Frequently Asked Questions
Why switch from my current
provider?
We offer voice and data solutions that save
you money. We don't just take orders.
How
can you offer lower rates?
We built our own cost effective all digital
ISP & fiber network, stretching from Grand Junction to Rifle to Rangely, Meeker, Craig and on to
Steamboat Springs.
I've heard that
NC♦Telecom
is a CLEC. What exactly is a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier?
A CLEC is a company that provides services
that are competitive with the regular local Phone Company, who is also
known as the Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier, in our case, Qwest. STRATA competes with Qwest by selling the exact same services that Qwest
offers, at discounted rates. Not only do we sell the exact same services,
but we provide those services over the same telephone lines that currently
run from Qwest's office to your home or business. We do this by leasing
these lines from Qwest, and terminating them in our own facilities.
In addition to offering standard Qwest
voice telephone services,
NC♦Telecom also offers services that Qwest has
indicated it will not be providing to customers in our coverage area in
Northwest Colorado. These services include high-speed DSL and other
broadband connectivity.
Do I need two phones lines if I want to use
both Internet and voice at the same time?
No. If you are in an area covered by
our DSL Internet services you can have your voice phone and your Internet
DSL carried on the same line to your home. They do not interfere
with one another, and the DSL is 'always on' and available.
For Internet access, why not select a Wireless DSL, Cable or
Satellite connection for my high-speed Internet connection?
In
locations where DSL is available, it is usually the best choice for
Internet connectivity. If DSL isn't available, wireless is often the
second choice. The table below outlines some of the factors that
should be considered in the decision making process.
| |
Dialup |
ISDN |
ADSL |
Cable |
Satellite |
Wireless |
| Rate adaptation |
Good |
Fair |
Good |
Fair |
Fair |
Good |
| Security |
High |
High |
High |
Low |
Medium |
Medium |
| Always On |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
| Investment |
Low |
Medium |
Low |
Medium |
High |
Med-High |
| Bandwidth |
Poor |
Fair |
Great |
Good |
Good |
Good |
Why select
NC♦Telecom when there are
less expensive or free ISPs?
Do you realize that most of these less expensive ISPs either do not offer
technical support or they charge you for each technical support call that
you make? Other issues to consider are:
- Intrusive profiling - in order to subscribe, you need to
give out very detailed, personal information. How much money you make,
how many kids you have, etc. This information is sold to advertisers to
pay for equipment and services.
- Obtrusive banner ads - you must have these ads visible to
stay connected.
- Slower browsing - your modem is constantly downloading
new ads.
- Here today, gone tomorrow. Fact
is, the free ISP model just doesn't work.
Is
NC♦Telecom compatible with Instant
Messaging programs such as AOL, MSN, Yahoo! & ICQ?
YES.
NC♦Telecom is compatible with all of these instant
messaging programs. In fact, all
NC♦Telecom subscribers can download any
of these instant messengers FREE of charge from the sponsoring sites and begin using them
immediately!
Do I have to sign a long term contract to
utilize
NC♦Telecom’s Internet services?
Not at all.
NC♦Telecom does not
require you to sign a long term commitment. We are confident
however, that after trying our services that you will want to remain
an
NC♦Telecom customer for a very long time.
Discounts on activation fees are available when a term contract is
selected.
If I sign up for
service with
NC♦Telecom, will I still
be able to send e-mail to my friends and family who use a different
service?
YES. You will be able to send and receive e-mail to and
from anyone — regardless of the e-mail address. All you need is an
NC♦Telecom Internet connection. For example, if you have a friend at "highcost@aol.com,"
just log on to your
NC♦Telecom account, write an e-mail message, and send
it to your friend at his or her full e-mail address. This is also true for
any other e-mail address.
What operating systems is
NC♦Telecom
Internet service compatible with?
NC♦Telecom
Internet is compatible with Windows 98, NT, 2000, ME, XP, Mac, WebTV, Linux, Windows CE and
Palm.
Do I need a credit card to sign up for
NC♦Telecom Internet
services?
You do not need a credit card to sign up
for
NC♦Telecom Internet
services. While we do accept Visa,
Master Card and American Express, we also accept ACH (Automatic Clearing
House). An ACH Bank Draft allows for automatic
debiting from your checking account. This way, you don't have to worry
about making monthly payments and you don't have to worry about accruing
interest on your credit card bill.
How does
NC♦Telecom compare to some of the
other well-known Internet service providers?
We're confident that we provide the best
Internet access available. We have built our own fiber network to carry
our services, and connected it directly to the Internet backbone with a 45
megabit connection. No one in our service area can match our speed.
In fact, we encourage you to compare us to some of the other well known
Internet service providers.
Once you compare
NC♦Telecom with the other
ISPs, we are sure that you will realize that we're the only choice
for affordable, high quality Internet access and superior customer
service.
NC♦Telecom
Internet access is superior to AOL, MSN, EarthLink &
AT&T, feature for feature & dollar for dollar.
