posted on February 28, 2001 11:28:34 AM
Is anyone using MSN as their ISP? My ISP I've used for years is going out of business, so I need to change.
I was thinking about taking advantage of one of these MSN rebate offers, because they look like such great deals *if* you plan to stay with the same ISP for the 3 year contract period.
I don't see why I wouldn't stay with them that long, unless their service was horrible or something. So has anyone had experience, good or bad, with MSN?
Lisa
posted on February 28, 2001 11:32:17 AM
I thought I had read the MSN was doing away with those rebates? You should check out AT&T or another "regular" ISP. MSN doesn't have local phone numbers everywhere, and I think their newest version forces you to use Hotmail. There was something about not being able to use Outlook Express for mail as well. They use an interface similar to AOL too, which many don't like.
posted on February 28, 2001 11:54:07 AM
I have used MSN for about a year -- I never used their email, though and never do anything but connect so I can't comment on the service.
However, our local area has 3 or 4 dial-in numbers and I rarely have connection problems. I haven't noticed they are like AOL? Maybe I am stupid on the features -- when I log into MSN it opens to their home page and I navigate through the web pages to find stuff, unlike AOL which has this huge piece of software to load and is pretty self-contained and which (at least in my area) failed to connect about 25% of the time.
Of course, it's very possible I am missing something about MSN -- since I use them only to get to the internet there may be lots of stuff I never noticed.
posted on February 28, 2001 12:44:05 PM
I don't really care that much about the email, because I have my email located elsewhere. I wouldn't like an AOL-style interface, though, if you had to use that to connect.
I'll do a search of the EO and see if I can find that thread. Thanks.
Lisa
posted on February 28, 2001 09:29:04 PM
I've also had some serious problems with connectivity since I've had MSN. and Customer Service is slow and not very helpful at all. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who is shopping for an ISP.
posted on February 28, 2001 10:21:22 PM
Hey, I was pondering the same question. I know connectivity varies by the area your in, so don't take this as the concrete truth, but I've used MSN ISP in several areas and have been simply amazed! I get 50K connections in a lot of areas. If your on MSN and your not getting 50K don't necessarily blame MSN, it may be the phone system in that area not the ISP. I'm sending this over a 26k connection right now, but 5 miles down the road (I use a laptop) it's 50K. I didn't understand this until I got my laptop. Your speed and connection depend HEAVILY on the area your in. MSN gives anybody a 30 day free trial, go to a major retail store pick up a current disc, try it for 30 days if you like it, cancel that service and then sign up again and take advantage of the rebate, may need to hurry don't know how long it'll last. In summary I've been EXTREMELY satisfied with MSN dial-up and when my free year ends, I'll be looking around for something I need to buy so I can take advantage of whatever current rebate they have going. )
posted on February 28, 2001 10:59:36 PM
juliette143
The MSN problems are documented on MSN's own site. They will have a daily lists of what cities are having connectivity problems. This list is continually changing.
The problems have nothing to do with phone lines. MSN is making some changes across their networks.
By the way, I agreed with brighid868 about MSN's customer service. If you are calling them, better have a good speaker phone. Waits up to 20 minutes are the norm. And often, you wonder if the rep knows what they are talking about as they bounce you from one phone number to the next.
Also, customer service is not 24 hours. I would not recommend MSN if this is your sole provider and you need it for commerce. Maybe in a couple of months if whatever they are doing to their network is finally completed.
posted on March 3, 2001 12:11:52 AM
I used this same computer and same phone line to connect to AOL and another smaller ISP before I changed to MSN. No problems with either of the other two dialup connections. Near 100% connectivity, knockoffs about once a week. When I got MSN, I went to knockoffs on a daily, sometimes hourly basis and often had to try to connect 10 or more times to get online. It was definitely MSN.
Also I live in a major metropolitan area (Los Angeles County) so it ain't like we are too backwoods to get a nearby server. It could have been that the servers nearby were too busy, but AOL is even bigger than MSN and I never had any problems getting online with their servers.
MSN just isn't very good. I know others who have had the same experience. Sometimes bigger isn't better.
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