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ADSL
Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line. ADSL is the most common broadband connection type because it transforms your household phone line into a permanent, always-on high speed connection. ADSL also allows you to use a phone, fax and Internet all at the same time. There are no dial-up fees either. Learn more about ADSL Broadband here.
ADSL 2+
A faster type of broadband which still uses your home phone connection. ISPs boast speeds of up to 24Mbps (see Speed for more). The actual download speed is slower than this however. Your local telephone exchange needs to be upgraded for ADSL 2+ and this is currently being done in metropolitan areas only.
Always On
Also known as a permanent connection. Broadband is an always on service so you don’t have to connect to your ISP every time you want to surf the web.
Broadband
The term broadband essential means high speed Internet. Broadband allows you to download music, videos and large files very quickly therefore improving your online experience. A good way to think of broadband in comparison with dial-up is this:
Imagine you have two hoses: One thin, one fat. The fat hose is broadband, and is more efficient because more water can travel down the pipe. Think of broadband Internet the same way. But the only difference is more data comes down the pipe (or your phone line) instead.
Cable
By using the fibre optic cable connection available in many Pay TV enabled homes, users can access fast Internet speeds (up to 20Mbps). The connection is always on so there are no dial-up fees to worry about. Learn more about cable broadband here.
Churn / Churning
The process of changing over to a new ISP (usually within 1 or 2 hours) without cancelling your old plan – your old ISP has to allow churning however. You can often save money on the new ISPs application fee; they might even waive it.
Downloads / Downloading
A common misconception is that downloading is the act of grabbing a specific file from the Internet, but this is not true in the ISP’s eyes! Downloading refers to anything that is viewed or transferred to your computer from the net, so even if you are just browsing a webpage, you are in fact downloading it.
Downstream
See Downloads / Downloading.
Gigabyte / GB
Often a plan will have x amount of Gigabytes, say 12GB for example; this means the amount of data transfer each month. There are 1024 Megabytes in 1 Gigabyte. Be aware that most ISPs include uploads and downloads in this figure.
ISP
Internet Service Provider. A company that provides broadband or dial-up Internet access to individuals, businesses and governments on a subscription or prepay basis.
Kbps
Kilobits per second (not to be confused with kilobytes). A measure of data transfer speed. If the plan says 512kbps, that’s how fast the data will arrive to your PC, theoretically.
Line Filter
Also called a Splitter. This device separates voice from data, thus allowing you to use your phone line to make calls and still use the Internet at the same time.
Mbps
Megabits per second (not to be confused with megabytes). This is also a measure or data transfer speed. An ISP will sometimes say 1.5Mbps, this is how fast the information gets to your PC.
Satellite
Lets you connect to the web via a satellite dish installed at your house. This is often the only option for people in rural and remote communities. There are two types: 1 Way – which uses the satellite link for downloads and a dial up connection for uploads. 2 Way uses the satellite link for both downloads and uploads (much better experience). Learn more about satellite broadband here.
Shape / Shaping
Once your monthly download quota is reached, your ISP will slow or ‘shape’ the speed back to just quicker than dial-up. It’s a bit of a trade off so you can still browse the web and not incur extra download fees.
Speed
The actual download speed depends on a number of factors*. But it’s important to understand what numbers mean. If the advertised speed is 256/64, that means the download speed is 256 kilobits per second, and the upload speed is 64kbps.
The download speeds advertised by broadband providers are not the actual ‘real-world’ speeds you experience. Many factors influence download speed such as:
- the age of the phone line (if ADSL)
- the plan you’re on (different plans have different speeds)
- distance from your exchange
- electrical interference
- The network capacity
- Poor quality line filters
Streaming
Watching or listening to music or video over the Internet while not saving the file to your computer. Sometimes ‘live streaming’ (in real-time) is used to deliver news bulletins.
Upstream
This is any data that is sent from your PC out over the Internet. Writing emails, web page requests, file sharing all send data back upstream. This contributes to your data usage.
VoIP
Voice over Internet Protocol. This simply means you can use your broadband Internet connection to make untimed local and national phone calls. You can also make very cheap overseas calls too. Learn more about VoIP here.
Wireless Broadband
A type of broadband service which doesn’t use any physical connection. You need to be close enough to a base station to be able to use wireless Internet. Most metropolitan areas now have wireless coverage. Learn more about wireless broadband here.
Wireless Hotspot
These are areas where you can take your laptop computer and start using the Internet – wirelessly. Airports, cafes, motels and McDonald’s restaurants are all examples of wireless hotspots.
WPA
Wi-Fi Protected Access. A powerful security technology for your wireless network. If you share a wireless broadband connection, it’s important to secure your network using WPA otherwise someone might hack in and use your Internet service or worse, they might steal your information.
