I'm on a T1 and it spoils you quickly. The world of waiting went away the moment I sat down in this chair. At home I run a 56.6kbs and about 90% of the time we connect at 45kbs+ which is pretty good. But I hardly go online at home. I don't like the wait. ADSL is going to go a long way towards restoring faith in the promise. 

The bottom end (256kbs) is going to be great for consumers and telecommuters and even a one or two person office using the Internet/World Wide Web as an integral part of their business strategy. But I see real impact coming from the 512, 768k and 1M service. This is going to be a real boon for small businesses dealing in graphics. Desk top publishers, printers, photographers and graphic designers all need to push large files around. These higher speeds will deliver reasonable live video for teleconferencing or even show a real time, rough-cut videotape to a client or associate in another location. 

Cheaper

Now here's the rub. It is true that 256kbs service from US West is only $40.00 per month. But that's not all, that's the monthly price. There is also a one time $110.00 set-up fee. Plus you'll need a new modem. Consumer/telecommuter DSL modems are about the same price as earlier modems were. Every time there is a jump in speed the price of the new models seem to start at $200-$300.00. The same is true for consumer DSL modems. The $200 number is for an internal, the $300 for the external. You'll also need a PCM or NIC card to make DSL work but the offerings I've seen include a card and two or three telephone set mircrofilters. The modems being offered from US West include one or the other. They also come with the cabling you'll need. In September they will have a modem available for PCs with a Universal Serial Bus (USB). 

There's another cost you need to take into account. Although ADSL is capable of simultaneously carrying both voice and data you don't loose your current residence service charges by switching your existing home or business line to a ADSL line. If you're paying the minimum $16.00, or you've got your line loaded up with features like call waiting and forwarding and voice messaging, etc. you still have to pay those costs and the $40.00 dollars a month. So the minimum amount you'll pay before taxes, Federal access charges and other extras is about $60.00 per month. Another significant element is the contract, if you choose ADSL you have to sign-up for at least one year's service. If you decide to upgrade service, say from 256 to 512Kbs there is a $75.00 charge. No changing your mind two months down the road. As you rev up the speed the prices are as reasonable as the MegaLine. The MegaOffice is $62.40 (512kbs) and the MegaBusiness (728kbs) is $76.80 

Still think it's a great deal? Now you need to add the cost of your Internet access. US West is offering basic 256kbs Internet access for $19.95 a month. Compare that with ISDN. Because ADSL is point to point, always-on, service you need to compare it with a dedicated ISDN connection. Up until now this has been the least expensive high speed alternative around. Prices from local ISPs for dedicated ISDN service has been going for between $250.00 to $300.00 dollars a month. ISDN dial-ups are considerably cheaper but they can't match ADSL's always-on feature. 

US West's $19.95 looks very attractive but there are plenty of people who want it who already have an investment in a local ISP. Whether it's a domain, an email address that's spread all over the known universe or simply a relationship with people you know, many of us don't want to change ISPs. For many non-surfer types, configuring their computer once was enough. They're up and running now and they're not going to change. There's another reason for being careful when choosing a provider for your DSL line. US West will charge you $45.00 to change. That's right, $45.00 to change ISPs. If you're going to a new ISP, more than likely, there will be a set-up fee from them as well, so choose carefully. But be glad too. When they rolled out the product in Phoenix the price was $85.00 to change. They changed the price on 5/11/98, though I haven't seen anything in writing yet. May 13 was the first day the service was officially offered in the Twin Cities. At that time people were being told US West was the only approved MegaCentral ISP in the area. (See the sidebar for my personal experience ordering ADSL service). That is no longer true. 

Finding an ISP that will upgrade your service is going to be a problem though. Even though the local ISPs knew ADSL deployment was coming and even though many of them had applied for MegaCentral status, all of them were pending as of D Day. The ones I talked to at Strictly Business seemed upset about the US West price point. 256Kbs is a lot of bandwidth for $19.95 and bandwidth is an ISPs most important commodity. Too many high bandwidth customers can fill a big pipe pretty quickly and if subscriber rates are priced too low service suffers. With the exception of GoFast.net in St Paul, I couldn't find any local ISP ADSL prices on the 'Net. GoFast.net is primarily a business focused ISP. They have built their service on supplying high speed Internet access . They have a serious commitment to ISDN so it's only logical they should be the first in line on ADSL. Their published prices are for networks only and can be found at : http://www.gofast.net/html/adsl.html. 

I called a number of ISPs in the Twin Cities to ask about DSL. Jim Libersky, Narrowband Product Manager for MRNet said, "We won't be ready to offer consumer prices 'til midsummer. There are lots of issues here bandwidth is just one of them. Another is the always-on nature of the technology, as opposed to being switched like in the past. We're playing out lots of different scenarios here." 

Jim Nelson, President of Minn.net in Minneapolis, said. "The only pricing we have right now is a $22.95 basic service charge. We felt we need to respond immediately to US West's basic price. Prices on other services are going to take time to work out just like every other Internet issue." 

Ira Hauptman of Minnesota Online expressed a distrust of US West's motives in pricing access so low. He's not alone among the local ISPs in his feelings. They all feel vulnerable when the US West giant starts to move in their direction. 

Bill Macleslie of Visi.com said, "It's not the US West price that's a bother so much, it's the way they went about it. We knew it was coming but instead of getting to gether with us and saying "Let's work this out together." They just announced it, and when people called they tried to take their access business too. Our biggest concern is protecting ourselves and our customers from the wanton use of bandwidth by an inconsiderate or hostile customer. Because of it's always on attribute ADSL is a whole way of dealing with users consumption of resources." Visi.com has set their prices too. 

256Kbps is $24.95 per month*. There's a setup charge of $25.00 It includes: 1 Static IP, 5Mb disk space for web pages or other data, 5Mb FTP space on our FTP server and 1 email box. Additional IP's are $5.00 each. You can have up to a total of 4 IP's with this account. 

512Kbps is $49.95 per month*. The setup is $25.00 and includes: 1 Static IP, 5Mb disk space for web pages or other data, 5Mb FTP space on our FTP server and 1 email box. Additional IP's are $5.00 each. You can have up to a total of 4 IP's with this account. 

*Both of these accounts may be subject to future implementation of bandwidth restrictions based on usage of resources. 

They have also determined their business pricing structure. Businesses should call them for a quote or contact them through their web site at: www.visi.com

Other ISPs I called failed to respond on this issue or were not revealing their plans or prices. If you want ADSL and you want to use your current ISP you'll need to talk to your ISP and find out where they stand many of them are now MegaCentral ISPs. They will definitely have ADSL access, what their prices will be remains to be seen.