Fastfastfast Internet now in Carroll County

For most people outside the limited service area of the cable and DSL providers (which is most people in rural Carroll County), there were limited or no Internet options that could provide video capable Internet.

For just about everyone no matter where you live (only a clear view of the southern sky is needed) there is the next generation in satellite internet called Exede from WildBlue. The service offers speeds up to 12mb/sec download/3mb/sec, which is eight times greater than the prior satellite service.

Due to the uplink to the satellite, it hesitates for a second, but once the connection is made the data moves rapidly. Exede provides more bandwidth than all the other publicly available satellite bandwidths combined.

Verizon Wireless 4G LTE is available in many parts of the area, and although not all cell sites are enabled yet, speeds compare favorably to that of the local cable provider -- +10mb/sec download and 3/mb/sec download with very fast pings under 80ms response times.

This service has the advantage of portability and can be accessed both via a 4G LTE smartphone or a modem which can provide service to your home computers. This is part of Verizon's national rollout revamping their data network.

How these services can help:

1. People can now do free video calls via Skype. As you talk with someone, you see each other on a computer screen.

2. Business uses include video conferencing, product demos, etc., at speeds great enough to more easily access corporate VPNs.

3. Educational -- attend live classrooms anywhere in the world.

4. Entertainment -- watch video clips, movies and TV shows in measured amounts

Truly high speed internet is ecologically sound as information is moved, not people. This system expands the local economy as people in business can be more productive from home, people who have second homes (say at Beaver Lake) can stay longer and work from there, making this area even more desirable by improving housing and construction markets. It also helps rural vacation resorts be more competitive by offering high speed internet as an amenity.

Costs are typically around $50-60 a month. Rural broadband services such as these are more expensive to operate than land based systems, thus heavy users will pay more, as the usage is metered.

This cutting edge way of doing business and keeping in touch with the world is available now in Eureka Springs by calling Common Sense Technologies 3022 E. Van Buren St. Eureka Springs (479) 253- 0066.