|
Cable modems, DSLs speed computer use
'Doing what the Internet is supposed to do'
June 13, 1997
Web posted at: 10:23 p.m. EDT (0223 GMT)From Reporter Joan MacFarlane
NORTHVILLE, Michigan (CNN) -- Tony DePasqual no longer uses a phone line to get on the Internet, and he doesn't wait around drumming his fingers while information downloads.
Warp speed access to the Net is available to DePasqual and many others through the same cable that feeds into their televisions.
Joan MacFarlane reports from Birmingham, Michigan 2 min., 15 sec. VXtreme streaming video "The significant thing is the speed, obviously," DePasqual says. "You are downloading at about 50 times the speed of a modem, which means you can be much more productive and accomplish more in a given amount of time."
DePasqual says his new cable modem can download one megabyte of information in 15 to 20 seconds as opposed to six or seven minutes with his 28.8 bps modem.
As an example, a picture that takes 45 seconds to download on the 28.8 modem appears almost instantly when the cable modem was used.
Conventional modems are limited by the physical carrying capacity of the telephone line, but the coaxial TV cable is larger and can carry much more data than a traditional telephone line.
'Doing what the Internet is supposed to do'
Cable modems are not the only new technology offering faster access to the Web. Digital subscriber lines, or DSLs, send a digital signal down a telephone line at potentially the same speed as a cable modem.
But if you tried to download the entire Encyclopedia Britannica on a 28.8 modem, it would take more than 20 hours. With a cable modem or DSL, it would take 40 seconds.
"I think it means the realization of what we've been thinking about," says computer expert Andy Palms. "Doing what the Internet is supposed to do."
Both cable modems and DSL offer the same service and vastly superior speed, but the question is: Which will become the industry standard?
"If you look at the computer industry in general," Palms says, "it's not necessarily the best technology that wins. It's the company that is able to position itself the best that wins."
About 25 percent of the nation's metropolitan areas already have access to the Internet through cable systems. By the end of the year, most major cities, including New York and Los Angeles, will join them in the Internet fast lane.
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
Watch these shows on CNN for more sci-tech stories:
CNN Computer Connection | Future Watch | Science & Technology Week
Sound off on our message boards
Tell us what you think!
You said it...
© 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.