Join the broadband revolution - Part 2

As we said in Part 1, most people will be considering ADSL or a cable modem for their connection. The prices are roughly similar and you should expect to pay between £20 and £30 a month for a basic connection, which will give you a speed of 512Kbits/sec for downloading from the internet.

Uploading via ADSL is slower at 250Kbits/sec in the UK, regardless of the download speed. In fact, it may be a little slower if you're at the end of a long or noisy piece of cable.

If fast uploads are essential, then you need to consider either a conventional leased line, which is expensive, or SDSL (Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line), which is similar to ADSL, but works at the same speed in each direction. Of course, you will lose voice capabilities over the line and it's also pricier than ADSL. It's also not as widely available, so is best considered as a business product.

But what do you get for your money? You might think that, since with a very few exceptions, all ADSL connections come via BT's cables, there's little to choose between them. And with only two companies able to offer connection over cable TV networks, there's not much difference there.

But in fact, despite the relatively small spread of prices for ADSL, what's on offer can vary quite a lot from one service to another, as ISPs seek to differentiate themselves.

Many companies are now starting to offer 1Mbit/sec 50:1 connections, following BT's trial, and those that don't yet will almost certainly follow suit.

Some companies offer different contention ratios, either the 'business class' 20:1 service from BT, or other options that rely on them either having their own exchange equipment or using a slightly different BT ADSL system providing more flexibility to ISPs, at a cost of more involved set-up.

The real differences in various broadband offerings then, are not usually to be found in the core connection to the internet. Instead, they're in the extras, with some of the cheapest services offering only email support, for example, or coming without an email address.

Pay more and you may find exclusive content, or virus and spam filtering for your email. You might receive web space, or have a domain name thrown in, to give your email and web addresses a touch of professionalism.

Alternatively, if you already have web space elsewhere, you may decide it's best to keep that separate from your internet connectivity - the choice is yours.

If you're a home user who's not technically confident, you should check the support on offer carefully. Some ISPs may only provide a premium or national rate number, which costs extra to dial, while others may have restricted hours. And some may simply not want to know if you're using Linux, or other operating systems.

Other key things to look out for are whether or not you can share your connection between multiple computers. It's always possible to do this without the ISP being informed, but it's better if it's explicitly allowed by the conditions of service.

And if you want to be able to use programs like instant messaging, file sharing or web servers, you may need extra internet addresses, which may be free from some companies, subject to a set-up charge from others, or even a monthly rental.

We've shown some of the key differences between ISPs with the important elements of what their services offer, but there's simply not enough space to show everything. As well as checking the websites for the individual providers, it's worth reviewing sites such as ADSL Guide, which has feedback from the users of many ISPs and information to help you compare what's on offer.

Equipment required
As well as choosing a supplier, another key decision is what equipment you'll use to connect to your broadband link. When ADSL was first introduced, BT would install either a modem or a router for you, but now it's a little different.

First, your phone line will be enabled and then you can just plug in whatever you want to use (you'll also need filters, which split the ADSL signal from voice signals, preventing interference).

For cable modem access, the modem is provided by your cable company (it may also be built in to your set-top cable TV box if you subscribe to the TV services as well), and has an Ethernet socket on it, so you can just plug your PC in and go, provided that it too has Ethernet.

ADSL users need either a modem or an ADSL router. For a single PC, the simple solution is a modem, which is commonly connected to your computer via a USB port. If you then want to share the connection with other computers, you'll need to run software on that PC to do the job.

Far preferable in the eyes of many users is an ADSL router, which is a dedicated box that connects to the ADSL line and has one or more Ethernet ports into which you can plug your PCs. You can also connect routers to cable modems, allowing you to share those connections.

A router has the advantage of allowing several computers to share your broadband link, without requiring anything other than the router to be turned on all the time. Many will provide a DHCP (dynamic host configuration protocol) server, which makes setting up all the PCs simple. They may also provide a firewall to protect your computers from attack.

While you should have a firewall of some sort anyway - even a software one like Zonealarm - it becomes more important with broadband, because your computer is likely to be turned on all the time.

