Mac Daniel's Advice

Free Internet Access for Mac Users

Low End Mac Reader Specials

Memory To Go Special: New 2008 iMac 2GB $42 / iMac Intel Core2 DUO & MacBook Pro 2GB $36 - 1GB $20. MacPro 8 Core Memory 4GB kit $154 / 2GB kit $94 -- Free shipping available.

Download Typestyler, still the Ultimate Styling Tool for Internet, Print and Video Graphics. Works great in Classic with a Native OS X Version on the way. Free Tryout: www.typestyler.com

LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, iMac's, Apple Batteries and Apple A/C Adapters. Also Great prices on Used Apple Computers. Call 1-800-941-7654 Click Here.

OWC: OWC Mercury On-The-Go FW400/800/USB2/eSATA Portables High Performance A/V Rated, **Bus Powered** **Up to 500GB in the Palm of your Hand** Macworld Editor's Choice, CNET 'Very Good' - from $75.99!

Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, laptops, and LCD TVs side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for a new cell phone GPS products or MP3 players. The Ciao network makes searching products easy for you.

New MacPro Memory 800Mhz With Apple Spec Heat Sink 2GB $88 / 4GB $138 / 8GB $274 - Click to Maximize your Macs...

Evan Kleiman - 2000.11.01

Talk about bad timing. About the same time we posted this article about Freeinternet.com, they went into bankruptcy and had their assets acquired by NetZero.

Back to the drawing board. Click here for the replacement article.

Q. Do you know of any free Internet service providers for the Mac?

A. Right now free Internet service is the biggest thing around. In fact, the second biggest Internet service provider around (right behind AOL) is NetZero, a free service. However, only a few free ISPs have made software that is compatible with the Mac, and at this time NetZero is not one of them.

The two biggest free ISPs were Freeinternet.com and Freewwweb. Unfortunately, Freewwweb was recently bought out by Juno and is no longer around. The only half decent provider left is Freeinternet.com.

Freeinternet.com has many features that other Internet providers have, too. Features such as an Instant Messaging program, free email, and free news and weather are all included. Also included are a free web page designing program and free web space. Best of all, the Freeinternet.com program itself is only 868k!

But you always get what you pay for, and Freeinternet.com still needs to make money. Whenever you are connected to the Internet, there will be a small window at the bottom of your screen showing ads. Other than this, Freeinternet.com is a very reliable, fast, free provider.

Other free Internet providers for the Mac are coming soon. One such service is Blue Light free access, a service run by Kmart and Yahoo.

Also, be sure to check out Addlebrain.com. This site is the best resource when it comes to free Internet. They have comprehensive reviews of many free Internet services. However, 99% of them are PC only.

Free Internet providers always have a catch, and it seems with most of these providers, the main catch is it just won't work on a Mac. But if you can bear some minor annoyances on the bottom of your screen, you may be a candidate for free Internet access. If you can wait for more and better free Internet access for the Mac, then you're better off.

Time will tell if free Internet access is for everyone.

Evan Kleiman has been writing for Low End Mac since January 1999. He also runs his own site, Evansite. Evan uses an iMac, along with some vintage hardware. You can read more about his computing experience in The Many Macs of Evan Kleiman.

Not sure if you should upgrade your old Mac or replace it? Check the Mac Daniel index to see if we've already addressed your problem.

Recent Mac Daniel columns

Links for the Day

Recent Content on Low End Mac

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts


Have a question?
Ask an expert!

Navigation

Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Best Used Macs
Video Cards
Email Lists
InfoMac's Low
End Mac Forum

Favorite Sites

MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
   Museum

DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
   Mac FAQ

Abandonware
   Petition

Mac vs. PC Info

Affiliates

The Apple Store
Mac Connection
MacMall
TechRestore
MacResQ
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com

Advertise

Open Link