[NBLUG/talk] Networking newbie

[Christopher Wagner]

I have to agree emphatically with Troy. Avoid SBC if at all possible.
SBC uses PPPoE (so does AOL Broadband, Earthlink, and a few other major
ISPs), which can be quite troublesome at times, it's essentially
tunneling a PPP connection over your DSL line which provides the
customer (you) with absolutely no benefits and a few drawbacks. Best to
go with a company that doesn't require such unnecessary nonsense to use
their service.

I also agree with what other folks are saying about getting a
Linksys/Netgear/D-Link router as opposed to bothering to build a Linux
gateway. I generally use Linksys. It's also been my experience that SBC
equipment doesn't play nice with store-bought routers like Linksys and such.

- Chris Wagner

Troy Arnold wrote:

>On Fri, Jan 06, 2006 at 12:07:43PM -0800, A'fish'ionado wrote:
>  
>
>>Hello,
>>
>>My family is considering signing up for the cheap SBC Yahoo DSL
>>service. A Google search revealed a success story using the service
>>with Linux (apparently you need some Windows-only software to set up
>>the account, but not to connect once the account is set up).
>>    
>>
>
>I think you should look into http://www.sonic.net/sales/dsl and see if they
>have anything competitive.  If the price is at all close I highly recommend
>using Sonic.  You'll gain reliabilty, extra services (shell accounts, VPN,
>usenet, etc.), good support and you'll be supporting an ethical local
>company.
>
>  
>
>>What I would like to do is set up a home network, connect an old box
>>running Linux or BSD (probably Linux, at least until I have a chance
>>to get familiar with BSD) to the DSL line, and have it do IP
>>forwarding so all the other computers in the house can connect through
>>it.
>>    
>>
>
>  
>
>>I've never set up a network before. :-P Basically, I would appreciate
>>it if someone would tell me if what I'm planning is sane and point me
>>at some good reading material. A quick Google search pulled up some
>>articles that looked interesting, but only cover Linux 2.0/2.2. Any
>>better suggestions?
>>    
>>
>
>Since it seems that cost is a major factor, I'd suggest just getting an 
>inexpensive hardware firewall like those from Netgear, linksys and friends.
>It's not as fun, but you'll save on electricity and noise.  
>
>-troy
>
>_______________________________________________
>talk mailing list
>talk at nblug.org
>http://nblug.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/talk
>  
>