OK Networking Geeks...

[freeflir29 0]

So...I have been downloading stuff from Hadown.net and I'm getting about 48-50 KB/s. So...how fast does that make my DSL connection? It's been too long since I worked with this stuff everyday for me to do the higher math.

[MattM 0]

you can only download stuff as fast as it is sent to you, that really isn't a true test to see what your speed is.

Matt

[freeflir29 0]

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you can only download stuff as fast as it is sent to you, that really isn't a true test to see what your speed is.

True!! I think Headown has a pretty kickass server though. I just remember dial being like 5-7KB/s. So...it's a definate improvement.

[beowulf 1]

48-50 KB/s isnt bad but you should be able to get more then 3 times that fast on other servers like Download.com
headdown.net isnt really fast compared to others

[CrazyIvan 0]

There is a link to TEST your speed and other utilities at my website:

www.datagon.com


(That was a shameless plug for my website )

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[freeflir29 0]

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There is a link to TEST your speed and other utilities at my website:

Sweet!!! I was thinking it was pretty fast. I'm getting 647.9 KB/s according to that test. The rating...."Fantastic." I know you can pay an extra $10 to get 768 guaranteed but it's not worth it to me. I'm quite happy right here.

[jerm 0]

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you can only download stuff as fast as it is sent to you, that really isn't a true test to see what your speed is.

True!! I think Headown has a pretty kickass server though. I just remember dial being like 5-7KB/s. So...it's a definate improvement.

Even with a kickass server there are a zillion things to factor in -- what is the side of their pipe, how busy is their pipe, who are they connected to, what is the size of THEIR pipe, how busy are they, what routes are being taken, etc....?

go to start, then Run, the type CMD (if you're in windows 2000 or XP), then at the prompe type

tracert www.headdown.net

see the list that pops up.. each of those is a router that your traffic has to pass through to get there... each one a possible point of congestion, and so it gets difficult to tell.

Landing without injury is not necessarily evidence that you didn't fuck up... it just means you got away with it this time

[CrazyIvan 0]

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Sweet!!! I was thinking it was pretty fast. I'm getting 647.9 KB/s according to that test

Yup, much better huh?, now, if you really want more 'accurate' results, FLUSH your temporary files, or run DISK CLEANUP to make sure the data is coming from the net and not from your cached files on your HD.

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[LouDiamond 1]

I got 733.9 Kbs /fantastic Guess I can't complain

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[freeflir29 0]

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FLUSH your temporary files, or run DISK CLEANUP to make sure the data is coming from the net and not from your cached files on your HD.

I actually do that quite often. See...My computer is a 1998 Pentium 400 with SD RAM. It's old and can get a little sketchy since I installed all this "High Speed" DSL software. It gets confused easily if I don't keep a close watch on the maintenance.

[RichM 0]

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So...I have been downloading stuff from Hadown.net and I'm getting about 48-50 KB/s. So...how fast does that make my DSL connection? It's been too long since I worked with this stuff everyday for me to do the higher math.

DSL is quoted at a rate of Kilo Bits per Second. 8 bits make a byte. So 512 KBits/second = 64Kb/second. 50Kb is good from one server. Compression can improve the apparent speed, but 512 hardware is limited to 512 over the copper coming to your house.

Rich M

[Cornholio 0]

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8 bits make a byte. So 512 KBits/second = 64Kb/second. 50Kb is good from one server

Sorry, the geek in me can't let this one slide. Maybe you did a typo, but...
A kilobit is abreviated as Kb, not KB. A KB is kilobyte.
50kb is just a bit faster than a 56k modem.
The same goes for Mb (Megabit) and MB (Megabyte).

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So...how fast does that make my DSL connection?

As stated before, that is not a true estimate of how fast your line is. Try out a couple a speed test sites (like www.dslreports.com )and they report pretty accurate results, or try a site that is known to have a FAT pipe, like microsoft.com or cisco.com. Try downloading a driver or software app from them and that would be pretty realistic. Depending on your connection type will also vary the speed results: Cable vs DSL. Some residential DSL lines are shared, while most business class lines are not. Almost all cable broadband connections are shared and the results will vary depending on the time of day and what other people on your node are download at the same time.

EDIT: Ivan, I ran your speed test and got 4.9 Megabits per second !!

Butthead: Whoa! Burritos for breakfast!
Beavis: Yeah! Yeah! Cool!
bellyflier on the dz.com hybrid record jump

[CrazyIvan 0]

Now there is one thing that can help (only if you have enough knowledge of the registry) and is to 'tweak' some entries and widen the computer's 'pipe', I've used it and it works.

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[nathaniel 0]

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Sorry, the geek in me can't let this one slide. Maybe you did a typo, but...
A kilobit is abreviated as Kb, not KB. A KB is kilobyte.

Neither can this one. I've them both ways to represent either value interchangably, sometimes even in the same article. IMO you're better off just using context to figure it out rather than trusting the author. Network context -> bits, system or application context -> bytes.

I've never seen a solid reference on the subject...and given the amount of ambiguity I've seen with the terms I'm not sure I'd believe any purported reference was authoritative..


$0.02

My advice is to do what your parents did; get a job, sir. The bums will always lose. Do you hear me, Lebowski?

[Magistr8 0]

According to Cisco and other top network companies, SUN microsystems, Nortell etc teach that there are 8 bits in a byte. This makes all the difference in the world when testing for DL speeds at a helpdesk position.

Eg. We have 1.5 Mega Bit modems which actually down load at 150 Kilo bytes. As you can see this converstion reflects a 10: 1 ratio and that is becuase that is generally accepted as the norm but not actually the case.

As far as I have been able to tell from the articles and mass amounts of networking and A+ books I have read the small b implies bit, where as the larger B reflects that of a byte.

>I am a geek<

[CrazyIvan 0]

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According to Cisco and other top network companies, SUN microsystems, Nortell etc teach that there are 8 bits in a byte. This makes all the difference in the world when testing for DL speeds at a helpdesk position.

Eg. We have 1.5 Mega Bit modems which actually down load at 150 Kilo bytes. As you can see this converstion reflects a 10: 1 ratio and that is becuase that is generally accepted as the norm but not actually the case.

As far as I have been able to tell from the articles and mass amounts of networking and A+ books I have read the small b implies bit, where as the larger B reflects that of a byte.

>I am a geek

I have to remind you that computers are BINARY BASE, therefore the little difference.

One good example is a KILOBYTE (Kilo=1000) but in reality 1KB=1024 Bytes.

The BIT is the base of everything, 8 bits=1 byte which is also called a 'word' we have 8 bits words or 16 bits words, depending on the processor, nowadays we have 32 bits words.

Wow!...I'm a geek indeed!!!!

__________________________________________
Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.