> > Package a) a sole device USD 499,
> > Package b) the device and a 24 Month contract USD 99 + 24 x 20
> Or the common package C) box is part of the service and "rented". Cable
> boxes especially encoded ones are that case here (usa).
Yeah, but there are many places in the US where it is essentially illegal
to hook your own cable descrambler to the cable line, not too much different
than the old Bell System limits on third-party equipment hooked to phone
lines.
There are some attractions to cheap and uniform guaranteed service for
all, but I don't think I want Internet access to become the monopoly
that phone service used to be or cable service is today. It's bad enough
with some ISP's threatening that they only support Microsoft Windows
and that if you've got trouble accessing their service from any other
OS you're out of luck.
Actually DSL from some companies is already worse than that - you have
to have a PCI-bus PC-clone running Windows to use their service,
because the only interface device that will work requires that
hardware configuration and the only drivers available are for
MS-Windows.
--
Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa_at_trailing-edge.com
Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/
7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917
Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927
Received on Thu Apr 06 2000 - 11:08:43 BST