Surveying his domain.
Morgan hasn’t tried to ride Patriot again yet. She’s starting lessons on Monday. I think she and Patriot both could use some re-training and brush-up work!
On another subject, the other day, a Frontier phone man stopped by to tell me that I could have DSL now. I’ve longed for DSL! But! I don’t really know anything about it. I’ve never had DSL. Satellite internet is all that has ever been available in the country here. DSL is starting to creep in. I can’t say that I’m highly satisfied with satellite internet. But switching to an unknown still seems a little scary.
If you’ve switched from satellite internet to DSL, tell me about it!
denisestone says:
DSL is HORRIBLE! Save yourself from the headaches and frustrations. Satellite Internet is SO MUCH better than DSL. We dumped our DSL as soon as we could, and never looked back!
On April 12, 2012 at 3:49 pm
whishin says:
We had DSL when we lived in town, but it wasn’t available here, so we went to satellite. If I could, I’d switch back to DSL. No counting megabytes, no getting cut off, no going outside to brush the snow off, and cheaper too. If you’re not on a contract, I’d say go for it!
On April 12, 2012 at 3:49 pm
ladybird_1959 says:
Good luck with Frontier. Last week a technician came to my daughter’s house (who doesn’t even have a land line) and told her that DSL is available to her. Last year I tried DSL because I was told it was available to me. Turned out I was too far from the box. When they told her it was available I called and the technicians came out…guess what….it still won’t work at my house and I live right next door to her. You might want to see how close you are to the box. I was 4 miles away and it was slower than dialup.
I live in Kenna and use a Ntelos air card. Most of the time it works well. Sometimes I have trouble with the signal, but not often. I haven’t wanted to put the money out for satellite. Too expensive. The air card runs less than $50 a month.
On April 12, 2012 at 3:55 pm
twiggityNDgoats says:
I might have to agree with ladybird. Frontier in a lot of this this area doesn’t have the best reputation for speed or reliability although I have no personal experience. A lot does depend on how close the “hub” is to you. Frontier DSL is rumored to be coming to our neck of the woods here east of Spencer but I’m pondering satellite instead. Don’t know what the service contract is for DSL but I’d not ditch my satellite until I tried DSL for a while.
On April 12, 2012 at 4:07 pm
bonita says:
I’d say that brat Patriot got just what he wanted, the (big) dickens! Yup retraining in order.
Try the following web sites on for size. I used the first way back when DSL was just coming to my area and the choice was DSL or cable. Loads of info.
Yes, proximity to ‘box’ is important. I was first in my area (remember I’m IN the city) to get DSL and I had to wait till they ‘ran a line.’ Same happened when I upgraded from ordinary DSL to “Bigger, Faster, Better DSL.
Squiddo compares services:
https://www.squidoo.com/dsl-vs-cable-vs-satelliteinternet
Digital landing compares providers:
https://www.digitallanding.com/lp/High-Speed-Internet.html?gclid=CILj2rGTsK8CFUrWKgodNz8yGw
Not an easy choice, there are deadbeat providers for each!
On April 12, 2012 at 4:34 pm
bonita says:
MMM Patriot got what he wanted, the (big) brat!
Try here: https://techtips.salon.com/dsl-vs-satellite-speeds-21234.html
for an explanation of benefits/drawbacks. Also, check out your would-be provider;s record, in your area, online. There are deadbeats on both sides of the DSL/Satellite fence. And, perhaps you might be able to move up your type-of-service at the satellite folks with the advent of DSL in your area.
On April 12, 2012 at 4:43 pm
rurification says:
We’re on DSL. Love it! Have heard horrible things about satellite around here, mostly the bandwidth curfews they put folks on if they exceed their monthly allowance. Sometimes DSL is a bit slow, but it’s way way better than the fastest dialup we ever had.
On April 12, 2012 at 4:57 pm
BuckeyeGirl says:
It’s true, we had issues too with distance from the main line at first but I kept after them and I think they finally got tired of me calling and opening work orders till they got it straightened out. I did start taking notes on who I spoke to every time. I finally got a supervisor out and made it clear if they couldn’t live up to their contract I’d demand my money back etc.
