Internet access

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Internet public access point.

Internet access refers to the means by which users connect to the Internet.

Common methods of internet access include dial-up, landline, (over coaxial cable, fiber optic or copper wires), T- lines, Wi-Fi, satellite and cell phones.

Public places to use the Internet include libraries and Internet cafes, and various Kmarts located in the US, where computers with Internet connections are available. Some libraries provide stations that provide facilities for hooking up public-owned laptops to Local Area Networks (LANs). There are also wireless Internet access points in many public places like airport halls, in some cases just for brief use while standing. These Access points may provide coin operated computers or Wi-Fi hot spots* that enable specially equipped laptops to pick up internet service signals. Various terms are used, such as "public Internet kiosk", "public access terminal", and "Web payphone". Many hotels now also have public terminals, though these are usually fee based.

Wi-Fi provides wireless access to computer networks, and therefore can do so to the Internet itself. Hotspots providing such access include Wi-Fi-cafes, where a would-be user needs to bring their own wireless-enabled devices such as a laptop or PDA. These services may be free to all, free to customers only, or fee-based. A hotspot need not be limited to a confined location. The whole campus or park, or even the entire city can be enabled. Grassroots efforts have led to wireless community networks.

Apart from Wi-Fi, there have been experiments with proprietary mobile wireless networks like Richochet, various high-speed data services over cellular or mobile phone networks, and fixed wireless services. These services have not enjoyed widespread success due to their high cost of deployment, which is passed on to users in high usage fees. New wireless technologies such as WiMAX have the potential to alleviate these concerns and enable simple and cost effective deployment of metropolitan area networks covering large, urban areas. There is a growing trend towards wireless mesh networks, which offer a decentralized and redundant infrastructure and are often considered the future of the Internet.

Broadband access over power lines was approved in 2004 in the United States in the face of stiff resistance from the amateur radio community. The problem with modulating a carrier signal below 100 MHz onto power lines is that an above-ground power line can act as a giant antenna and jam long-distance radio frequencies used by amateurs, seafarers and others. A recent discovery, called "E-Line" allows propagating much higher frequency carriers, from 100 MHz through at least 10 GHz, onto a single conductor of a power line and offers the possibility of very high speed fixed and mobile information services at very low cost without the problems associated with the lower frequency signals.

Countries where Internet access is available to a majority of the population include Germany, India, China, Chile, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, France, Greece, Italy, Australia, Denmark, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, The Netherlands, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, South Korea, Philippines and Norway. The use of the Internet around the world has been growing rapidly over the last decade, although the growth rate seems to have slowed somewhat after 2000. The phase of rapid growth is ending in industrialized countries, as usage becomes ubiquitous there, but the spread continues in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Middle East. One example of a great number of people gaining access to the internet, is in Brazil, thanks to president Luís Inácio Lula da Silva (also known as Lula) lowering taxes on computers and in dial-up providers, Brazilians are growing significantly on the internet in the past 2 years.

However, there are still problems for many. ADSL and other broadband access are rare or nonexistent in most developing countries. Even in developed countries, high prices, mediocre performance and access restrictions often limit its uptake. Within individual countries, wide differences may exist between larger cities (often having multiple providers of broadband access) and some rural areas, where no broadband access may be available at all.

The expansion of the availability of Internet access is a way to bridge the so-called digital divide.