POTS (Plain Old Telephone System)POTS (Plain Old Telephone System), also known as "Public Switched Telephone Network", is the form of telecommunications currently in use in the United States.
The POTS is slated to be replaced eventually by Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN). ISDN and computers are both digital, meaning that they perceive things as either "off" or "on". POTS is analog--it stores multiple values of information--and is therefore not as well-suited to transport digital computer information over its lines.
The other major benefit that ISDN has over POTS is that it can carry voice, video, and digital network services in a single cable.