My neighbor across the river never had a problem and was shocked to hear I was having issues, turns out their line comes from the other direction! Gotta love living out in the country!
I’d keep your satellite hook up for the first month till it’s all organized just in case!
On April 12, 2012 at 4:58 pm
BuckeyeGirl says:
Meant to say how beautiful springtime is looking for you and how lovely Patriot looks. He’s a lucky boy and he’s got a beautiful place to survey his domain from!
On April 12, 2012 at 5:00 pm
Old Geezer says:
We went to DSL as soon as it came close enough several years ago. There were startup issues with it (and this is AT&T!) because the techs in this district were new to it. I happen to be working in the internet arena so connectivity is very important to me. We survived the startup issues and we’re quite happy with it for years. When AT&T came out with its UVerse fiber-based DSL we went for it in a heartbeat and are still satisfied.
Now, having said that, if Frontier is just getting into the DSL game you might well be better off to wait. Note how so far you’ve gotten mixed reactions from other commenters. What matters is 1) your distance from the nearest “repeater”; 2) the knowledge and experience of the techs in your district. Also, find out if anyone nearby has made the change. That might clue you in. Also, when you make a trouble call, is it answered in India? Not a good sign for ease of maintenance.
Beware, however, that with DSL if the power goes out for the whole area then the DSL will likely go out as well, whereas if you have a generator for the farm then satellite will still be available. DSL ain’t like the old dependable 48v self-powered phone circuit.
My bottom line: wait for now, but switch when it shows up around you and the other folks are no up in arms.
On April 12, 2012 at 5:33 pm
perry says:
I have DSL and and I love it! I would agree with those that tell you to wait until at least some of the bugs get worked out since they are just now bringing it your way. We don’t lose service often but it it the pits when there is no internet regardless of the carrier, lol.
On April 12, 2012 at 6:01 pm
Rubens Dad says:
Have Frontier DSL works well, if you pay attention to different packages available and don’t be afraid to haggle. Have a 3 yr package, unlimited internet, phone and free long distance for 34 bucks a month. Support has been good. Speed available is determend by how close a main router is located. They have a great app on their net site that measures your speed.
David
On April 12, 2012 at 6:37 pm
alba says:
Well I know nothing about DSL or satellite so I asked my does not do or buy anything without RESEARCHRESEARCHRESEARCH DH He said You will like DSL better than Sat its Faster, but he also said it depends on how close you are to the DSL switching Station ????? I know we just switched provider He is happy it’s cheaper more bandwidth faster did I say Cheaper…..
He also said research talk to people NEVER SALESMEN/WOMEN they want to sign you Up & sell you … Good luck.
Have a good one Ann/alba
On April 12, 2012 at 8:32 pm
AnnieB says:
We switched from dial-up to DSL and we’ve now had it for about 5 or 6 years. It is awesome, and we’ve only ever had 1 or 2 brief downtimes in all those years. BUT, it is with Verizon, and they’ve been doing it a long time. I know nothing about Frontier. It probably is only as good as the telephone service, so keep that in mind.
Maybe if you could have both DSL and satellite for a couple of months, as I think someone mentioned. Can Frontier give you a several-month trial?
On April 12, 2012 at 8:38 pm
Pat says:
We have DSL for our internet and LOVE it. We have satellite for TV and detest it. We are too far out for cable. If it was available, I’d throw that satellite in the river or use it as a garbage can lid. Give me DSL/cable any day!
Pat in Eastern NC
On April 12, 2012 at 9:32 pm
JerseyMom says:
Non DSL related comment here….I was pecking around on my facebook page tonight, clicking on various horsey related links from my friends and friends of friends…..and low and behold, among the rescue horse pic and commentary was none other than…..ZIP!!! Her before and after pics via Heart of Phoenix facebook related posts via the Lucas Farms page. How cool is that? I said (to myself) hey, that’s Suzanne’s horse!! 😆 I’m an avid supporter of rescues, especially the equine type so it was extra fun to see a horse you know came from very bad circumstances and KNOW she will have a fabulous home!! Yay Suzanne!!
