Post by thread:<Way OT>free computers

I have been watching the free/cheap computer deals ad have passed them up not wanting to pay $30 a month for 36 months of Compuserve. I have seen one now with a 36 month commitment to MSN at $19.95 a month. Free $500 PC that is worth about $400. That works out to me paying about $10 a month for the internet service and sounds very reasonable. Only problem is I am envisioning a busy signal all the time for us MSN customers on the "economy" service, more spam than Piclist mail, getting bumped off line and slow connections like AOL was a few years ago, ad other non-niceties that would make me go back on another service and just keep paying for the MSN that I won't use. Any experiences out there? Do you get the same good internet service as the people that are not locked in?

You wrote: > I have been watching the free/cheap computer deals ad have passed >them up not wanting to pay $30 a month for 36 months of Compuserve. There is no free computers or lunch for that matter. Look closely at that deal. The ones I've seen are for a 3 year commitment to some ISP. In three years most of America will be wired for broadband internet access, ASDL, DSL, cable modem etc. Will you still want to be using a dial-up then? You want free access? Look at NetZero or the like. I have not tried it but it is free if you want to put up with a window full of ads flashing at you. - -Mark P.S. I am not affiliated in anyway with NetZero nor do I use NetZero. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com

Mark Jurras wrote: > > You wrote: > > I have been watching the free/cheap computer deals ad have passed > >them up not wanting to pay $30 a month for 36 months of Compuserve. > > There is no free computers or lunch for that matter. Look closely at that deal . > The ones I've seen > are for a 3 year commitment to some ISP. In three years most of America will b e > wired for > broadband internet access, ASDL, DSL, cable modem etc. Will you still want to be > using a dial-up > then? You want free access? Look at NetZero or the like. I have not tried it b ut > it is free if you > want to put up with a window full of ads flashing at you. > > - -Mark > > P.S. I am not affiliated in anyway with NetZero nor do I use NetZero. There are at least 3 such services, NetZero.Net, FreeI.Net, and NoCharge.Net, that I know of. All are Ad-based services. There are also free onramps in many cities (like scn.org here in the Seattle area), thing to do is really think things through before you sign on the dotted line - if it sounds too good to be true, Probably IS! A friend tried NetZero, changed to FreeI, now is off zzn.com (His brother somehow gets him free 'Net access off there, using a regular browser.) Also, Juno gets you on free e-mail for free, windows based application (I have used THAT, of all these, while down at Comdex. Eventually, I want a nationwide ISP <G>) If all you want is e-mail and basic web surfing, an old XT to 386 or such and Net-Tamer can get you running, even off a floppy drive, with some place like scn.org, for VERY little money (The monitor's the pricey item!); I've given away 14.4 modems to local people needing a modem, etc. You can also get access for completely free in many libraries, etc., too. Mark

Actually, cheap access wasn't the motivation. I travel a lot with my laptop and kind of expected to pay $19.95 a month for the rest of my life to get the nation wide access I need. I just figured why not pay the same amount every month and get a free computer thrown in. Mark Willis wrote: > Mark Jurras wrote: > > > > You wrote: > > > I have been watching the free/cheap computer deals ad have passed > > >them up not wanting to pay $30 a month for 36 months of Compuserve. > > > > There is no free computers or lunch for that matter. Look closely at that de al {Quote hidden}> . > > The ones I've seen > > are for a 3 year commitment to some ISP. In three years most of America will b > e > > wired for > > broadband internet access, ASDL, DSL, cable modem etc. Will you still want t o > be > > using a dial-up > > then? You want free access? Look at NetZero or the like. I have not tried it b > ut > > it is free if you > > want to put up with a window full of ads flashing at you. > > > > - -Mark > > > > P.S. I am not affiliated in anyway with NetZero nor do I use NetZero. > > There are at least 3 such services, NetZero.Net, FreeI.Net, and > NoCharge.Net, that I know of. All are Ad-based services. There are > also free onramps in many cities (like scn.org here in the Seattle > area), thing to do is really think things through before you sign on the > dotted line - if it sounds too good to be true, Probably IS! A friend > tried NetZero, changed to FreeI, now is off zzn.com (His brother somehow > gets him free 'Net access off there, using a regular browser.) Also, > Juno gets you on free e-mail for free, windows based application (I have > used THAT, of all these, while down at Comdex. Eventually, I want a > nationwide ISP <G>) > > If all you want is e-mail and basic web surfing, an old XT to 386 or > such and Net-Tamer can get you running, even off a floppy drive, with > some place like scn.org, for VERY little money (The monitor's the pricey > item!); I've given away 14.4 modems to local people needing a modem, > etc. You can also get access for completely free in many libraries, > etc., too. > > Mark

