A significant number of Princeton Online users consistently ask us about dial up access in Princeton and Central New Jersey. Knowing how often we update the 4,300 e-mail addresses on our newsletter mailing list, it is obvious many of you are in search of the perfect connection: service, no busy signals, speed, cost. This page is an ongoing effort to identify access providers in the greater Princeton area. We may add editorial content along with the descriptions if we feel strongly about a provider or if our users have given us value added input. Keep in mind that access providers can provoke strong disagreements and that these descriptions represent only our opinions or those of our users. Use our feedback form if you want to tell us your own views on local internet access.
4/27/00 Steven Comeau, a Princeton Online user, has kindly supplied us with his take on Free Internet Service Providers. In addition, he has provided some commentary on the types of access most people decide upon. Read on for a better take on the local and free access scene. Steven has worked the past 2 years as a LAN Specialist for a local bank where he supports the LAN infrastructure, along with application, file and print servers, and over 500 desktops, for a wide portion of Central Jersey. Here are his thoughts on Internet users in general:
The majority of the people I know who use pay ISPs, fit into one of three catagories:
1). Beginner Users - These users aren't too technical and want/need handholding. The majority of these people use AOL since it is the easiest to use and has a friendly interface with a number of canned forums. AOL has a good support staff and have a vast number of local numbers to dial. Also, this is a good choice for business travelers since finding a local number in a large city is easy.
2). Local Users - These are users who find that AOL doesn't have a local (non-toll) number for them, so they decide to use the local "Bells" or other ISPs. AT&T Worldnet, Bell Atlantic Net, Erols, Earthlink, New Jersey Internet, etc., are some of the top choices.
3). High Speed Users (Cable Modems) - This is actually a growing number of people and I would say more of my friends use this than AT&T Worldnet or Bell Atlantic. These are users who don't mind paying extra since they have the "need for speed". Comcast has their @HOME service at about $40 per month (if you already subscribe to cable TV). If you are a high volume user, you can save the cost of an additional phone line. Plus, in most newer homes, cable hookups exist already. The download speed is astounding, there are no dialups, and you get instant access. Overall, cables modems are what I consider the best "bang-for-the-buck" and if I was online more often, this would be my choice of internet access.
Comcast and RCN run specials where the installation is free (but you pay for the special modem) and a one month no obligation free trial. However, areas are limited and some areas don't have true cable modem access - an extra phone line is needed which defeats the savings. The three unnoticed disadvantages are security (you share a line with others), speed degradation as more neighbors share your "segment", and finally, cable companies have been reducing the speed at which you can "upload".
DSL is also a new "buzz" word, but there is limited availability locally as of this writing. According to one user, Bellatlantic and North Point offer the service, but check for availability.
For those who can work their way around a PC comfortably, a “free” Internet Service Provider (ISP) may be the way to go. The early versions of these programs were known to cause some minor crashes, but they are increasingly becoming robust. Don’t expect first class, quick tech-support response if you have an issue, though. Also, some have large setup software (5-6 Meg) which can take a while to download. On the bright side, most are relatively easy to install, and even 56K access is the norm.
Most free ISPs work on the same principle as Commercial Television – advertising. Once the program is launched and loaded, a banner appears on your screen that flashes advertisements to purchase products, services, etc. This banner can be obtrusive, but it can be moved to different parts of your screen. If you use 640x480 resolution, it can be extremely overbearing. There are rumors of additional hacking software that can “remove” these banners, but such software can violate your agreement with the providers. Some providers will ask you for your Credit Card number for “verification” – whatever that means. Others have charged an up front fee which is supposedly reimbursed after a month or so, but some have been burned on the reimbursement (so much for the “free”). Finally, most require you to fill out a survey every once in a while which one could assume they use to target you with specific advertising via email.
Overall, you get what you pay for. As more people begin to use these providers, the frequency of busy signals after work hours tends to rise. But during the day, they work fine. For those who only download email once in a while, and spend a few hours per day online, the $20 per month saved would make a nice charitable gift. One site highly recommended visiting is www.internet4free.net for a more in-depth evaluation of free ISPs. They have a links to www.epinions.com which provide an excellent source of user’s comments. Below are a few personal evaluations:
This was one of the first ISPs in the area to provide free Internet service. After about a year of use, and some initial issues, their software is stable – but slow to load. Installation software is over 5 Meg, but it runs well on Windows 95, 98, and NT. The constant automatic upgrading of the software is annoying since it causes disconnects and reconnects. Their banner is moveable and provides a lot of information – maybe too much. They will warn you of inactivity and disconnect you if you don’t respond to the warning. Random disconnects have occurred. Email is provided by having you configure most commonly available software (Outlook, Outlook Express, Netscape). Overall, there have been only a few complaints, but for most users, it works well.
It’s not just for email anymore. Their setup was quite easy, but it may have been because I was already using their free email service. Their banner was not as annoying as NetZero’s because it didn’t have any excess information. Their numbers are limited, but they can be a good backup. If you presently use their email, it is a simple upgrade to use their free Internet service. As a side note, Juno also provides a web-based email system, like HotMail, that works well, but needs some improvement such as still being able to download your mail locally even after you view it (supposedly it works, but it didn’t for me). Finally, Juno email can be configured to download via your ISP, which is a convenient feature.
The reviews about this provider are quite mixed. My personal experience has been negative, but it has been about 4 months since I have used them. They may have improved. Their download is about 5 Meg.
Here is another one that has mixed reviews. Personally, there were difficulties with crashes, but I have heard rave reviews from colleagues. A smaller download of 600K makes a positive impression.
NOTABLE MENTIONS:
Although there is no direct personal experience with these companies, they do merit mention.
This is a different approach to the free ISP market. Rather than downloading and installing the free ISP software, changing your email address, and putting up with those annoying banners, just become a member of rhinoPoint.com. To become a member, just fill out their member profile form, pay a one-time setup fee of $12.95 and agree to respond to at least one market research survey each month. In return, they will pay you up to $22.00 per month for use of your present ISP. This may take a nice chunk out of the bill for those who use cable modems. On a side note, there have been rumors of free ISPs attaching themselves with this service.
Although there is no direct experience with this ISP, they do get high reviews from epinions.com. They have one number in Princeton, and three in each of Hopewell, Hightstown, Bordentown, Mercerville, and Franklin Park. Their email, however, is web-based.
This free ISP is worth mentioning for those who want Internet access without objectionable content. At the time of this writing, the list of local numbers was unavailable.
DSL – the high-speed system that utilizes your existing phone line, but is separated from your voice phone line. The Internet service is free, but the setup and connection charges (via your local phone company) are additional, along with the special DSL modem. You can get the modem for free if you can get 10 people to use you as a referral; however, it is reported that some have had issues with those referrals.
This is not an exhaustive list by any means. Once again, visiting www.internet4free.net for a more in-depth evaluation of free ISPs along with personal contacts is recommended. Also, www.epinions.com provides user’s comments.
As a side note, just because you live in one specific area code, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you will be charged for using another area code’s local access number. Check with your phone company or your local phone book for “local” numbers. For instance, a Franklin Park prefix in the 732 area code may call certain 609 numbers for Princeton, Plainsboro, and Cranbury without incurring a toll charge (and vice-versa). This means that there may be more local ISPs available than you originally thought.
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