ADSL
Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Loop (ADSL), like ISDN, upgrades your existing telephone line without expensive rewiring, but it can offer download speeds more than 15 times faster than the ISDN (Home Highway) connections on offer in Britain at the moment. In the US, ADSL is an "always on" connection which is available for as little as $39 a month. Another advantage of ADSL is that it could be widely available comparatively quickly. But telecoms watchdog Oftel warns that there could be problems bringing the technology to more remote parts of the UK, because ADSL works only over relatively short distances. Oftel it has yet to decide if phone companies should be allowed to charge more to users living in less heavily populated areas for using the new technology. Readers in Scotland and Wales, beware.

Cable
Another "always on" service, cable internet services are available only to people living in cable TV areas -around 50% of the population. Speeds for cable modems vary widely: users taking part in one UK cable company's trials say their speeds have been limited to 512Kbits/sec for downloading, and 128Kbits/sec for uploading, because the firm's backbone can't cope. Those speeds are easily better than ISDN's 64Kbits/sec per single line, but look a little sluggish next to ADSL. Still, the technology is here now, and cable companies are alive to the possibilities the new technology offers. Look out for exciting developments towards the end of the year in interactive TV and home shopping, tied in with new digital TV offerings.

Satellite
Internet access via a satellite dish is being touted as a high-bandwidth solution for users who live in more remote, or non-cabled, areas. The downstream bandwidth (from the satellite to the home) is huge but current systems have no satellite uplinks. Instead, users have to send comands and upload files by modem over a standard phone line. That rules out running a web server from home, and things like video conferencing, while adding to the cost of using the net.

Wireless
Through-the-air internet access could be with us within two years, with cable-modem sized boxes indoors and a small aerial outside. Access speeds could be similar to those enjoyed by cable modem users, with up- and downstream bandwidth possibly able to change "on the fly", if a standard is agreed. The disadvantage is that - as with cable - bandwidth in any given area has to be shared. That could mean slowdowns at peak times. Also, the aerials must have line-of-sight contact with the base transmitters - a challenge for those living in built-up or hilly areas.