I have just been contacted by Toucan ISP. It's 4 quid cheaper than AOL
for the same "unlimited" service.

The closer didn't know if their service supported Linux but did invite
me to check and see that an ISP review would give them 5 stars.

I did manage to find 1 favourable review. Some of the others were
scathing. All of the others I mean and one pointed out they were a
sister company to Tiscali. The one whose personel throw you in the
rubbish.

So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux and beats
AOL's price? Anyone here care to recommend one?

In article .com,
Weatherlawyer wrote:
So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux and beats
AOL's price? Anyone here care to recommend one?

Haven't checked on prices but Pipex is OS independant. Had no trouble
setting things up with RISC OS. It's also been very reliable.

--
*For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

In article .com,
Weatherlawyer wrote:

So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux and beats
AOL's price? Anyone here care to recommend one?


Haven't checked on prices but Pipex is OS independant. Had no trouble
setting things up with RISC OS. It's also been very reliable.

Hard to think of much that isn't better than AOL really...

Using a router on broadband means that pretty much any ISP is OS
agnostic even if they say otherwise.

Have a look at Metronet or Plusnet



--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article .com,
Weatherlawyer wrote:
So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux and beats
AOL's price? Anyone here care to recommend one?

Haven't checked on prices but Pipex is OS independant. Had no trouble
setting things up with RISC OS. It's also been very reliable.

I find Pipex extremely reliable, but fairly expensive compared to the likes
of Tiscali. On the other hand, I've heard that Tiscali are crap so for the
sake of a few quid a month I'm staying with Pipex.

Si

I find Pipex extremely reliable, but fairly expensive compared to the likes
of Tiscali. On the other hand, I've heard that Tiscali are crap so for the
sake of a few quid a month I'm staying with Pipex.

Same here (Pipex, despite what it says in my sig) - if you feel the
urge to give someone a free month for a referral, you know where to
ask ! (the group, not me specifically)

As for supporting other OSs - as someone else said, I can see no
reason why any OS can`t be supported as long as you can go via a
router (and i`d make that a *strong* recommendation too)

--
Please add the word "newsgroup" in the subject line of personal emails
**** My email address includes "ngspamtrap" and " ****

Colin Wilson wrote:

As for supporting other OSs - as someone else said, I can see no
reason why any OS can`t be supported as long as you can go via a
router (and i`d make that a *strong* recommendation too)

Yup, seconded - never use USB ADSL modems - especially on Windows.

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On Fri, 03 Feb 2006 21:09:15 +0000, John Rumm
wrote:

Colin Wilson wrote:

As for supporting other OSs - as someone else said, I can see no
reason why any OS can`t be supported as long as you can go via a
router (and i`d make that a *strong* recommendation too)

Yup, seconded - never use USB ADSL modems - especially on Windows.

Why not....?

A good way to improve security is remove as much MS software and
functionality as you can

cheers,
Pete.

Mungo two sheds Toadfoot wrote:
Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article .com,
Weatherlawyer wrote:

So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux and beats
AOL's price? Anyone here care to recommend one?

I am very happy with AOL but have some gripes:

1. They do not support anything but Windows -which I am a fan of even
though I want to change. It's a freedom of choice thing. It was years
before I got a battery drill but I can't recall how I managed without
one. I just didn't want to change. Who knows what I am missing? I may
find myself saving decades not running security scans and finding
patches all the time.

2. They no longer support usenet. Not that I could stand their format
when they did.

3. You can only use one computer on their router. No big deal a cable
to my other one would be good enough for me to work two through one.
And if I ws serious I could buy a different router.

4. I'm getting small glitches waiting for my hook up after AOL changed
their network software -at which time they doubled my bandwidth and
lowered the price a few bob.

I would without hestiation recomment AOL to newbies and lamers and I
consider them a very good ISP for people in my position: Not that much
of a geek but not disinterested in alternatives.

Haven't checked on prices but Pipex is OS independant. Had no trouble
setting things up with RISC OS. It's also been very reliable.

What are they like about Usenet?

I find Pipex extremely reliable, but fairly expensive compared to the likes
of Tiscali. On the other hand, I've heard that Tiscali are crap so for the
sake of a few quid a month I'm staying with Pipex.

