My first time living off campus and away from home and also living in a house (at least going to).

When houses say internet is not included, does this mean they won't provide a modem? Therefore in order to have internet access i need to contact an ISP and get them to install everything for me?



Is it safe to also assume a phone jack isn't in the room for me to use my Ethernet cable?

I used to live on campus and i just hook up my cable to the modem in my room on res.

Semi-important, but should I buy or rent a modem?

Originally Posted by inkhawk157

My first time living off campus and away from home and also living in a house (at least going to).

When houses say internet is not included, does this mean they won't provide a modem? Therefore in order to have internet access i need to contact an ISP and get them to install everything for me?



Is it safe to also assume a phone jack isn't in the room for me to use my Ethernet cable?

I used to live on campus and i just hook up my cable to the modem in my room on res.

I am also pretty tech ignorant - I know the generalities but not so much details

If internet is not included, then you typically need to contact an ISP to get them to set it up and purchase/rent all the necessary hardware. Depending on the service you can have your own wireless router, or the modem might double as one - I've had both, in different houses I've lived in.

Ethernet cables don't go in to phone jacks, as far as I know.

Originally Posted by starfish

I am also pretty tech ignorant - I know the generalities but not so much details

If internet is not included, then you typically need to contact an ISP to get them to set it up and purchase/rent all the necessary hardware. Depending on the service you can have your own wireless router, or the modem might double as one - I've had both, in different houses I've lived in.

Really? In houses where there are more than one room, do landlords really want each tenants to contact their ISP and set up and install the modem?

Ethernet cables don't go in to phone jacks, as far as I know.

Wait! Then what do you call these? (see picture)

Also, considering there is only one of those jacks in the house and the landlord is renting multiple rooms out, wouldn't that mean one person needs to get a router or no internet at all? I am assuming not all rooms (where internet is not included) have one of those cable jacks I showed in the picture.

The place I am staying right now, my landlord installed one of those jacks you see in the picture in each room. The main modem is located in the basement and the connection is through the walls. Not all houses are like this now is it?

Originally Posted by inkhawk157

Really? In houses where there are more than one room, do landlords really want each tenants to contact their ISP and set up and install the modem?




Wait! Then what do you call these? (see picture)

No, typically all of the tenants in the house get together and split internet between them. One modem, usually wireless for everyone. Occasionally if the basement and upper floors of a house are rented entirely separately, there will be two internet connections/modems operating separately from each other, but that's up to the tenants to work out.

The picture appears to be three different things in one - ethernet on the top, a cable TV connection in the middle, and a phone jack on the bottom. Just because they're all together like that in that one photo, it doesn't mean they always will be in every house you go to. Ethernet and phone jacks are two different things - phone jacks are the smaller ones.

Originally Posted by starfish

No, typically all of the tenants in the house get together and split internet between them. One modem, usually wireless for everyone. Occasionally if the basement and upper floors of a house are rented entirely separately, there will be two internet connections/modems operating separately from each other, but that's up to the tenants to work out.

What if the only Ethernet jack is in MY room? Doesn't that mean I get to use ethernet while everyone else is using wifi? That's not very fair to them.

The picture appears to be three different things in one - ethernet on the top, a cable TV connection in the middle, and a phone jack on the bottom. Just because they're all together like that in that one photo, it doesn't mean they always will be in every house you go to. Ethernet and phone jacks are two different things - phone jacks are the smaller ones.

So most rooms in houses don't have their individual Ethernet jacks?

What you get is a step above. Mostly people just get one modem in the ground or basement floor and it's wireless to everyone else. It's much better to get a hardline connection like you have.

Not included means they wont deal with the internet company. You and your house need to group together, buy an internet plan and pay/deal with it yourselves including setting a plan, doing the installation etc

Originally Posted by inkhawk157

What if the only Ethernet jack is in MY room? Doesn't that mean I get to use ethernet while everyone else is using wifi? That's not very fair to them.



So most rooms in houses don't have their individual Ethernet jacks?

Typically the modem is in a common area so everyone has access to it, but if the ONLY one in the house is in your room, then there's not really anything that can be done about it. Sometimes rooms are priced differently based on how desirable they are, but I can't see ethernet making a huge difference in price, if any at all.

I've never actually even seen a student house with an ethernet port in every room. Most of the houses in Hamilton are too old to have it built in, and most landlords don't care enough to upgrade. It could even have been a tenant who decided to set that up in your house, or maybe you just have a good landlord.
Like Leeoku said, having an ethernet connection in each room is a step above. It's definitely not something you should count on having, since it's more likely that you'll end up with wireless.

Originally Posted by Leeoku

What you get is a step above. Mostly people just get one modem in the ground or basement floor and it's wireless to everyone else. It's much better to get a hardline connection like you have.

I see. In the house i am living in right now, the (only) cable outlet on the wall something in the basement and connection extends through each room with their own Ethernet jack. I assume most cable outlets are also located in the same places in houses in Canada? That would explain the location of the modem and routers.

Originally Posted by inkhawk157

I see. In the house i am living in right now, the (only) cable outlet on the wall something in the basement and connection extends through each room with their own Ethernet jack. I assume most cable outlets are also located in the same places in houses in Canada? That would explain the location of the modem and routers.

Depends on the house. Like I said before, most houses are old enough that the builders didn't think to include the necessary wiring for a modem. It was usually put in afterwards, and would then be at the discretion of the owner, possibly guided by what is simpler or less expensive to do.

I've also seen a house with the modem and router on the main floor in a corner at the ceiling - you needed a step stool to reach it - so it really could be anywhere.

Originally Posted by inkhawk157

I see. In the house i am living in right now, the (only) cable outlet on the wall something in the basement and connection extends through each room with their own Ethernet jack. I assume most cable outlets are also located in the same places in houses in Canada? That would explain the location of the modem and routers.

What you need to understand is that these houses are:
1) Very old (well before internet existed and phone lines were installed in every room)
2) been renovated significantly to maximize the number of rooms in one small house.

Do not expect a phone line. Id say 90% of houses set up their own internet connection with a single wireless modem connected in the most random places (ceilings, a persons room, living room, kitchen, middle of hallway etc).

These are student slum houses. Dont expect them to be nice, to make sense, or to be able to pass inspection.


Edit: Also for rent/buy. Rent modems. Buy router. Thats my preference. Most renatal modems are fine. Most rental routers are terrible especially for 6 heavy users.

Usually when a tennant claims to offer 'free internet', usually it's because they are living in the house and have their own wireless router in their part of the house and they give the tenants in the house their password so they can all share the internet via WIFI.

But if the landlord doesn't live in the house, and they are offering free internet, that's pretty rare. I'd look into the speed of the internet they are offering, since you'll probably want at least High Speed internet in order to watch movies, etc. and be able to go on YouTube without horrible lag or low quality streaming. It is most likely a wireless router they have somewhere in the house. So that would mean no hardwired ethernet connections.

Just ask the landlord what the speed of the internet is that they provide, and with which company. And if it's slow, you may be able to see if the landlord is willing to increase the internet package they have to a high speed package and you'll pay an extra $XX a month to cover the upgrade.