Hopping on Board with an Internet Service Provider

Hopping on Board with an Internet Service Provider

If you�re connecting from a business or school, your key to an Internet connection may be baby steps away. Ask your systems administrator for help with setting up your connection.

For those of you connecting from home, hold on tight. You�re a hop, skip, and a jump away from being able to peel out of this chapter and get hooked to the most addictive service of your life�the Web, that is.

Before you start springing to action, you have to find an Internet Service Provider (ISP). These providers charge you a few dollars a month and in return, they make a bridge for your computer to cross over and reach the Internet world.

ISPs come in two basic flavors: national providers and local providers. The national providers include companies such as AT&T, MCI, America Online, and CompuServe. Local ISPs range from local telephone companies to local Internet businesses.

Local Public Libraries Offer More than Dusty Old Volumes

Public libraries have gotten savvy in recent years, and many libraries offer free Internet service for their users. The Saint Joseph County Public Library in South Bend, Indiana was the first public library in the U.S. to have a World Wide Web server. Joyce Hug, an information specialist for the library, said that the library has been offering Internet access to the public since May 1994. �It�s something all libraries are trying to do, if they want to stay viable,� Hug said. �They realize it�s what people want.�

Hug also mentions that beginners love using the library connections to the Internet, especially since the South Bend library offers basic Internet classes. �The ones that come in are the ones that aren�t ready to dial up from home. The Internet isn�t a big part of their life yet,� Hug said.

But the Internet is getting bigger. Hug explains that their Internet users have increased tenfold in the past year. �We have had to institute time limits. They must sign in, and we limit them to one hour if people are waiting,� Hug said.

If you�re not sure how much you plan to use the Internet, call your local public library and see if you can give it a whirl for free. It�s likely that you�ll get a taste and want to wrap up and take home an Internet doggy bag for keeps.