That's the Tiscali saviour. They are one of the most popular according
to ISP Review but the site blasts them. If they don't change their
management v v soon they will have estranged a substantial portion of
Britain and France.

Are they related to Wanadoo?

In article .com,
Weatherlawyer wrote:
I would without hestiation recomment AOL to newbies and lamers and I
consider them a very good ISP for people in my position: Not that much
of a geek but not disinterested in alternatives.

Haven't checked on prices but Pipex is OS independant. Had no trouble
setting things up with RISC OS. It's also been very reliable.

What are they like about Usenet?

They are one of the main providers to others. Not found any newsgroup I
want they don't carry - including all the RISC OS ones.

Oh - I've got effectively four computers (two RPCs with PC cards) - and
they can all operate simultaneously online if needed.

--


Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 3 Feb 2006 10:17:05 -0800, "Weatherlawyer" wrote:


So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux

I was unaware that any ISP could decide which operating system you computer
could use - how do they do this?


Geo

On Sat, 04 Feb 2006 16:26:47 GMT, Geo
wrote:

On 3 Feb 2006 10:17:05 -0800, "Weatherlawyer" wrote:


So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux

I was unaware that any ISP could decide which operating system you computer
could use - how do they do this?


Geo

They don't/ They just mean that their Support give you the bums rush
if you want help.

many ISP's have no support for 95, 98 and ME now, it's not worth
*training^ the staff to handle the queries. Translation. The phone
droids don't have a script to read for these.

Geo wrote:

I was unaware that any ISP could decide which operating system you computer
could use - how do they do this?

A few ways of sorts:

By bundling access hardware that only comes with Windows and sometimes
Mac drivers.

By only offering tech support on platforms they support.

And/Or by doing something like AOL used to do where you had to run their
bespoke client software to even connect (they used to establish a VPN
connection over the top of the basic ADSL PPPoA one - again the client
software was Windows and possibly mac specific)

Most of these are circumventable with your own hardware if you can cope
without tech support.

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

"Geo" wrote in message
...
So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux

I was unaware that any ISP could decide which operating system you
computer
could use - how do they do this?

AOL is proprietary software that you need to install to get online with
them. Their software dials up, not Windows DUN. They even install some
sort of virtual network driver for the broadband. They have software for
Windows and Mac, not for Linux. AFAIK this is still the case and there is
therefore no way you can get online with them unless you install their
crappy software.

As if it were needed - yet another reason to never ever use such a
diabolical service!




a

In message , al
writes
"Geo" wrote in message
.. .
So is there a service that compares with AOL, allows Linux

I was unaware that any ISP could decide which operating system you
computer
could use - how do they do this?

AOL is proprietary software that you need to install to get online with
them. Their software dials up, not Windows DUN. They even install some
sort of virtual network driver for the broadband. They have software for
Windows and Mac, not for Linux. AFAIK this is still the case and there is
therefore no way you can get online with them unless you install their
crappy software.

Which is almost impossible to remove without reinstalling the OS

--
geoff

raden wrote:

Which is almost impossible to remove without reinstalling the OS

Used to be true a few years ago - but I have managed to migrate people
ot other ISPs with out any difficulty from about version 7 onwards...
(there was a class action in the US that helped them change their minds
about the policy of knobbling the OS so that it could never connect to
any other ISP again!)

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

John Rumm wrote:
raden wrote:

Which is almost impossible to remove without reinstalling the OS

Used to be true a few years ago - but I have managed to migrate people
ot other ISPs with out any difficulty from about version 7 onwards...
(there was a class action in the US that helped them change their minds
about the policy of knobbling the OS so that it could never connect to
any other ISP again!)

AOL uses a form of IE that is peculiar to their own service. It means
that they can protect newbies far better than might be the case with
off the shelf ware. It also means they can identify all the problems
that arise with the small selection of OSs available to run their
software on.

I suppose that is why they can afford to run such excellent free help.

In article ,
Geo wrote:
I was unaware that any ISP could decide which operating system you
computer could use - how do they do this?

Easy. When you try to set up the connection it requires IE or similar.

--
*Even a blind pig stumbles across an acorn now and again *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.