Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with dsl and att

DSL hardware help

jingo74 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:00:52 -0800

I want to help my aunt get set up with DSL service. She has phone service with AT&T and DSL is available in her area. Her computer is an HP Pavillion that is about 6 yrs. old running XP. To avoid her having to pay AT&T's $200 fee for a tech to come out and get her going, what can I do from a hardware standpoint? Does DSL use an Ethernet port or a dial-up modem port? Should I buy her a DSL modem or will AT&T provide one? Sorry for these NooB questions as I've only dealt with cable Internet service. Thanks.

What is causing my DSL slowdown?

monkeybutt — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 18:30:41 -0800

What is causing my DSL slowdown? Ok...suddenly my home DSL connection became very unstable. I'm working on a very stable and relatively static computer setup at home. My main box is a Kubuntu 7.10 distro running on a Core2 box. My router is a Belkin Vision N1. Everything was working great until I called up AT&T (my DSL provider) and upgraded my service from 3MB to 6MB (and saved myself $5/mo in the process....go figure).

anyway about that time i noticed that pageviews seemed to take a LOT longer....sometimes 10+ seconds to bring up a website. quite often my browser will timeout waiting for a page to load. watching the handy speedometer on the router indicates very long periods of inactivity. when it *does* connect it truly does reflect the new speed of my connection (typically 4.5MB...which is pretty much what i expected). also my usenet newsreader has been reporting errors with literally everything it downloads. no idea why.

everything in this setup was working well for a long time *before* the upgrade. the only new factor is the call to AT&T that triggered some type of activity on my connection. i suspect i got switched to a different server or set of trunk lines or something and that new topology is buggy. how can i diagnose it further? are there any tools that can robustly test my setup/connection and expose a likely culprit in the path between me and the rest of the world? my calls to AT&T have resulted in nothing but "we tested your line and it appears to be fine."

and i feel i need to give a bit more information: yes i've rebooted/cycled everything in the setups. i've even replaced the router with an old Linksys i had sitting around to no avail. every machine in the house (2 linux machines, 1 windows box, 1 windows laptop and 2 macbook pros) experiences the symptoms and it doesn't matter if they are wireless, wired, connected to the router or going through a secondary switch.

thanks for any help

Should I ditch Comcast's Triple Play in Chicago for DSL?

bdk3clash — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 19:31:07 -0800

Thinking of switching from Comcast cable modem to DSL for broadband--will I notice the difference? I'm in Chicago and currently have the Comcast Triple Play package (cable TV/digital phone/Internet) which ends up costing $123.44 a month. My year of service is almost up and I'm not interested in paying even more than I already am, so I'm considering getting rid of Comcast and switching over to just a broadband provider.

I'd stick with Comcast if they could offer Internet only for $50 a month or so, but that's not an option with them as far as I know, so I'm thinking about switching over to AT&T for DSL service.

I'm a fairly heavy bandwidth consumer--in addition to typical browsing, I download a lot of binaries via Giganews. I usually get speeds of around 1000 k/s.

Other than AT&T, are there any solid options for broadband Internet providers in Chicago? And if I switch to DSL, will I notice the difference when doing regular browsing? Slower binary downloads don't bother me unless it's, like, way slower than what I'm used to.

Thanks.

Real world AT&T DSL speeds?

conigs — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 12:41:49 -0800

What real-world DSL speeds (AT&T) do people experience in Milwaukee (Bay View area)? I'm currently considering switching from Time Warner Cable (7M/512k) to AT&T DSL (6M/768k, dry-no phone). However, before I actually decide to make the switch, I'm wondering what real-world speeds people are seeing from AT&T DSL in the Bay View neighborhood? I have no idea how far from the office I am and thus cannot gauge the speeds I might actually see.

If you live in the Bay View area, can you check your speed at http://speakeasy.net/speedtest and let me know your results and which package you have (1.5/3/6)? It would also be helpful to know what area of Bay View you are in (nearby cross streets), but I understand if you are uncomfortable posting that... I'd even be uncomfortable posting that.

DSL basics. What hardware do I need?

vacapinta — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 15:06:12 -0800

SanFranciscoWiFi: I currently have DSL service with AT&T. It came with a DSL modem/wireless router thingy from 2WIRE. Can I replace the 2Wire? If so, what are my options? Please speak to me as if I were a child because in the area of networking, I am.

DSL is impossible, T1 is expensive. Is there another option?

turducken — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 19:09:36 -0800

How can I get internet access for less than $400 a month? The problem: I just moved into a new office in Los Angeles. My officemate pays $400 semolians for a T1 line that is slower than DSL -- indeed, it rivals dial-up in its pokiness. And he wants me to contribute 200 bucks a month.

Why don't we get DSL? Because our building is 13,580 feet from the AT&T node, and the DSL limit is 14,000 feet. AT&T claims it should be possible to get DSL; but officemate insists that multiple techs have already come out, tested the line condition, and declared DSL impossible. (Yet, before the Yahoo merger, there was DSL thruout the building; now everyone pays for the shitty, expensive T1 -- that's $400 for each office, kids.)

Help me stop the insanity. It will make me physically ill to write this guy a check for $200 every month for the privilege of watching the NYT home page crank up like a Model T. (Yes, I know I shoulda asked about internet access before signing the lease -- but it's a great office. Free coffee, dog-friendly. And no, I can't just mooch off of some other office -- I'm the new guy. Also, the solution has to be good for both of us -- I could buy a PC card and get semi-slow internet directly from the sky, but I'd still have to pay the man his 200 bucks.) Thanks!

LegaleseFilter: How does AT&T's new DSL privacy policy compare to my current provider's?

jxpx777 — Fri, 30 Jun 2006 20:21:04 -0800

LegaleseFilter: How does AT&T's new DSL privacy policy compare to my current provider's? Obviously, lawyers or other such persons will be most helpful here. I have been contemplating ditching my current internet service provider due to poor performance and reliability. The only other real option for me is AT&T Yahoo! DSL. I was just about to pull the trigger on the switch until I heard about AT&T's updated privacy policy. In reading the two policies (Charter and AT&T), I can't really see that my current provider's policy is any more restrictive than AT&T's. But, I wanted to check with my MeFi homies to see if someone with more legal training than I have (and any would be more than I have) can outline the differences. Also, explaining if those differences are in theory or if they would actually make a difference in the real world would be helpful as well.

Current provider's policy: http://www.charter.com/privacy/InternetPrivacy.aspx
AT&T Yahoo! DSL policy that would apply to me: http://help.sbcglobal.net/article.php?item=8620

What should I look for in a DSL modem?

Plutor — Wed, 08 Mar 2006 05:13:38 -0800

My DSL modem is fried and out of warrantee. ~~SNET~~ ~~SBC~~ AT&T wants $100 for me to buy a new one, or they'll give me a free one if I sign a new contract. I'll likely be moving in three months, and a hundred dollars is pretty pricey when I can find used ones on eBay for less than twenty. I'm pretty technical, but the problem is that I don't know G.DMT, G.Lite, or T1.413 from a hole in the ground. What requirements should I look for in a DSL modem to be sure that it's compatible? (I'm in Connecticut.)