More on Cable Modems -- Johann Beda <j-beda@pobox.com> writes in regard to his cable modem connection:
I just got hooked up here in southwestern Ontario with The Wave through the local cable TV provider. I haven't done extensive speed testing, but it feels as fast as my desktop machine when I was working at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Ethernet to my Mac. The cost was only $80 setup for my Mac with built-in Ethernet. Installation involved plugging the power in to the cable modem and connecting the Ethernet cable, then selecting DHCP in the TCP/IP control panel and telling it to look at wave.ca; the cost also included running a new bunch of cables to the house. The service costs $55 per month plus taxes, so overall, I think it's comparable to an ISP plus a dedicated phone line.