There is another popular alternative to analog modems and DSL about which you should at least know the basics. Many homes in the United States also have cable TV (CATV) service. Similar in topology to DSL, cable modems provide an always-on Internet access service, using the CATV cable to transmit the data. You can surf the Internet over the cable and make all the phone calls you want over your telephone lineand you can watch TV at the same time. Cable modems use frequencies that would have otherwise been used for additional TV channels. It's a little like having an "Internet" channel to go along with CNN, TBS, ESPN, The Cartoon Network, and all your other favorite cable channels. Although the details are much different, the general ideas are just like DSL:
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