Q. Could you recommend a cheap modem for the Spectrum 48K that won't add too much to my mum's phone bill?

Kevin Miller, Patna, Ayrshire

A. Your mum has unfortunately got it in one - modems are almost inevitably heavy on the phone bill, unless you're careful how you use them. But that said you do seem to have got the wrong end of the stick.

Modems have different baud rates; baud being the measurement of the speed at which data is sent by the modem, so in theory the higher the baud rate, the faster data is sent, and therefore the lower the phone bill. However, the higher the baud rate, the more prone to error the setup is, so the more likely you are to have to try again, thus putting your phone bill up.

Even if you can do the necessary fast talking to obtain your modem, you'll almost certainly face the extra expense of getting onto one of the Prestel systems.

But don't despair - we have a plan. Why don't you try to persuade your mum to rent a TV that receives Prestel? You can the usual spurious arguments - cutting edge of technology, teleshopping, see what the weather forecast is and so on.

If she caves in, you can leave a decent interval then buy yourself a Demon modem, which is a snip at £60 from Demon Electronics (01-930 1612). After all, if the family is using Prestel already, it won't be that much extra...