Internet Speed

[Cntcomplain]

Hi,
I am currently running at 5 megs(which I'm not sure, but I think that means megabytes per second?) through my ISP through a cable modem. I've always ran 3, but they bumped it up tonight as a promotion until December for free.

I have two questions. How does this work? I go to PC Pitstop to check my Internet bandwidth and on the 3 megs I was getting a 3002 kbs reading. When they bumped it up to 5 tonight, I got a 4808 kbs. Does a thousand kilobits per second equal a megabyte per second and does the 5 megs they advertise mean 5 megabytes per second?

Also, like I said earlier I've always been on 3 megs and that's what I get on my desktop pc. However on my laptop through my wireless router I've always gotten around 2300kps. The signal strength is excellent. I started a thread a couple of weeks ago because my router was about to go....I thought. I changed the name of the network and the wireless channel under the routers settings and everything went back to normal. But now that I've been bumped up 5 megs, I'm still getting the exact same thing when I do the bandwidth test as I did when I had the 3mgs. Is there a limit as to how much an older router can put out? The router is pretty much as good as it was when I pulled it out of the box about 3 years ago and both my computers are tweaked pretty well. I'm just wondering why the laptop isn't picking up the extra speed through the router.

Also, is there a website that I could go to that would explain a lot this stuff so I can study up?

I hope this makes sense. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
CntComplain

 

[ASG0856]

1. 5 MBPS = 5 megabits/sec
2. If they have any sense, you provider will advertise upto 5MBPS. They cannot guarantee to deliver that figure.
3. What you actually get is dependent on many factors (line quality, distance from exchange, the number of people on line at the time etc etc etc.)

If you were hetting 3MBPS at a connection speed of 3MBPS, but are getting 4.8MBPS at 5MBPS, that would indicate that is the maximum your going to achieve (unless you can find a 'quiet time' to test it out). However, 4.8 out of 5 is not bad (especially to those of us stuck on only 1.1MBPS)

It is very possible that the different performance levels that laptops and desktops operate is having an effect. You could always check the settings of the laptop wireless connection (is it set to 54G, they are usually defaulted to work at 11MB rather than 54.) Signal to noise ratio has a big impact as well. You can have a strong signal, but if there is a lot of noise, the connection speed will drop. Does the software have a connection speed graph.

Have you tried a registry scanner to see if the settings are as they really should be.

In the end, what you really get is indicated in how fast files download, which has no bearing on the connection speed. That is down to where the download server is, how many people are trying to access it, and how many people are on line at the time.

A search of the web for wireless networks should find what you want for study purposes.

 

[cpjust]

MB = MegaByte (1 byte = 8 bits).
Mb = MegaBit.

1Kbps = 1024 bits/second (approx. 1 thousand).
1Mbps = 1024 Kbps = 1024x1024 bits/second (approx. 1 million).
1Gbps = 1024 Mbps = 1024x1024x1024 bits/second (approx. 1 billion).
1Tbps = 1024 Gbps = 1024x1024x1024x1024 bits/second (approx. 1 trillion)
...

 

[Cntcomplain]

Hi,
I ran a test on my PC at

http://pcpitstop.com/internet/default.asp

and it suggested that I adjust my "receive buffer size."

I made the changes in the registry and changed it to 64240 KB. Now it's perfect.

75 feet away and getting 4706mbs on my laptop.

Thanks