AltaVista is offering one of these free access things, too, -- see http://microav.com/ -- I just set it up for exactly what you say here: It is a nice thing to be able to put on your notebook so that you can get connected anywhere. Since my main ISP account is up all the time (it's shared by my family through a proxy gateway), I need *something* else for on-the-road access. Actually, one could probably put three or so of these services on a notebook and have lots of options in each city. They *are* unbelievably obnoxious for regular use, however. If I traveled more often, I'd probably consider what you're describing here. --Bob On Sun, Sep 19, 1999 at 11:17:07PM -0700, Brian Kraut wrote: > Actually, cheap access wasn't the motivation. I travel a lot with my laptop a nd > kind of expected to pay $19.95 a month for the rest of my life to get the nati on > wide > access I need. I just figured why not pay the same amount every month and get a > free computer thrown in. -- ============================================================ Bob Drzyzgula It's not a problem spam_OUTbobTakeThisOuTdrzyzgula.org until something bad happens ============================================================ http://www.drzyzgula.org/bob/electronics/ ============================================================

I use AltaVista Free Access on my laptop. It works pretty well, and is definitely worth the price! One thing about it is that it will not let you look at your POP mail. However, if you have a shell account on your ISP, you can telnet there thru AVFA, then use PINE or other resident email program. Harold Harold Hallikainen .....haroldKILLspam@spam@hallikainen.com Hallikainen & Friends, Inc. See the FCC Rules at http://hallikainen.com/FccRules and comments filed in LPFM proceeding at http://hallikainen.com/lpfm ___________________________________________________________________ Get the Internet just the way you want it. Free software, free e-mail, and free Internet access for a month! Try Juno Web: dl.http://www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.

Mark Jurras wrote: > In three years most of America will be wired for broadband internet > access, ASDL, DSL, cable modem etc. Will you still want to be using a > dial-up then? Somehow I find this optimistic. Is there really such a rollout of services? Take Cable modem; does it actually have the bandwidth to handle *many* users, or is it just an option presently under-utilized that can be sold at a performance premium until they fill it at which point congestion sets in and performance disappears? When that happens are there actually plans to re-develop it with the extra trunks, nodes and switches to expand? -- Cheers, Paul B.

Mark Willis wrote: > If all you want is e-mail and basic web surfing, an old XT to 386 or > such and Net-Tamer can get you running, Enlighten me? What is Net-tamer? A basic browser like Lynx IIRC? What is *really* needed as a net-tamer is a browser which loads only text and perhaps graphics under a certain size, then lets you right or middle-click on the dummy icons over the graphics to bring up only the ones you want. My wife (who is not Internet-friendly to start with) was trying to read a (local) Yellow Pages listing yesterday, but the server is massively under-powered for one, and the listings are spam-centred. She gave up in disgust. A text browser would have given the real information and no more. I have learnt to disable Javascript and *most* of the parasites go away, though Netscape 3 still suffers from one or two it seems and hasn't proper (global) cookie-rejection. -- Cheers, Paul B.

Hi Paul, Well, I can't REALLY answer your question, BUT I can say that in my home town,the cable company(Adelphia,was Verto) claims that it has replaced all of the lines on the poles with fiber optics,to handle data in addition to the video. So,apparently,it doesn't all have to fit on one coax. Sean At 08:12 AM 9/20/99 +1000, you wrote: {Quote hidden}> > Take Cable modem; does it actually have the bandwidth to handle *many* >users, or is it just an option presently under-utilized that can be sold >at a performance premium until they fill it at which point congestion >sets in and performance disappears? When that happens are there >actually plans to re-develop it with the extra trunks, nodes and >switches to expand? >-- > Cheers, > Paul B. > | | Sean Breheny | Amateur Radio Callsign: KA3YXM | Electrical Engineering Student \--------------=---------------- Save lives, please look at http://www.all.org Personal page: http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/shb7 shb7KILLspamcornell.edu ICQ #: 3329174

