Got the Hook Up?

Using the speed and accessibility of the Internet, digital data transmission lessens the foibles of file transfer.

by Diane L. Moore, Contributing Editor

The days when package printers could depend on slow modems, out-dated computers, and sometimes less-than-reliable FTP sites to send and receive customer files are over. And the very idea of sending ZIP and JAZZ cartridges back and forth from printer to customer? No longer an option. In today's high speed world, sending files via the Internet has become the norm—no longer the exception.

In just the past three years, printers have seen the decline in ISDN, T1, and T100 connections—replaced by DSL and Internet-based service providers. Also, we've seen the rise of the e-commerce print procurement model that promises subscriber printers the ease of Internet file transmission combined with print procurement, job tracking, billing, etc. But that's for another article.

True, as telephone companies install lines with greater bandwidth, printers are taking advantage of this new frontier in record numbers. One option still remains the do-it-yourself Web site with FTP capabilities and the requisite software and hardware care, feeding, and upgrades. This was the option many printers were comfortable with for years. However, with today's technological advances, does hosting one's own site make sense in the market today?

New millennium, new options

As more printers re-think the idea of digital data transmission, many realize the necessity of the speed an Internet-based product delivers. Thousands are turning to the e-commerce print procurement model as a way to get into fast digital data transmission quickly, while others are choosing to go the route of using one of the leading Internet-based services to help them achieve their goals quickly.

WAM!NET network service is based on a pay-as-you-go model with monthly service charges that include all 24/7 technical support, any installation requirements, any customer points of premise (C-POP or the Purple Box) hardware needed, and a monthly megabyte allowance for package delivery. Prices range from $60 to $4,000 a month for the Service, depending on the speed of delivery required.