By Dan Miller
Cheaper computers and easy-to-run software have created a surge of computer users in Whatcom County. As the number of computer users increases, so does the number of people getting online, straining local Internet providers and slowing net traffic to a crawl.
Also, with the Internet becoming more and more reliant on video, sounds and pictures, the need for a faster connection has become an issue for computer users.
This issue gets even more confusing when two competing technologies are battling to be the new standard for Whatcom County users. These technologies are DSL (Digital Subscriber Loop) from US West, a local telephone company, and digital cable from TCI, the area's cable-TV provider.
As of now, DSL has taken the lead in the broadband (high speed Internet access) war because it is the only affordable high-speed connection out on the marketplace.
"I just got DSL in the second week of October, I ordered it on October first, so it took about a week to two weeks to get hooked up," said Nate Woodward, who attends Western Washington University part-time. Woodward said that he likes the fast connection speeds that DSL provides.
"It's the best $60 a month that I could spend," he said. "I use it to download big files and play games, it's really fast."
The average computer modem without DSL can download up to 56 kilobytes per second. Microsoft's home page is roughly 76 kilobytes in size, so it takes about a second and a half to download Microsoft's home page. Most files on the net are bigger though, anywhere from 100 KB (kilobytes) and up. DSL can download anywhere from 256 kilobytes to 1,000 kilobytes per second and beyond.
Recently released in August, DSL has skyrocketed in popularity according to US West. "We can't keep up with demand. Our central office is maxed out. Everyone who has signed up for it has been put on a reserve list because we are so swamped with orders," said Ted Swezy, a US West representative. Swezy also said that he could not comment on any numbers at this time. "US West needs to protect its market share," Swezy said.
DSL prices start at $40 for a 256 KB connection to $840 for 7,000 KB and requires a one-time fee of $150 for a technician from US West to come and hook it up.
"DSL isn't for everyone," said US West Megabit Representative Roger Smith. Smith said that DSL services are based on a hub and spoke model; which means that only people who live within 15,000 feet of US West's hub can hook up to DSL.
This has caused some frustration for residents who are do not live within distance of US West's hub, like Bill Bandelin, a Lake Whatcom resident who works as a XXXX at Federal Express. "US West told me that, right now, DSL will not be available to me or my neighbors. I don't want to move just for that. I guess I'll have to wait for cable modems," he said.
Many people are waiting for cable modems for this very reason. Dan Crocker, general manager for TCI said that TCI is upgrading Bellingham's cable lines to increase bandwidth with a digital line. In April, cable customers will be able surf the Internet at faster speeds, up to 10,000 KB per second on TCI's @Home Internet service. Digital cable lines will also give cable subscribers more channels to choose from.
Kris Dahl, a tech support specialist at Alpha Tech Computers in Bellingham disagrees. "Quite honestly, cable modems will not work. Mainly, this is because the cable companies are not in position to offer next generation two-way communications services. The infrastructure and experience is not there."
The @Home service will cost $40 per month for unlimited access. The Internet signal will be run through coaxial cable, the same (but upgraded) cable that is used for cable television. Users will be billed on their cable bill.
"We are looking at lower prices for lower bandwidth, but nothing is in stone yet," said Crocker. "We will eventually service Whatcom, Skagit and Island counties with our @Home service. By the end of next year, TCI projects that Washington state alone will have one million (@Home) customers."
Crocker said that TCI has used Seattle as a test market and had a hard time keeping up with orders.
"Even the cable modem makers can't make enough modems to meet the overwhelming demand," Crocker said.
A third, but seldom-used service has been in place for quite some time, called ISDN. The ISDN standard was developed three years ago as an answer to businesses that craved faster Internet speeds. The service is relatively expensive compared to DSL and is slower too.
"ISDN was a great stepping stone it has low latency, and fairly inexpensive for businesses," said Dahl. "It is now too expensive and limited when compared to DSL."
It costs $250 a month plus telephone company fees of $65 a month for a 128 KB line. A telephone company must also lay a special ISDN line to whoever uses it, and that just adds to the cost.
In order for residents to receive ISDN, they must have their phone company lay a special digital line to their house and buy a special modem. Many are abandoning ISDN and traditional modems in favor of faster DSL and cable modems.
"The high-speed access is definitely worth it. I can't even imagine surfing the net or downloading large files without it," Woodward said.