This not only leaves it vulnerable to attack, but means that if it is attacked, you could find that it's being hijacked to send spam, for example, or to attack a website. Antivirus and firewall products are, then, essential parts of any broadband connection.

Routers designed for ADSL use with built-in Ethernet switches (for plugging in extra PCs on your network) and firewalls can be found for less than £100, and are well worth the investment.

The IP address 'hiding' features called network address translation (Nat) of many routers offer a degree of protection, but they won't necessarily stop outgoing malicious internet access from your PC, so software protection is a minimum requirement.

Other useful features to look out for on routers are dial-up backup, so that if the broadband link fails, they can use a modem connection instead, and some also include a wireless access point, allowing you to connect laptops or other PCs without cables.

Though an all-in one box may seem like a good idea, remember that the place where you plug the router into the phone line might not be the best place to put a wireless access point to cover the whole of your home. Often two boxes will give you more flexibility than one.

While you can shop around for routers it's often a good idea to ask for advice from the ISP you've chosen. It may have preferred brands and may even be able to supply you with one already configured to use with its service. And by choosing one the ISP is familiar with, you'll have fewer technical support headaches.

Some of the ISPs will provide a modem and/or router as part of their package, so it's worth checking and making sure that, if you do decide to use something else, you'll still receive adequate technical support.

Broken promises?
So you know what's available, you've chosen a supplier for your broadband service, picked a router to connect your computer and sorted out firewall and antivirus software, and you're happy - until something goes wrong, that is.

It's worth remembering that, at present, there's no guaranteed service level for ADSL via BT lines. This means that, unlike with voice calls, you don't get compensation if the service is down for days. And individual ISPs have varying ideas about what constitutes 'suitable' use of their network. Start sharing thousands of files or doing massive downloads each day and you might find out all too soon.

If, for whatever reason, you decide you have to change ISP, all is not lost - see below for an explanation how it can be done with the minimum of fuss. But, don't let any potential problems put you off.

Most of the people who have broadband in the UK don't have any major problems with it. Once it's installed, it's usually fairly reliable and it won't take very long before you wonder how you managed without it.

Sharing your internet connection
In the past, sharing a connection was frowned upon, both by ISPs and by the authorities, but there are now few rules preventing you from doing so and, with the advent of broadband routers designed to do just that, the number of ISPs that explicitly prevent it is now smaller.

So how do you go about it? At its simplest, you can just connect a neighbour, or another computer, to your network in the normal way: a piece of network cable or a wireless card. In a block of flats, for example, you may be able to run a wire internally next door.

It's important to remember, however, that when you do this, your name and address will be on file for the internet connection. This means that you may have to act as intermediary if a neighbour wants technical support and, if they do something bad or illegal online, then yours is likely to be the door that will be knocked on.

So it's vital to ensure that your neighbour sees the terms of service for your internet connection and, preferably, confirms in writing that they have done so.

If you're operating a public wireless access point, you may even want to consider some form of filtering, only allowing web access for example.

Speed tests
Want to know how fast your internet connection is? There are sites around where you can check it out. It's best to try a few, to even out differences caused by the way traffic is routed round the internet.

ADSL Guide
Bandwidth Place
DSL Reports
UK Broadband Speed Test

Switching broadband ISPs
Once your phone line has been enabled for ADSL, it's fairly easy to switch to a different ISP, thanks to the fact that BT operates the last section of the link. If you're using an unbundled line, the procedure will be slightly different, and if you're using cable you don't have any choice anyway.

Additionally, if you have a very early ADSL installation, with engineer-installed equipment, you will have to return the BT-supplied kit. Those variations aside, it's a simple procedure:

1. Contact the ISP that you're leaving and tell them you wish to migrate to another service provider.

2. Your new ISP puts in a request to BT to transfer the line to you.

3. The original ISP must confirm acceptance of the request within two weeks.

4. On the arranged date, tell your router or ADSL modem to disconnect from your old ISP.

5. Your router is reconfigured with the login details for your new ISP.

6. When the router reconnects, traffic is routed from your line to your new ISP.

Usually, according to ISPs that have migrated customers, it can all be done with only a few minutes' downtime as the customer's router is reconfigured.