| These days, perhaps a much more appropriate | | | | unhindered view of the southern sky, so that |
| question would be, "What can you not do with | | | | your satellite dish can send and receive signals |
| satellite Internet?" The answer is, "practically | | | | towards and from the direction of the equator. |
| nothing." It may sound like an exaggeration, but it | | | | More important than what you can do with |
| is true; there is really very little that you cannot | | | | satellite service is what you want to do with |
| do with satellite service nowadays. | | | | satellite service. The maximum connection speeds |
| With broadband satellite service, you can do just | | | | available through satellite service are nearly as |
| about anything and everything that you can do | | | | fast as those available through DSL and cable, and |
| with its wired high-speed counterparts DSL and | | | | they are many, many times faster than the |
| cable. This includes - but is by no means limited to | | | | average speeds that come with a typical dial-up |
| - telecommuting and working from home; | | | | connection. But depending on what kinds of things |
| participating in distance learning degree programs; | | | | you want to be able to do with your satellite |
| job searching and apartment hunting; shopping, | | | | service, you may not need the fastest speeds |
| booking vacations, and making other reservations | | | | available through satellite Internet broadband. |
| online; and rapidly downloading music, videos, | | | | You may ask, "Why would I not want to take |
| software updates, and other large files. But not | | | | advantage of the fastest connections speeds I |
| only can satellite service do all the same things | | | | possibly can?" The answer is price. There are |
| that DSL and cable service can; it can do more. | | | | various levels of satellite service packages |
| Access to DSL broadband and cable broadband | | | | available for you to choose from. And, of course, |
| services is limited by how far the networks of | | | | the faster the service, the more money it costs. |
| terrestrial wires, phone lines, and cables that are | | | | So, if you are on a budget or just want to save |
| needed to receive such services extend. DSL can | | | | a little extra money, you may want to go for a |
| cable coverage usually does not include rural or | | | | lower level package. |
| remote locations, or places with particularly rough | | | | You really will only need the extremely fast |
| terrain (mountainous regions, for example), since it | | | | packages if you are planning on doing a lot of |
| can be too expensive or literally impossible for the | | | | downloading and uploading. For just casual web |
| providers of these services to extend wires to | | | | surfing, a lower level package should suffice. With |
| such areas. | | | | even a lower level satellite broadband package, |
| Luckily for the people living in these areas, access | | | | your average connection speeds, though not the |
| to satellite Internet broadband is not bound to the | | | | absolute fastest of the fast, will top the |
| same restrictions as its wired counterparts. The | | | | connection speeds you can expect from dial-up |
| only geographical requirement for being able to | | | | service. |
| receive satellite service is that you have an open, | | | | |