Actually there is a text-only browser, but I am not sure the version I use, is totally up to date.... It is called LYNX, and is part of the package that comes with linux, but also exists for DOS/WINDOWS boxes, and winsock type connections as far as I know. Essentially, it translates the text bits, and ignores the graphics completely. It registers as a "NON-FRAMES" browser, so it chokes to some extent on the frames that everyone uses so much, and it also ignores the inline graphics, causing some problems when you absolutely HAVE to see the graphics, and they didn't anchor them. Or when they map the graphics.... but you can often read the usemap directory, and link off of it, and frames show up as a menu of different links, so you can link off of them. If what you want is information, with graphics second, then I recommend it, I actually downgraded my network connection so as to reduce the amount of time I spent frustrated waiting for graphics to load. Grey GRAEME SMITH email: .....grysmithKILLspam.....freenet.edmonton.ab.ca YMCA Edmonton Address has changed with little warning! (I moved across the hall! :) ) Email will remain constant... at least for now. On Tue, 21 Sep 1999, Paul B. Webster VK2BZC wrote: {Quote hidden}> Mark Willis wrote: > > > If all you want is e-mail and basic web surfing, an old XT to 386 or > > such and Net-Tamer can get you running, > > Enlighten me? What is Net-tamer? A basic browser like Lynx IIRC? > > What is *really* needed as a net-tamer is a browser which loads only > text and perhaps graphics under a certain size, then lets you right or > middle-click on the dummy icons over the graphics to bring up only the > ones you want. > > My wife (who is not Internet-friendly to start with) was trying to > read a (local) Yellow Pages listing yesterday, but the server is > massively under-powered for one, and the listings are spam-centred. > She gave up in disgust. A text browser would have given the real > information and no more. > > I have learnt to disable Javascript and *most* of the parasites go > away, though Netscape 3 still suffers from one or two it seems and > hasn't proper (global) cookie-rejection. > -- > Cheers, > Paul B. >

Cable Modems, aren't really modems at all.... Essentially what they are is an interface that allows you to share a common Ethernet Network. So the capacity of the Cable Modem depends not on its Maximum Speed, like normal modems, but on how badly saturated the Ethernet Channel you are on, is. If you are the First person in your area to have a Cable modem, it is blindingly fast, because there is no other packets sharing the same LAN connection. As your neighbors sign up, the individual computer user, gets less and less of a share of the resources of the ethernet connection, because more and more computers are sharing the resource, and more packets must be dealt with. It depends entirely on the POLICIES of the CABLE company how many people they push onto a single ETHERNET channel, just because the Optical cable is capable of multi-channel operation does not mean that the CABLE company has developed that capacity to its full extent. In short, your CABLE modem could become as slow as the LAN in the office used to be. GREY GRAEME SMITH email: EraseMEgrysmithspam_OUTTakeThisOuTfreenet.edmonton.ab.ca YMCA Edmonton Address has changed with little warning! (I moved across the hall! :) ) Email will remain constant... at least for now. On Mon, 20 Sep 1999, Sean H. Breheny wrote: {Quote hidden}> Hi Paul, > > Well, I can't REALLY answer your question, BUT I can say that in my home > town,the cable company(Adelphia,was Verto) claims that it has replaced all > of the lines on the poles with fiber optics,to handle data in addition to > the video. So,apparently,it doesn't all have to fit on one coax. > > Sean > > At 08:12 AM 9/20/99 +1000, you wrote: > > > > Take Cable modem; does it actually have the bandwidth to handle *many* > >users, or is it just an option presently under-utilized that can be sold > >at a performance premium until they fill it at which point congestion > >sets in and performance disappears? When that happens are there > >actually plans to re-develop it with the extra trunks, nodes and > >switches to expand? > >-- > > Cheers, > > Paul B. > > > | > | Sean Breheny > | Amateur Radio Callsign: KA3YXM > | Electrical Engineering Student > \--------------=---------------- > Save lives, please look at http://www.all.org > Personal page: http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/shb7 > shb7spam_OUTcornell.edu ICQ #: 3329174 >

Sean H. Breheny wrote: > Well, I can't REALLY answer your question, BUT I can say that in my > home town,the cable company claims that it has replaced all of the > lines on the poles with fiber optics,to handle data in addition to > the video. So, apparently,it doesn't all have to fit on one coax. No, but Graeme Smith elaborates my point. Do they actually have separate feeds to each street or even suburb with the hardware to pipe Internet feeds selectively to each, or just a load of splitters? -- Cheers, Paul B.

