Who Can I Get Dial-up Access From?

You can get your Internet account from any of three main sources:

  • A national Internet service provider (ISP)

  • A local ISP, one that's headquartered in your city or town

  • A commercial online service, such as AOL or CompuServe

Each of these options is explained next.

Whatever service you choose as your provider, be sure the company offers a dial-up telephone number for connecting to the Internet that is a local call from your PC's location. Otherwise, you'll end up paying long-distance fees to the phone company in addition to whatever your provider charges for Internet access.

In most cities, finding local access numbers ...

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