Frazier Mountain Internet Service is excited to announce that we now offer DSL service to our customers in Frazier Park Lake of the Woods, Lebec, and Los Padres Estates. In most other areas on the hill, we offer our High Speed Wireless Service which is very comparable to DSL service.
Here is some important information you'll want to know about DSL service and how it can benefit you.
Can I talk on the phone at the same time that I'm online?
Can I connect more than one computer to my DSL line?
Do I have to set this up myself, or does Frazier
Mountain Internet Service help me get it started?
Why is DSL service only available in Frazier Park,
Lake of the Woods, and Lebec?
Are there any limitations on DSL Service?
How much does DSL cost?
What is DSL Service?
DSL Service is a high speed (commonly called broadband) connection
to the Internet that runs over your existing phone line. With DSL service,
your computer is always connected to the Internet, so you don't need to
wait to dialup to the Internet when you want to do web surfing, check e-mail,
etc.
Can I talk on the phone
at the same time that I'm online?
Yes. DSL works on the same phone line that you use for your voice
calls. For this reason, many customers who subscribe to DSL service will
decide that they don't need the second phone line that they have been using
for their computer to dial up to the Internet. This will commonly result
in savings of $15 to $20 per month for this second phone line.
How fast is DSL?
The speed of DSL depends upon your distance from the Central
office, but our Standard Plan DSL Service delivers up to 3072 kilobits
per second (3.0 Mbps) download speed and up to 512k upload speed. Most
of our customers see this speed, although some customers who are farther
from the phone company's Central Office will see slower speeds (typically
1.5 Mbps/384kbps in areas like Lake of the Woods or Los Padres Estates).
If you are located close enough to the phone company's Central office,
then we can offer 6.0 Mbps/ 768 kbps service for an additional $10 per
month.
To give you an idea of how fast this is, most customers use 56k modems for their regular dialup service. "56k" modems typically connect at about 50k for downloading and at roughly 28k for uploading (Yes, 56k modems are actually "asymmetric" - they're not as fast uploading as downloading!). This means that our Standard Plan DSL service is about 30 times faster than dialup service for downloading, and over 8 times as fast for uploading! You'll find that the performance difference between dialup and DSL service is dramatic.
As with our dialup service, we ensure optimal performance for DSL service using a variety of techniques. This includes a highly redundant network (multiple connections to the Internet, long term battery backup and generator backup, etc.), ample available bandwidth at all times, and other optimization methods.
Can I connect
more than one computer to my DSL Line?
Yes. Most customers who have a single computer will connect the
single computer using a DSL modem (its similar to your dialup modem, but
its designed to work on a DSL line). However, for our customers who want
to connect more than one computer in their house to their DSL line, we
can provide a DSL Router. This allows additional computers to be connected
via Ethernet cable, Wireless cards, or USB cables. We don't charge
anything additional for the monthly service if you have more than one computer
connected to our DSL service (we do charge you for installation if you
want us to help you connect the additional computers).
Do I have to set this up
myself, or does Frazier Mountain Internet Service help me get it started?
As with our regular dialup service, we provide full onsite installation
as part of our regular setup. In this way, you don't need to worry about
the technical details of how to make your new service work. In addition,
it allows us an opportunity to verify that your computer and your connection
are working optimally with your new DSL service.
Why is DSL Service only
available in Frazier Park, Lake of the Woods and Lebec?
In order to provide DSL service, your phone line must be connected
to a phone company Central Office ("CO") or Remote Terminal ("RT")
that has been upgraded to support DSL service. In addition, you need to
be within approximately 3 miles of the upgraded Central Office or approximately
2 miles of an upgraded Remote Terminal. At this time, the Frazier Park
and Lebec Central Offices are the only COs.
In almost all areas on the Hill where we do not offer DSL, we offer our High Speed Wireless Service. Our High Speed Wireless Service is very comparable to DSL service, except it uses radio waves to connect your house to us (instead of using a phone line).
Are there any limitations
on DSL service?
Our DSL service is an "always on" connection, so you are
connected to the Internet at all times. We no longer limit the amount of
bandwidth you can use on our DSL service.
How much does DSL cost?
We are currently running a special pricing package to help our customers
establish their DSL service at a reduced cost. If you pay us semi-annually,
our Standard Plan DSL Service will be $30 per month for the first 6 months
and then $44 per month after that. Additionally, if you pay us semi-annually,
we will provide a free DSL modem or router. Our one-time installation fee
for DSL service is $50.
How do I subscribe
to DSL?
Do you like what you see about DSL service? Then give us a call
at (661)242-5500 x 64 or send an e-mail to [email protected].