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Jacksonville to get fast Net access By Melissa Martin JACKSONVILLE � The gold miners who founded this town 140 years ago didn�t need it. But modern-day businesses have been eagerly waiting for it. Jacksonville will get high-speed Internet access in early 2002. Qwest, the carrier that provides telephone service in several Rogue Valley cities, has promised DSL, or digital subscriber lines, to its customers in Jacksonville, Medford, Ashland, Rogue River, Gold Hill and Klamath Falls next year. "There is no high-speed options out to Jacksonville," said David Gibb, a photographer in Jacksonville. "I definitely need high speed because I send a lot of digital files over the Internet and the current speed is very slow." Qwest will offer DSL for a monthly cost of $29.95. The cost will not include Internet provider fees or the basic telephone service charge. The minimum speed will be 256,000 bits per second. Another version will cost $19.95 per month for customers who don�t need the Internet on 24 hours a day. "You just need one phone line," said Gary Miller, a Medford spokesman for Qwest, formerly known as US West. "You can still use your telephone while you�re on the Internet." One telephone line and faster speeds will help Gibb get more work done, he said. "It takes 3 to 5 minutes to send 1 megabyte of information now," Gibb said. "I�d like to see that down to 30 seconds or less." Although Jacksonville has never had high-speed access, other Rogue Valley cities have. Internet CDS of Medford has been offering DSL and wireless service for homes and businesses for the past year. The $40 monthly fee includes Internet provider costs. And in Ashland, the city-run Ashland Fiber Network has been offering cable Internet access with speeds of 3 to 5 megabits per second, said Pete Lovrovich, director of power and telecommunications for the city. Ashland�s fiber Internet transfers information at speeds of 10 to 100 megabits per second. The monthly fees range from $19 to $29, with no added costs for Internet providers or basic telephone services. Here�s a comparison of the speeds: If Gibb sent a 1 megabyte digital file using Ashland�s cable Internet, it would take 2.5 seconds; it would take just under one second on Ashland�s fiber Internet; it would take about 30 seconds using Qwest�s DSL services. Jacksonville residents must live within three miles of Qwest�s downtown switch to be eligible for DSL services, Miller said. The high-speed access won�t require new conduit in the ground; changes will be made in existing infrastructure. The Rogue Valley�s upgrades are part of a Qwest plan to invest $70 million to improve telephone service across Oregon. It�s a result of Senate Bill 622, passed in 1999 to create investment criteria to boost school technology. Qwest gave $25 million to Oregon schools Tuesday. Part of it will be used to provide video conference capabilities this year in 200 high schools, including Rogue River, Prospect, Central Point, Phoenix and Grants Pass. Last January, Qwest donated $25 million that was used to install circuits allowing Internet connections in 433 schools and district offices around the state. Reach reporter Melissa Martin at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.