New to DSL - some questions

[Amy]

DSL is finally available in our area, so I called yesterday to order it; should be ready to go by Oct. 18. We're finally getting rid of dial-up!

Anyway, while I'm waiting for the modem and all that other fun stuff to arrive, I had a couple of questions:

Is DSL an "always on" internet connection? My boys are always IM-ing their buddies and playing goofy on-line games (Moonscape was last month's game of choice), and my younger son in particular doesn't think before he clicks on links. Is there some way to disconnect from the DSL so I can be sure there isn't something running in the background that we don't know about? We usually shut down our computers at night, so that should help somewhat. I've got McAfee Security Suite with anti-virus, firewall, anti-spam, etc., in addition to the regular Windows security stuff.

DH's work is going to pay for a wireless router so he can use his work laptop at home and both desktops (ours and the boys') can use the DSL connection. (I know, we have to get some kind of card to plug into the desktops so they can "talk" to the router.) DH and I are pretty careful on the internet, so our computer is pretty clean. Since our computer will now be networked with the boys' computer, if their computer acquires a virus or spyware or something nasty like that, will it also affect our computer? If so, how do I guard against that?

We're going with Verizon DSL, their new $14.95 offer. I know, it's the slowest DSL out there, but compared to our dial-up, it'll seem like we're flying. And it was so nice to actually talk to a customer service rep who was located in Pittsburgh (where we live) instead of India!

I'm sure I'll have more questions once we get everything hooked up, but these are the main ones for right now. I can't wait!! Thanks for your help/suggestions!

 

[jrydberg]

It's always on *if* you want it to always be on. But you can disconnect if you so desire.

Make sure you have a password setup on your wireless router so it's not just publicly available to anyone close enough to use it

You should also be able to set up an account for your boys so that they can only access certain sites on the internet (the firewall would block them from accessing anything other than permitted sites). That would prevent any problems from careless clicks.

I do that with my daughter since she likes to type in the websites she plays on and who knows what'll come up if she misspells disney.com.

 

[always quiet]

We have verizon dsl and really love it!! You can 'team' it up with either msn premium or yahoo. Personally, I prefer the msn because they have fantastic programs for the kids which have been a huge help from everything from big reports to nightly homework (their algebra is way over my head!). Also, the have parental controls which you can set and it sends you an activity report to not only let you know what sites your child has visited, but who has sent them email or who they have sent it to. Also, you can have it set so that only thier approved contacts can reach them via messenger. I think you'll love it!!

Oh yeah, there is a disconnect option as well!!

 

[Amy]

always quiet - glad to hear you're happy with Verizon. We've been with Earthlink forever with our dialup, but Earthlink just doesn't have DSL yet and I'm tired of waiting! DH and I were trying to decide between the MSN and Yahoo - I like the idea of getting reports of the kids' activity. Sometimes when their friends come over and they go on the internet they seem like they're having too much fun, if you know what I mean. I'll have to really read the stuff that comes with the installation kit.

Oh, I thought of another question - the "teaming up" with MSN or Yahoo - does that mean we'll have an e-mail address @msn.com or @yahoo.com instead of @verizon.net??

Thanks!

 

[always quiet]

You can have one or the other..........or both!! I use both the verizon.net and the msn.com. In order to use the msn perks you need to have a msn address but you don't need to use it if you don't want to. You will have a verizon emaill account as well. All the email accounts show up on the same email page (listed seperately) so it's easy to see it all. Not at all confusing.

Funny story about the parental report. When my youngest dd was in 3rd grade, my DS was in 7th. I had walked to the bus stop to pick her up. The bus got there pretty quickly this day and I couldn't help but notice that my son jumped off the computer (and closed the windows) when I got home. He went back to doing his homework and I sat down on the computer to check my mail. In there was a letter from msn parental controls. Seems that my son tried to get into Victoria's Secret.....it blocked him and was looking to see if I would grant permission for him. I giggled to myself, called my son over to the computer and asked him if he thought I was going to give him permission. The look on his face was priceless...like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar!!

If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask. My neighbor just switched to verizon and I helped her get it up and running.

 

[Amy]

always quiet - that's too funny! Our DS's are 13 and 15, so I'm sure those parental control e-mails will be very interesting......