The Adsl Bit
After searching Google for an ADSL isp i came across various ISP's that offered 1meg and 2meg service and as my NTL number was now a BT phone number i had to wait 24hrs until i could use the phone number checker to see if my local BT exchange was ADSL enabled you can use your post code but (its only 80-90% accurate as its an area check) your BT number inc your area code is checked to your local exchange.
If you wanna play here is the link to
Post code & BT phone Number checker
BT has extended the distance limit from the exchange to 6km instead of 5.5km (about 3 miles i think? you work it out) if you decide to go for 1/2/4/6 meg the closer you are to your exchange the better chance you have of getting it if your too far away to get the 1meg service you wont be able to get any of the 2/4/6meg services that the adsl isp that you have choosen can provide.
BT ADSL check
you must be within 3.5km to pass for 1Mbps and 2Mbps ADSL,(also your local BT exchange must support these speeds) and within 5.5km for the 512kbps ADSL. This is based on actual line length as opposed to the physical distance from the exchange. Secondly, BT will test the quality of your line. This test is normally based on current records for your line & geographical area, but BT may need to test your line at street level before confirming (to the ADSL ISP that you have choosen) that they can supply ADSL to your location..
While searching for an ADSL provider i looked at Pipex, Nildram, Eclipse and of course Bulldog i came across ADSL forums that were full of complaints from various other ADSL ISP (inc the ones mentioned above) and quickly came to the conclusion that NO ADSL ISP is complaint free, then i looked at reliability, level of service, how long would i have to wait in a queue for support or advice if i became a customer and then most important of all the monthly cost of the service (some ISP's offered supscriptions to be paid quartaly & annually but it made no different to the price if you settled your subscription above 1 month so why bother?), some ADSL ISP's offered a free modem free activation fee/lower price activation fee.
some other deciding factors
Is their a cap/restriction in force (how many gigs are you allowed to use per day/week/month)
Minimum Contract (if i found the service crap how quickly can i leave and choose another ADSL ISP)
examples to watch out for.. Pipex advertise 1 month min contract but if you read the very very small print if you leave in the first 12 months after activation there is a charge so what pipex mean is 1 month after the first 12 months of your contract. (its all in the wording)
Is there a cost for switching to a lower or highier level of service (the majority of ADSL ISP charge and it could be £15-45+)
Migration
Moving from one ISP to another by doing this you can save money on the set up fee depending on which ADSL ISP you are migrating to. in normal circumstances you should also benefit from little or no 'down time' on your service. If you have a 'self install' account you can migrate it to the equivalent service, but if your previous install was by a BT engineer its gonna cost you more.
ADSL ISP's can delay your release if they choose so try not to loose your temper.
Dont just rush into joining any ADSL ISP on your friends say so, what is good for him maybe the oposite for you, it will save you money in the long run if spend more time looking at what is on offer and the good and also bad.
How to Install ADSL yourself in 5 easy steps
Activate your BT telephone line for the ADSL digital data connection buy and install your modem software on your pc, Plug splitter into telephone socket & connect your modem/router to it Your ADSL line is now ready to be used
its that easy
Once your line is ADSL activated, you may experience a loss of quality until you install line splitters in any active telephone sockets
Here is a link to the cheapest
ADSL line splitters i could find (free postage as long as you order on line)
1meg (£29.99 ) & 2meg (£39.99 a month) ISP's (are these ADSL ISP's the cheapest?)
FireflyUK
50:1 Services ideal for home or small business use.
512K, £23.99 / month
1Mbit, £29.99 / month
2Mbit, £39.99 / month
I dont know weather this ISP has a cap/restriction on Newsgroup access, if your interested in joining this ISP it might be a good idea to phone them or email them and ask.
All FireFly ADSL packages are provided with the following :
Server-side email anti-virus protection
Email anti-spam prevention
200 megabytes of webspace
Unlimited POP email addresses
Webmail
Giganews USENET Access <--This might please somebody
National Rate Technical Support
__________________________________________________
Silvermead Internet
.....Speed.....Contention.Usage..............Cost. (inc vat)
Home 256k 256k.50:1.......Unlimited.(No Cap).£1 9.99
Home 512k 512k.50:1.......Unlimited.(No Cap).£2 4.99
Home 1Mb..1Mb..50:1.......Unlimited.(No Cap).£2 9.99
Home 2Mb..2Mb..50:1.......Unlimited.(No Cap).£3 9.99
All packages inc. 1 free static IP address as well as all the usual features.(Email & web space)
I also found out that there is no charge if you decide to move to a lower speed or upgrade to a low speed to a higher speed (which the majority of adsl isp's charge) and the Min contract is 3 Months (not 3 months after your 1st 12 months)
About ADSL & SDSL
ADSL Modem
I looked around at all the options (and there is a big selection of ADSL modems to choose from) i finally decided to buy a
Netgear DG834 £89.99 (Free postage)