STE SpeedNet F.A.Q.
In a nutshell, describe STE SpeedNet service.
Sounds great! Are there limitations I need to be aware of?
What speed/cost options are available in STE SpeedNet’s offering?
How much does installation and DSL equipment cost?
DSL modems aren't really modems, are they?
I'm a PC user. Will I need a free IRQ to install a network card to connect to the DSL gear?
Will I have a static IP address?
Can I connect multiple computers to a DSL circuit?
Will I have to get a new phone number?
What steps are involved with ordering? Will I be charged to check my line qualification?
May I spread out the installation costs over several months?
STE SpeedNet’s Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) service provides for high-speed connections to the Internet over a single pair of copper phone lines. It breaks the circuit into two parts -- a voice channel for normal phone use such as voice calls, faxes, etc, and a dedicated data channel for high-speed access to the Internet.
Because these are separate channels, you can be on the phone and on the Internet at the same time. In other words, if you currently have a second phone line to handle online access, you won't need it any longer.
And the connections are very fast. At 512K -- that's about 20 times as fast as a 28.8 modem and four times as fast as an ISDN line. To put that in concrete terms, a file that normally would take an hour to download from the net over a modem will now take a mere 4 minutes. The average web page pops up in under a second.
In addition, if you have other computers in your home, you may network them together so all of them have access to the Internet.
The DSL "modem" isn't really a modem at all -- it's a kind of network terminator. It plugs into a regular telephone jack to connect to the outside world and attaches to your computer via a network cable that plugs into a network adapter in your computer.
When you use a DSL connection, you don't need to use your normal modem. In fact, unless you need your modem to send or receive faxes or for calling a BBS that isn't on the net, you can completely disconnect your normal modem.
If you are a current Dial-Up subscriber, please understand that we're still absolutely committed to continuing to provide top-notch Dial-Up access. DSL is simply one more option -- and a very exciting one at that.
And of course, when you order STE SpeedNet services you get all the benefits of a normal MISNet account -- Email, Newsgroups, blistering fast web access, all the great things on the net. Naturally, you also get the benefits of STE SpeedNet’s renowned content, support and systems staff.
Yes, there are several.
DSL services can only run over certain phone lines and usually you need to be within about 15,000 feet of a phone company central office to get the service. In testing the circuits, STE has found that some people as far as 18,000 feet away from a central office can get DSL service.
Based on STE’s research, most people in STE service area are close enough to a central office. The issue of whether the phone line itself can support DSL service is much more complicated. All lines for DSL service will have to be tested -- "qualified" in phone company lingo -- for use with DSL equipment.
The availability is dependent entirely on what nature of the individual lines that connect your location to a STE switching office.
STE SpeedNet has one option of service at this time for business and residential.
Please refer to STE SpeedNet services for full details.
The first thing to establish is that there will be two separate charges for the DSL service.
First, there will be a DSL Line Charge of $29.77. Like a modem connection, the phone company is the carrier of the data between the subscriber's computer and the ISP.
Just because you have a DSL line does not automatically give you Internet access.
Second, there will be a separate $19.18 fee for Internet access.
There is no cost to qualify and prep your phone line for DSL. However, if wiring or a jack is needed, typical jack install fees apply.
There is a $75.00 fee for the DSL modem that STE provides. Once the customer purchases the DSL modem it becomes property of the customer.
All of the normal prohibitions regarding resale of our services remain in place. For instance you can't use one of our DSL links and attach a terminal server and modems to it to become a commercial ISP. You can't use a basic DSL account to host a web site. If you want to run Internet server applications please contact us and ask about our tailored broadband services.
For normal client side use -- in other words what virtually all of you do today, browsing the web, sending and receiving e-mail, online gaming, chat, reading newsgroups -- the DSL circuit is a perfect vehicle.
I have an existing dial-up account with MISNet. Will I have to change my username or e-mail address?
If you have an existing MISNet account, all of your current user names/passwords and other account details remain the same.
No, they're not. People call them DSL "modems" because the term describes the gear in ways people understand today.
Actually, the DSL equipment is a network termination device with a micro-router inside. It doesn't really make calls the way a traditional modem does. Nor can it be used to place calls to a traditional modem.
The DSL micro-router is used to connect only to another DSL device. And that device carries traffic back to us and, from there, out onto the Internet.
I'm a PC user. Will I need a free IRQ to install a network card to connect to the DSL gear?
Yes, you'll need a free IRQ.
And whether that's hard or easy depends a lot on your computer and what other cards you currently have in it. It also depends on the bus type of your computer. PCI bus computers are typically easier to deal with on the IRQ than ISA or EISA bus computers.
If all that talk sounds scary and technical to you -- don't worry about it. Check out the other question elsewhere in this FAQ about having someone do the work for you.
In most cases, no. Basic, DSL service uses PPPoE (Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet). With PPPoE, IP addresses are assigned out of a pool of available addresses. Thus you may get a different IP address every time you connect.
For most people, this is the preferred approach, because it is invisible to you and requires no special set-up on your end.
However, in a few cases people or companies might require a static IP address. In those cases, contact a STE Customer Service Representative and ask about our tailored broadband services.
Yes you can. You can use a third party DSL router such as a Linksysâ or Netgearâ. The technical side of hooking up multiple computers is typically fairly simple. In most cases, the DSL "modem can be connected directly to the DSL router.
What happens if the power goes out at my location? Will I lose telephone service if the power is cut to the DSL equipment?
Your phone service will still work even if you completely disconnect all your DSL gear from the system.
In fact, that's something we really like about DSL.
Power outages and failed DSL gear do not affect voice phone service.
(Of course, if there are problems with the phone line, the DSL will probably have problems as well.)
No you will not -- your phone number will remain unchanged.
If I need to use a fax machine or connect to a BBS with a modem, will I be able to do it? Will I still have access to the net while I do this?
Because a regular analog line rides on a separate channel along with the DSL circuit, you can still use a fax machine, a modem, an answering machine, etc. You can still do any of the things you do today over your phone circuit.
However, that analog traffic will tie up the voice line portion of a DSL circuit. For instance, if you have an outgoing fax on the voice line, you will not be able to accept an incoming call. In other words, it's just like the situation today.
The difference is this: even if you're on the phone with a voice call or a fax, you'll be able to have high-speed connections to the net at the same time. The high-speed data channel runs over a different channel on the phone wire.
You will be able to use all your existing phone gear without a change.
What steps are involved with ordering? Will I be charged to check my line qualification?
The first step involves checking to make sure that your phone line can support a DSL circuit. And there is no charge for that service. You can call 775-2111 or visit our office located at 61 East Hwy 8, Steelville, Missouri. To sign up for STE SpeedNet we do require you to visit us in person.
STE has a payment plan that will allow you to pay $20.00 per month for 5 months to cover the cost of the modem with credit approval.