Posted on 07/23/2006 5:39:43 PM PDT by LeGrande
I live in the mountains, in a bowl. We don't have cable, no line of sight wireless communication, no DSL, etc. just standard phone lines.
It seems that satellites might be the best option, but I have heard a lot of bad things about satellite connections, poor upload and download times especially as more people use the system, latency (lag time) problems, relatively high costs.
Radio communication seems touchy and slow.
I might be able to put in a tower on the mountain between me and civilization. Should I work on getting WiMax here?
What is the best solution? I have about 20 neighbors in the same boat.
With 20 neighbors, you could build a good tower and split the costs. Or you could lease a local loop, a T-1 and start your own WISP.
Several others have pointed out the possibilites to create your own high speed network amongst your neighbors. I would like to do that too, but don't have the time and energy to make it happen.
I did subscribe to Wildblue satellite service and have not regreted the decision. I suffer the occasional loss of signal due to storms, but its just a minor inconvenience. Overall I'm very pleased and would never go back to dial-up.
There have been some very good replies and I am trying to digest the info on the websites. I like the idea of setting up our own little network up here if we can bring in a fast enough connection.
I have DSL and it comes in over my regular phone line. If you haven't already, check with your telephone provider to see if they offer DSL internet.
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