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Eclectic
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Shopping - Internet Service Providers
Although I have shopping links scattered throughout Michael's Eclectic Pages, related to the
themes of the various sections, you may just want to purchase something online, and a shopping
page is the easiest way to facilitate that! Shown below are providers who I have selected as
affiliates, and several non-affiliates of interest.
Where do you want to shop today?
Internet Service Providers
Get NetZero Platinum today!
Platinum gives you fast reliable internet access for $9.95/month. 1/2 the price of AOL!
FREE...
while suppliers last.
The
remaining free internet service
providers
are listed below,
along with limitations and some information about the "premium
services" each sells.
If you can live with an ad banner window, you can have FREE internet se rvice... for
now. But maybe not enough.NetZero and Juno,
the two
biggest and oldest companies
offering free internet access, have been struggling
to make the business
of providing free internet access
be a profitable one, decided on
June 7, 2001
to merge. The combined company will be called United Online,
and have
about 7 million subscribers,
making it the second-largest
U.S. provider of Internet access.
See
story.This
merger means that before long some service terms of both former companies will
be changing, but at present, here's what they have to offer:
-
- NetZero - I
always liked this best of the banner types - it
used a start page, and a
window (they call it the "ZeroPort"
less annoying than
most we've seen over time. Click on something now & then, and you
were all
set -
currently, for up to
10 hours a
month; over that,
you can
obtain
their "Extended Access Pass," and pay to get
unlimited access for the rest of that month - but you continue to see
banner ads in the ZeroPort. But if you know
you'll
go over
10
hours and were willing to pay, their "Platinum" service
provides unlimited service - featuring a very thin
"toolbar" without the advertising banners you saw on the free
service.
If interested in any of their plans, check
their site for possible other changes. Juno - Worst
free deal now, but... This pioneer in free e-mail without need for an ISP now has free internet as well. Juno
also took over the accounts
of Freewwweb, which was truly the best (using a start page, which you had to let fully load, then you could go anywhere,
uninterrupted by ads). Juno uses an ad window in their free
version. Juno also has a "premium" service, 250 hours with "less
ads," for $14.95 (and has DSL service available at a cost about the same as
the phone companies and others, or as cable service). Now, why is it the
worst deal? You agree with them to let them use your PC's excess
computing capacity. Here's their
press release. Privacy a concern? Here are a few articles addressing
THAT aspect of it: internetnews.com;
freedomlist;
ZDnet;
and especially this
ZDnet piece complete with reader feedback.
Bluelight - Free internet service from Kmart... but
with some big limitations
,
AND they've
phased out
their
free Internet service, replacing it with an $8.95 a month pay service.
Whether you still have to see their ad up front and
then keep an ad window open over part of it I'm not sure yet, nor whether
there is a limit on hours of use. They had a $9.95 step up to a "premium" service
providing 100
hours a month. Might work for you, but not enough time for me... and the
rate will probably go up. In any case, I suggest you compare this to NetZero's
services, and as long as you have to pay SOMETHING, look at your area ISPs.
Also, if you make purchases online, look to see terms of Bluelight's "rewards
program" (which used to provide a month or more
of unlimited service
for buying merchandise at Bluelight.com).
As to some others you might have heard of, AltaVista's free Internet access terminated its service
over a year ago, because the company
which provided their Internet service, 1stUp Corp., went out of business.
Excite's, Lycos' and others who used 1stUp
also no longer have free internet service.
NBCi
had
free internet service,
provided by Spinway, which Kmart's Bluelight bought to keep it going
for itself. NBCi no longer provides free internet service.
Freedomlist - has links
to news about free and cheap ISPs
Internet Service Provider List - This site claims to find you the best deal from a database of over 5,000 ISPs - I found some
obvious omissions, BUT, if you are looking for a local provider (or a national one) this will help
you narrow it down... within each search, listings are alphabetical, and if you don't look at all,
you might miss your best deal. Good luck, and take another look at my list of free ones above!
And... should you
happen to think
that NetZero
is right for you... sign up through me - thanks !
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