By Cheryl Currid

According to those who love the rural way of life, Green Acres is the place to be. But with telecommuting, e-mail and surfing the Internet more than just a pastime, fast connections are becoming a necessity. So while the rural life has its advantages, high-speed Internet connection is rarely one of them.

Now there is an option for high-speed, always-on Internet access for about 90 percent of homes across the United States. With a clear, unobstructed view of the southern sky, you, too, can have Internet access faster than dial-up and more widely available than cable and DSL combined.

StarBand offers high-speed Internet access out of thin air. All you need is a small, oval-shaped satellite dish and a modem that connects to your PC. And what you'll get is 400-500 kilobits per second download speeds and 125-500 kbps upload speeds.

Because I live in an area that receives both DSL and cable modem access, I asked a colleague to test the system. She's the perfect candidate because she lives 60 miles southwest of Houston and 30 miles from the nearest grocery store.

The first step is to find a StarBand retailer in your area and have the dish professionally installed by one of its "approved partners." You can find a list on its Web site. We chose to have Blue Star Satellite install the system. The complete process took only 2 1/2 hours -- from installing a post, mounting the dish, running the coaxial cable, connecting the modem to the PC and installing and configuring the software.

The system connects to either the USB or Ethernet port of the PC and supports operating systems including Windows 98SE, ME and XP. Minimum PC requirements include a Pentium-class processor with 64 megabytes of RAM and 120 megabytes of available hard drive space.

After the system was installed, my colleague began finding ways to test its speeds and limitations.

To push the system to the limits, my colleague sent a large file using her dial-up modem to her ISP's mail server. It took more than 45 minutes to complete. The same file via the satellite connection took four minutes.

Satellite Internet access can vary in price based on the place of purchase, as well as the additional services you want. However, you should be able to find the equipment for about $500 and professional installation service for $100 to $200.

Monthly charges range from $60 to $70 for high-speed access that will never tie up another telephone line again.

Another great aspect to StarBand is using the same satellite dish to access the satellite channels of DISH Network. There are additional fees for television service, but you get an incredible number of channels.

So while Cable and DSL may offer slightly faster speeds, you're limited by location, location, location. For many, satellite broadband access from StarBand may be the only way to go. That's especially true for people who choose to escape the congested city life but still want to stay connected.