1. It is kind of amazing that they can shove the DSL signal into the phone wires without messing up the phone signal.

2. It works almost exactly 50% of the time (possibly related to #1).

3. When you request anything be done with your DSL (activate it, repair it), they shut off your home phone service for 24 hours.

4. It's faster than dial-up. So, it's really question of whether you want faster service half of the time, or slower service all of the time.

5. It's faster than dial-up, but it's not that much faster. You'll be able to watch movie trailers.

6. Nobody who you can get on the phone knows anything or has the ability to do anything (the honest ones admit this).

7. If you ask to speak to somebody's supervisor, they will put you on hold until you give up and go away.

8. If you call the 800 number and hit zero enough times, you can get connected to a real person (but see #6 above).

9. Each new person who you talk to on the phone will want to go through the same steps with you. This never accomplishes anything, but some of it can be avoided by saying, firmly and repeatedly, "The DSL light is flashing, it is not solid, it is flashing." This eliminates any questions about what operating system you use or whether your Ethernet cable is properly connected to your computer. It can also be useful to repeat, "I have tried plugging the cord directly into the wall jack and it still doesn't work, the DSL light still flashes, it is not solid, it is flashing."

10. You do have 30 days to return the whole thing and go back to normal.