[NTLUG:Discuss] ISDN Modems

[sdenny]

Pipelines were my favorite for many years.  But for new installs
I'm leaning towards Netgears because they seem to do the same
thing but are cheaper and just as reliable.  They also setup in
seconds on using the windoze app.  As Brian mentioned the netgear
is more intuitive to setup.

I've set the Netgear up with NAT, dial-on-demand etc, but I've
never used a Netgear for a firewall.

I consider both the Pipeline and the Netgear equivalent boxes.
I've had a couple of pipes die within 24 hours, but once up they
are set and forget boxes.

As for the Terminal Adapter vs. Router, I much much much
prefer the router.  As a stand-alone box it just will work more
smoothly.  Of course you pay for that in the initial cost.

The router will dial faster (in a second), and the throughput
will be much faster.  Also remember that Linux doesn't support
STAC compression, so if you have a TA you can't do compression.
With a  router you don't tie up a serial port, and you aren't
limited by the serial link speed.  Further a router lets you
power your computer on/off without affecting other boxes on the
network.

But a router costs more.  I always put businesses on routers.

Regards,

Stephen Denny                                 mailto:sdenny at hex.net
Hex.Net Superhighway                             http://www.hex.net