The availability is there for anyone who can mount a dish with a clear view of the southern sky, but it ain't cheap, the installation can be horrendous, and satellite users need dial-up connections to upload data to the Internet. In other words, it isn't quite cooked yet, but it's on the stove. Until recently, Hughes DirecPC was the only available satellite provider. That's changed: StarBand, a two-way satellite ISP, is becoming available in some areas. StarBand doesn't require a phone connection to upload data to the Internet as DirecPC does, but its download speeds are considerably faster than its uploading. Find out more by visiting your Radio Shack or EchoStar providers (currently Radio Shack requires that you buy a complete PC along with your StarBand subscription) or www.starband.com/. At the moment it isn't anywhere near as cost-effective as either a dial-up or DSL connection, and it's somewhat weather-sensitive, but it's a heck of a start. Note: StarBand is now part of the EchoStar group. And Scot Finnie, who publishes an excellent Windows/broadband newsletter (see the link on my home page), is having a lot of success with a newbie on the block, Pegasus Express's DirecPC linkup system