The 56K modems will work with the pre-existing phone lines, which are currently available in all locations. There are no additional charges for special lines. The cost of Internet access will be approximately $15.00 to $25.00 a month. A year after their introduction, 56K modems are now available for less than $100 on average. The 56k modems are widely available, and can be easily purchased everywhere in the U.S. 56K modems can be used, everywhere, where phone lines are in use. A 56k modem transmission can reach speeds of 56,000 bps or 56kbps.

        The setback of a modem connection is that it ties up one’s phone line. It is difficult to use the phone if one wants to access the Internet. This is the main problem at Shepherd College, where roommates share living spaces and equipment. If one is on the Internet, one’s roommate can not use the telephone. Also, there are no guarantees when it comes to 56K. 56K technology won't work if there is more than one analog/digital conversion between one’s home/office and one’s Internet service provider. One can still connect at V.34 speeds (a max of 28.8 or 33.6K), but one can not take advantage of the higher speeds a 56K modem offers. A 56K modem connection is asymmetric; so, it is faster for downloading than for uploading. The download speed can be as much as 56K, however, the upload speed will initially be only 28.8K or 33.6K. This occurs when downloading over a 56K connection, as data changes from a digital signal to an analog signal. Digital-to-analog conversions are perfectly accurate, so downloading at speeds up to 56K is possible. When uploading, data is changed from an analog signal to a digital signal. Analog-to-digital conversions are imperfect, so noise results in the signal.

        The speed of the Ethernet will be faster than the modem connections. The Ethernet data will be move at speeds up to 10 Mbps and up to 20 Mbps at full duplex (10 and 20 million bits per second Mbps). The phone line will not be tied up by the Internet use. As a student, one will have access to the Internet and one will have access to one’s network drive, as in the computer labs. It is as if one of the computer labs were in each residence room.

        The main problem with the Ethernet is the cost of installation of the network, and the time it would require to install. The cost of the network interface card (NIC) for a computer is about the same as the cost of a 56k modem. One will also have to buy an Ethernet cable that links the wall-jack to the computer through one’s NIC.