> Mark Willis wrote: > > > If all you want is e-mail and basic web surfing, an old XT to 386 or > > such and Net-Tamer can get you running, > Paul Webster replied: {Quote hidden}> Enlighten me? What is Net-tamer? A basic browser like Lynx IIRC? > > What is *really* needed as a net-tamer is a browser which loads only > text and perhaps graphics under a certain size, then lets you right or > middle-click on the dummy icons over the graphics to bring up only the > ones you want. > > My wife (who is not Internet-friendly to start with) was trying to > read a (local) Yellow Pages listing yesterday, but the server is > massively under-powered for one, and the listings are spam-centred. > She gave up in disgust. A text browser would have given the real > information and no more. > > I have learnt to disable Javascript and *most* of the parasites go > away, though Netscape 3 still suffers from one or two it seems and > hasn't proper (global) cookie-rejection. > -- > Cheers, > Paul B. > *If* you unfortunate enough to have to use windows, get yourselves to http://members.tripod.com/Proxomitron/. It's a fantastic little proxy server with adjustable filters to get rid of java script, pop ups, on unload windows and many other frustrating http items (inc. Geocities pop ups). It's totaly user configurable anf free. I really don't know how I managed without this. I'm guessing that there is something similar for Linux or it comes built in! Regards Mike Rigby-Jones

www.nettamer.net/ is where Net-Tamer is based. Text-mode Web, UseNet, mail, ftp, and telnet, ntp as well. http://members.tripod.com/~freezack/ has goodies for it. You can run Net-Tamer off an old 256k XT or a basic PDA, it does everything, basically. I've been using NetScape 4.07 US, thinking of installing Net-Tamer on the PC110 or HP200LX here. There's a good mailing list for Net-Tamer, too. It's fairly reasonably priced, forget how much ($29ish?), and it's a small download, 768k max for the 386+ version. I know a LOT of people who use it. Mark Paul B. Webster VK2BZC wrote: {Quote hidden}> > Mark Willis wrote: > > > If all you want is e-mail and basic web surfing, an old XT to 386 or > > such and Net-Tamer can get you running, > > Enlighten me? What is Net-tamer? A basic browser like Lynx IIRC? > > What is *really* needed as a net-tamer is a browser which loads only > text and perhaps graphics under a certain size, then lets you right or > middle-click on the dummy icons over the graphics to bring up only the > ones you want. > > My wife (who is not Internet-friendly to start with) was trying to > read a (local) Yellow Pages listing yesterday, but the server is > massively under-powered for one, and the listings are spam-centred. > She gave up in disgust. A text browser would have given the real > information and no more. > > I have learnt to disable Javascript and *most* of the parasites go > away, though Netscape 3 still suffers from one or two it seems and > hasn't proper (global) cookie-rejection. > -- > Cheers, > Paul B.

Hi Peter, Yes, I do (although, I am going to Cornell University which is about 100 miles from Scranton. But I still get home on many weekends and I was there this summer). I noticed a long time ago that your address was vertonet.com, and wondered if it was connected to Verto Cable. I assume it is? Where do you live? Sean At 09:05 PM 9/21/99 -0400, you wrote: {Quote hidden}>do you still live in the Scranton area Sean? > >Peter van Hoof >------------- >KILLspampvhKILLspamvertonet.com > >[snip] >> in my home >> town,the cable company(Adelphia,was Verto) claims that it has replaced all >> of the lines on the poles with fiber optics,to handle data in addition to >> the video. So,apparently,it doesn't all have to fit on one coax. >> >> Sean > | | Sean Breheny | Amateur Radio Callsign: KA3YXM | Electrical Engineering Student \--------------=---------------- Save lives, please look at http://www.all.org Personal page: http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/shb7 RemoveMEshb7TakeThisOuTcornell.edu ICQ #: 3329174

Hey Peter, I just saw that you hail from Moosic(by using the email search on yahoo)!! Obviously, I've been there many times! We will have to arrange our own piclist get-together sometime <G> Unfortunately, due to school commitments,I cannot attend the ESC :-( Sean At 09:05 PM 9/21/99 -0400, you wrote: {Quote hidden}>do you still live in the Scranton area Sean? > >Peter van Hoof >------------- >spamBeGonepvhspamBeGonevertonet.com > >[snip] >> in my home >> town,the cable company(Adelphia,was Verto) claims that it has replaced all >> of the lines on the poles with fiber optics,to handle data in addition to >> the video. So,apparently,it doesn't all have to fit on one coax. >> >> Sean > | | Sean Breheny | Amateur Radio Callsign: KA3YXM | Electrical Engineering Student \--------------=---------------- Save lives, please look at http://www.all.org Personal page: http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/shb7 TakeThisOuTshb7EraseMEspam_OUTcornell.edu ICQ #: 3329174