LAN Modem vs Proxy Server stand alone de

What is the best way to get my simple LAN on the internet. NT 10/100 switch and 10 base-T hubs with fiber uplinks. Got a 3 com office 56k land modem/hub in today. It wants me to uplink of it’s internal hub. I just want to plug into the switch as a stand alone device and direct my workstations thru it to the internet. Can it be done?
Also looking at stand alone proxy servers is this a better way to go?