Making a tree change and buying 100 acres at Quialigo seemed like a great idea. After all, it's not too far from Goulburn and all the services that I am used to. Then you get the bad news, no ADSL. Coming to the realisation that ADSL could be years away was enough to make a grown man cry. This man, that is!

You see, as a businessman, software designer, and Healthcare worker, I take for granted all sorts of silly acronyms like ADSL2, VPN's, NAT, Routing and VoIP (Voice over IP - more on this later). These things have historically been available only on equipment designed for ADSL. Thus, when you find out that dial-up is all that is available, you start to panic. The reality is that the absence of an ADSL broadband service in our region does not have to limit the services you can access.

We started small - just a weekender, really. So far, we have a shed, a weather station, a small vineyard, and a power system based on solar, wind and diesel. The next step was putting the phone and Internet on. Further to the above concerns, we also discovered that the Telstra pits (where your phone line connects to) were not quite where they were meant to be, thus increasing our costs in laying extra cable. Armed with disappointment, we investigated the options - Satellite, Next G, Dial-up, or just doing the die-hard thing and waiting for ADSL. Our wish list was as follows:

1. High Speed Internet
2. VoIP - or Voice Over Internet Protocol
3. Virtual Private Networking (VPN), so I can access my business networks remotely and securely
4. Ability to upgrade when to ADSL when it becomes available.
5. Wireless access point for laptops etc.
6. A few more silly acronyms that have no real relevance to this article.

The solution took a long time to arrive at, so I have included as much information as possible.

The Antenna:
We decided on Next G. We figured that as Quialigo is in a fringe area, that good reception was the key to good performance. We settled on a G Spotter Antenna

Most modems require a male plug on the antenna lead - the antenna comes standard with a female socket. We bought a male plug and crimped it on ourselves. We mounted the antenna on a standard antenna pole that you can get from the hardware store.

We pointed the antenna to the strongest signal source, which for us was Goulburn - due north. Depending upon your location you may get a better signal from Braidwood. Use the software that came with your modem to adjust the antenna until you are getting maximum signal strength. contact David or [Click Here] to contact via the website contact form.

The Modem:
We investigated many options. The bottom line is that any provider, any modem will do, as long as you can get good reception. Even a little USB dongle device with no external antenna will do the trick if your reception is good enough. We went with the BP-3 external modem available with Bigponds' range of products. This allows us to connect to the external antenna, and provides a USB connection.

The Router:
This was quite possibly the hardest part of the exercise. The two options that came up were the Ericsson W25 and the Draytek 2820Vn.

The Draytek won out for two reasons. Firstly, and most importantly I am familiar with the Draytek line of products. I have used them extensively in my businesses for years without incident. Secondly, the cost was about $350 dollars cheaper than the Ericsson. This being said, the weather station at Windellama RFS comes to you via an Ericsson device. Either is an excellent option.

The Draytek router also has an inbuilt ADSL modem for when it becomes available.

You can get the Draytek 2820Vn at www.warcom.com.au or view the specifications at http://www.draytek.com.au/products/Vigor2820.php or http://www.draytek.com.au/events/mobile_broadband.php

The Ericsson Fixed Wireless Terminal W25 can be viewed at http://www.fixedwirelessterminal.com/ericsson_w25/index.html The only downside I can see with the W25 is that it has no inbuilt ADSL modem for future connectivity. The Draytek device is truly an "all-in-one" solution.

The Set-up:
Pretty simple really. The antenna plugs into the modem, and the USB cable from the modem plugs into the USB slot on the Draytek router. Follow the set-up instructions for keying in your username and password into the router. That's it - plug in your computer using an Ethernet cable and your up and running.

You can also plug in 2 standard telephones into the VoIP ports on the router, giving you 2 phone lines as well. Admittedly, VoIP is a difficult concept to grasp, so here is a rough explanation

PSTN - Public Switched Telephony Network, or "normal" phone call.

With a standard phone call, your telephone connects directly to a Telstra Exchange. When you dial, the exchange responds by sending your call to the exchange at the location you dialled. The person you are calling also has a phone line connected to a Telstra exchange. The two lines are connected and Presto! You are up and talking.

As you can see, if you dial from Melbourne to Broome, the distance that Telstra carries your call is many thousands of kilometres.

VoIP - Voice Over Internet Protocol

With a VoIP phone call, your telephone plugs into a router (modem) in your home. When you dial a call, your router converts your voice into a digital data stream, much the same as surfing the net or sending an email. The call then goes via the Internet to your service provider, who sends it to the exchange of the person you have dialled, and then on to their phone line. Then, and only then, does it become a "phone-call" as most people would recognise it.

The difference is that the distance that the phone call travels over the Telstra network is drastically reduced with VoIP compared to a standard call. Instead of travelling from A (Melbourne) to B (Broome), which may be many thousands of kilometres, it only has to travel from B (Broome) to B (Broome). The entire digital portion of the call, which is your end of the call, is counted as if it were part of your ordinary Internet usage.

VoIP service providers offer varying plans, ranging down to about 10c per call, untimed. We chose Engins' "National" plan, at $14.95 per month. This fee is a single fee per month, for which you can make as many untimed local and national calls as you like. Mobile calls are competitively priced, but we simply avoid making calls to mobiles where we can.

You can get Engin at www.engin.com.au

The End Result:
Well, we ticked all the boxes on our wish list. We have 2 phone lines, I can access my work computers, surf the net, and do all the "acronym" stuff that I need to do. We have wireless for our laptops, and can upgrade to ADSL at no cost should it become available. All this without even having a standard phone line on the property!

The total cost is roughly set out as follows

Set-up Costs
G Spotter $275
Modem $Free with Telstra Bigpond plan
Router $450-$500
Total Set-up Costs $550-$620

Ongoing Costs per month
Bigpond Super G Fast 400MB $39
Engin National Plan $15
Total $54 per month for both Internet and unlimited phone. (Assuming no mobile calls)

Now, I know what you're going to say - 400MB isn't much data. This is true, but since it is a weekender at the moment, it is all we need. You can switch plans at any stage with no cost, so when we need it, we will go up to a higher plan - 1GB will cost about 20 bucks extra.

Now for the negatives. As with everything, there are some drawbacks. The biggest one I can think of is that if you have no landline on the property, then you run the risk of not having a working telephone during blackouts, equipment failure or if the Braidwood mobile phone tower is destroyed by vicious Muscovy ducks out to take over the world one tower at a time!

Jokes aside, this is a serious matter. If something goes wrong, you may not be able to ring emergency services. This needs to be considered before you commit to such a set-up. I do not recommend this set-up without a backup plan - such as a mobile handset, or a neighbour who wouldn't mind you using his phone to call 000 in a blackout.

I look forward to making the big move down to Quialigo, and I hope that this article has been informative and helped you understand the possibilities a little better. The bottom line is that ADSL isn't the only platform that can provide you with high quality, feature rich Internet. For those of us that live "south of the border", that is a good thing.

Cheers

Ben Scott