Your connection - dial-up or broadband?

There are two types of connection to the internet.

• Dial-up – you connect to the internet through a modem in your computer and a phone line in your office
• Broadband – you connect through cable, satellite, wireless radio, or specially configured phone lines

Advantages of dial-up v broadband

Advantages of dial-up

• There are no installation costs if an existing telephone line can be used and the computer already has a modem.
• Monthly payment plans cater well for infrequent and low-level users – usually cheaper than lowest broadband plans.
• It's available in Australia wherever a phone line exists (in some rural and outer metropolitan areas broadband coverage can be hard to get).
• There is less risk of hackers breaking into your website or office systems.

Disadvantages of dial-up

• You pay the cost of a phone call every time you connect. In rural areas you may even be paying long-distance (timed) rates for each connection.
• Lower speed means it can take a long time to download some pages, documents and email attachments.
• You have to dial up each time you want to use the internet and wait for your modem to connect you.
• Unless you have a dedicated internet phone line, you will not be able to take or receive phone calls while you are online.

Advantages of broadband

Broadband's high speed gives you access to applications that are either not feasible at the speed of a dial-up connection or just annoyingly slow.

It's always on. As long as your computer is switched on you can be connected to the internet (but make sure you have a good firewall). This means that you do not waste time dialing up and waiting for your modem to connect you to the internet every time you go online. You will not be subject to annoying busy signals and are less likely to experience drop-outs.

Several computers in the office can be connected via the one connection which saves money on multiple connections.

Your phone line is not tied up while using the internet. Therefore there is no need to pay for a second phone line.

There are no additional dial-up charges to connect each time you use the service.

When your website contains key information regularly used by staff, they can quickly and easily access the site.

Staff answering enquiries from members or customers can easily and quickly refer to your website.

Disadvantages of broadband

• It's not always available in rural and outer metropolitan areas.
• If you are an infrequent user you will be paying more per month for the privilege of constant access.
• Cost: you need to pay for installation and an a monthly usage charge.
• There is greater risk of hackers breaking into your website or office systems.

What broadband can do

• Broadband can allow you to transfer large files of text or graphics at high speeds.
• It can give you almost instant access to web pages, even those with large amounts of graphics that are typically very slow to download on a dial-up connection.
• It provides simultaneous access to web and email and does not tie up any existing phone line.
• Broadband can link several computers to the internet through the same connection (additional cost involved for router) – great for multi-user offices.
• It can make videoconferencing faster, smoother and more practical.
• It allows cheap long-distance telephone calls including teleconferencing using the internet.

Broadband can be delivered a number of different ways

• Cable internet uses the Pay TV cable network to bring you broadband internet access. If cable has already been brought into your street, you can use this.
• Digital subscriber line (DSL) refers to a group of technologies, the most common being ADSL or asymmetric digital subscriber line. DSL uses your existing telephone line to deliver high-speed internet access. It allows voice communication and high-speed data transmission on the same line at the same time.
• Satellite broadband uses a satellite dish to connect to the internet.
• Wireless broadband can deliver fast access by using radio waves instead of cables or wires to carry signals and data. If connecting via broadband, security of your system needs to be considered. Seek advice from your internet service provider (ISP).
• ISDN (integrated services digital network) sends data via a digital phone line to national and international destinations. It can be used to deliver the total internet, telephony and fax requirements of a small organisation.

Your choice of technology will depend largely on what is available in your area, and their relative costs.

More information