One of the first things you need in France is an internet connection. While waiting for your own one to get activated, you can use the free internet connection in any McDonalds, Starbucks etc.
How to get an internet connection
To get your own internet connection at home the first thing you should try to get is: the name of the person who lived there before you, or even better; the person's telephone number. Once you have this information you go to one of the French company, SFR, Free, Orange etc. You just have to ask for an internet connection, because they often only have one kind of offer. The most known offer is: unlimited internet connection, unlimited fixed phone and a tv box. This costs around 30€ a month and the offer is nearly the same, no matter which company you choose. You can call the most European fixed phone for free. You have to check if your country is free, you can ask the company before you open the line.
Then you choose one of the companies below. You go to one of their stores (avoid 7-9 in the evening, to crowded) with you RIB and an ID card. Your personal insurance card is not a valid ID. Then you give them the name of the person who lived at the address before you. If you don't have this information, it might be a little more expensive to open a line.
Either, the phone line at you address is activated or not, because the person before you did it.
If it is activated, in most cases, you can have the internet box directly and your personal line will be activated in 2-14 days. This doesn't cost anything, except the monthly price.
if your line isn't activated, you will have to pay for an employee who will come to your address and "open the line". In 2010 this was around 55€. You pay this once. Once the line has been opened you will have to wait around 2-14 days until the internet box will work.
The right company for a stranger
The very best company for a stranger will be SFR because the company has one of the best customer services of all. This is very important for people moving to France. In case you have a problem with the connection, it's very important to have a good customer service - especially if you don't speak fluently French.
Free has a very good customer service too, and they are also a bit cheaper. The only inconvénient is that they don't have any stores, so if you have a problem, you can only call them or mail them!
Orange, which is one of the biggest companies has a very low customer service concerning internet. If you have a problem, there is nobody (this is my personal opinion and experience) to help you. And it can be a hard fight for a person who doesn't understand everything the employees say.
Mobile phone
A short stay in France (1 to 6 months)
Either you choose to buy a cheap phone (or bring your old SIM-unlocked phone) and buy a SIM-card in any tabac store. Then you buy refills every time you don't have any money left on your phone. This solution might be a bit expensive, but it's easier if you only stay for a short time.
A longer stay in France
You go to one of the big phone companies, SFR or Bouygues or Orange. I still consider SFR as the best company considering the customer service, and Orange as the worst one. But feel free to choose. You have to know that mobile phones services are very expensive in France. You choose the service that fits you the best. The most frequent choices you have are internet + unlimited text messages = + a certain number of hours of communication. You really have to choose the right one, because it's very expensive if you talk more than what you already payed for. An example; if you talk around one and a have hour every month, it's cheaper for you to pay for two hours of communication each month than one. If you only pay for one hour a month, the half an hour is not included and you will have to pay for it, which will be more expensive than to pay for two ones.
Calls from Europe
When people call you from another country, you might have to remove a 0 from your phone number. A French number begins typically with a 06 or 07. The first zero of the number might need to be removed when a person calls you from another country.