On April 12, 2012 at 9:33 pm
JerseyMom says:
Okay…further scrolling revealed Patriot too!!! YAY!
On April 12, 2012 at 9:37 pm
STracer says:
Well, I didn’t read all the comments, there are a variety. I am sending this from my Frontier DSL connection that I have had here in WV for several years. We never have any trouble more disturbing than the occasional need to reset the router after storms. Turn it off, turn it on, it works. We are about three miles from the Frontier hub in town. Computer geek friends of mine who had satellite dropped it like a hot potato when DSL was available, they say it is much, much, much better.
On April 12, 2012 at 9:44 pm
UlrikeDG says:
DSL totally depends on where you live! I love mine. It hardly ever goes down, and when it does, it usually comes back on within a minute or two on its own (once or twice a year, I have to unplug it to make it reset, but I’ve never had to call about it being down, unless the phone was down, too). I had cable internet before this, and it was terribly unreliable. However, that’s my neighborhood. The cable is bad. DSL excellent.
My suggestion: wait until a couple of your neighbors have had DSL for a few months, then ask them how they like it. If your closest neighbors say it’s great, go for it. If they say it’s not, then don’t.
On April 12, 2012 at 10:08 pm
Leaves of the fall says:
I’ve never had satellite, but have known folks who have, and they’ve been highly frustrated. I went from dial-up to DSL and LOVE IT. haven’t had any problems with it and have been on it for several years. i send quite a few large photo files at a time and it never bogs down. i’m in the process of moving, and not sure what all is available in the new area…. am hoping DSL is available, as i don’t want to go to wireless, either. Good luck!
On April 12, 2012 at 10:37 pm
enjay says:
I’ve had both dsl and cable, never had satellite. I have had cable for ten years now and it works okay, but the dsl we used to have was phenomenal, we shared it with the apartment downstairs and often had five people downloading or playing online games at the same time and rarely had a problem. We have three computers connected to the cable and have to schedule our heavy usage time or no one can get anything done. If we had phone lines to our house (we just use cells so never bothered to repair the wiring when it went down in a hurricane) we’d get dsl again.
On April 12, 2012 at 11:37 pm
maryellen51 says:
I’ve had a satellite for several years,but recently got Frontier DSL. I love it. It is so much faster than my satellite. Click and what ever you want is there. The satellite would get really slow at certain times in the day. You had to watch how much you used it. The Frontier technician who installed mine, said that this well doesn’t go dry. I can use it as much as I want and it’s not going to slow down. It’s less than half the price of the satellite per month, and you save more when you bundle telephone, and internet or telephone, tv and internet. I canceled my satellite the next day.
On April 12, 2012 at 11:41 pm
WvSky says:
There is NO contest between DSL and satellite. Speed wise and price wise, satellite still is the absolute last resort for desperate people. Go with the DSL. (This of course is assuming that you have a GOOD DSL line to start with)
On April 12, 2012 at 11:55 pm
Merino Mama says:
I have Hughesnet satellite because DSL isn’t available to me. I have not heard good things about Frontier, however. I know in Clay they have a lot of problems. Suddenlink and Shentel are probably better. It will depend on how far you are from the hub. I’d wait a little while since they’re just getting in your area. I’ve never had any problem going over my limit with the satellite but there are times when it is slow anyway, clouds, wind, something.
On April 13, 2012 at 11:28 am
Zusiqu says:
I’ve had DSL and hated it. Turns out we were the farthest from the box. One’s distance from the box makes ALL the difference. If the box is close to you, make the change. If the box is far from you, the signal will be weak, spotty and slow.
On April 14, 2012 at 11:10 am
shirken says:
We are in the hinterlands of Kentucky and until recently ALL we had was 56KB telephone service unless we were to inherit a LOT of money to buy Sat. service and that wasn’t about to happen. DSL came available and at an affordable rate. I LOVE THE SPEED we now enjoy.
DSL is not a brain draining technology. Once connected using it is easy and in our case well worth the fee we have to pay which is far less than the Sat price.
On April 15, 2013 at 9:40 pm