June 19, 2002

High Speed Internet Equipment Now Being Installed Here
	High speed internet equipment is now being installed in the Telus building in downtown Provost. Workmen doing the installation told The News that the service, called asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) may be available by the end of June or in early July. ADSL is a technology that turns ordinary copper telephone lines into a high-capacity “data highway” allowing users to talk, fax and use the Internet at the same time. Provost has been on Telus’ list for the last couple of months to have the new equipment installed. Now that large urban centres have access to the high speed Internet system, communities the size of Provost are now being upgraded by Telus. Currently in town internet users can move data over the phone lines at a speed of 56K which means information travels at a rate of 56,000 bits per second. ADSL will increase the capacity to 1,500,000 bits per second. Users in town will be able to pay for the service if they wish and some living near town—up to four kilometers may be able to get the service. But Telus representative Carmelle Boston said on June 14 that they are now testing experimental lines in Surrey, B.C. and in the Calgary area that may allow some extension of the four kilometer “loop.” She said if that works those getting the service in the fringe area would pay the same rate as other users. She said that certain lines would have to be tested to see how well it worked. Canada is second in the world (after Korea) in the penetration of high-speed Internet services. In 2000, about 11 per cent of Canadian homes had high-speed Internet services, compared to just six per cent of homes in the U.S. according to a Merrill Lynch analyst report of May 16, 2001.
An asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) modem in one hand and an ethernet patch cord in the other, technician Jeff Matthiesen of Edmonton (left) along with colleague Dave Woytkiw of Tofield who holds a pot splitter card that combines digital and voice data take a break from installation of new equipment to show the camera just some of the types of equipment that will be utilized in Provost as phone lines are being upgraded. Those signing up for using the new service will see a quantum jump in Internet applications speed. Data currently travels through phone lines in town at a rate of 56,000 bits per second—but will increase in capacity using new technology to 1,500,000 bits per second of data. The service may be available in Provost by the end of this month or early July. ©Provost News Photo. Want to Subscribe to The Provost News? Click here.
With Telus Velocity high-speed Internet services, customers can surf the Web and send and receive messages 50 to 100 times faster than with traditional dial-up. Telus says that it is committed to providing Velocity ADSL high-speed Internet service to virtually every home and workplace in 38 B.C. and Alberta communities by the end of 2003. Although ADSL is now used primarily for Internet access, in the near future it will be used for an array of new services, such as voice-over-Internet protocol, online games and music on demand. Boston said that the new service is a “great opportunity for Provost.” Telus launched ADSL service in 1998 and is spending $500 million over three years to connect users in Alberta and British Columbia. Print Version in June 12 Edition of The Provost News Want to Subscribe to The Provost News? Click here..