Library Technology Guides

As consultants we frequently deal with clients who want to provide dial-in access to their online patron access catalogs. Our recommendation that the dial-in modems be able to accommodate 2,400 to 28,800 bps (bits per second) is frequently disputed because our clients consider anything less than 14,400 bps too slow. While we agree that 2,400, 4,800, and 9,600 transmission rates are slow, the fact is that two-thirds of all modems in use are rated at these lower speeds. The most common modem speeds are 2,400 and 9,600 bps; fewer than 10 percent of modem users have the benefit of 28,800 bps. As with so many other things, one must meet the users where they are, rather than where we would like them to be.