On Tue, 17 Jul 2001, Jon Lindgren wrote:

: DSL enabled me to 1) get a local router, so I didn't have to deal with
: PPPoE and DHCP (the latter more of a convenience, not a problem),

Note that not all DSL providers allow this; it's all up to the ISP in
question.  That's what you should be researching in your area.  8-)

There are both cable and DSL providers using PPP-over-Ethernet instead of
plain bridged Ethernet (bridged Ethernet is much better; less overhead), and
there are both cable and DSL providers with static or dynamic IPs.  There's
also bandwidth limiters, which varies by ISP (cable tends to have a higher
inbound data rate, but that depends on network congestion).

The main noticeable difference between cable and DSL is that DSL requires
filters to be installed on your ordinary phones, if you don't have an extra
wire pair to spare in your phone wiring.  The signal would otherwise be
audible on your phone line.

Other than that, you're left with quality of your in-wall wiring (either
telephone or coaxial cable), and the topology of that wiring, which
determines how much the signal degrades once it enters your residence.
Most modern wiring is capable of carrying either.

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