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Frequently Asked Questions: General
- Keep your modem's firmware up-to-date!
- To ensure that your modem is working at an optimal performance level,
you must keep its firmware (brain of the modem) up-to-date. Don't be
fooled into thinking that just because your modem/computer may be brand-new
that the modem's firmware is up-to-date.
See: 56k Technical Support (even if your modem
isn't 56k) for information and links regarding modem firmware.
- Why can't I connect at my modem's maximum speed?
- If you're trying to connect using a V.FC, K56Flex, or X2 based modem, there's no guarantee of a
reliable connection because the the above are non-standard protocols.
ITU-T V.90 and the newer ITU-T V.92
are the standards for 56k modems; V.34 is the standard for 28800/33600 bps modems;
V.32 is the standard for 14400 bps modems.
- If an RPI-type modem or its newer "WinModem" cousin, is used to connect to the internet,
it is unlikely that high speeds will be attained because of poor handling
of line noise. Also, RPI and winmodems
are completely dependent on your computer's memory and processor to function
correctly. This introduces many more opportunities for problems to arise.
Non-RPI/winmodems have their own processors, etc. to function and are MUCH more reliable.
- Phoneline conditions have a large effect on how fast and reliable of a
connection speed is attained and maintained as the call continues on.
If poor line conditions are evident, connection speeds will often be
lower to ensure a greater probability of attaining a reliable
connection.
Analogy: driving the same car on a winding road when it's dry,
and then again when it's raining. Due to poor road conditions, you'd
drive slower to ensure a greater probability of arriving safely.
- The distance between your modem and the phone company can also have an effect on connection speeds. Because the
signal between your modem and the phone company is carried over analog phonelines, it is far
more susseptible to electromagnetic interference emitted by anything
from electronics, lightning, radio/microwave towers, and even solar activity.
- Why do I get disconnected periodically?
- Most of the time that users are disconnected from Network Tallahassee (from our end),
it is because of "idle-time." Our system is currently setup to
disconnect users automatically, if no data has been sent/received for 30
consecutive minutes. This frees up a phone line (dial-up line) so that it
gives everyone a chance to dial-up and get online (including the person
who was previously disconnected). It's an act of courtesy to give everyone
a fair chance of getting online and sometimes people forget that they are
connected, so if there's no activity for 30 minutes, the call is
disconnected.
A setting in your internet connection settings can also cause this:
- Click on Start, then Settings, then Control Panel.
- Double-click on Internet Options.
- Click on the Connections tab.
- Double-click on the dial-up connection profile name (e.g. NetTally).
- Click on the Advanced button next to the Password field.
- Make sure that both of the following options are NOT checked:
Disconnect if idle for [20] minutes
Disconnect when connection may no longer be needed.
- If you made any changes, click OK...
Other reasons for being disconnected unintentionally could be due to many
things such as:
- Line noise -- this can present itself
under numerous conditions, such as a call-waiting tone, bad weather,
faulty phone-lines somewhere between the modem and the phone company's
switching service, etc. Some modems
can "correct" line noise better than others, so the quality of your
modem can have quite an effect on how it responds to line noise.
- Sometimes high-speed (28.8, 33.6, and 56kbps)
modems fail at attempts to retrain
themselves and because a reliable connection can no longer be
established, they disconnect from eachother. This is commonly
attributed to line noise, faulty wiring, poor quality modems, and sometimes
modem firmware problems.
- Faulty wiring can definitely cause disconnects and inconsistent
connection speeds. If a phone wire has a short in it somewhere and
different wires are touching eachother, all sorts of irregular
behavior will occur, sometimes preventing you from connecting, while
at other times, allowing you to connect at varying speeds, usually
followed soon afterward by being disconnected.
- Why does it sometimes take forever to view a webpage or download files from various websites?
- Network traffic -- Just like heavy traffic on streets and highways, the
internet experiences traffic jams much in the same way. The many
pathways of the internet can only support so much traffic and when
limitations are reached, network traffic can come to a "screaching
halt." One way of finding out what the traffic is like between you
and the remote computer, is by running a program called Traceroute.
Traceroute displays delay-times between the various computers and
routers between you and the remote computer.
This program can be found on UNIX-based
computers (traceroute) as well as Windows (tracert.exe).
From a command prompt or "DOS prompt" (Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP), type in
tracert remote.computer.address
Example: tracert www.microsoft.com
- Generally speaking, the more geographical distance between you and the
remote computer, the longer it can take for data to traverse. This can
be a result of greater network traffic or more routers along the way,
slowing data transfers down. Also, if the computer is over-seas,
the transfer speeds will be lower because of confined network traffic
(bottle-necking).
- The remote computer itself could be operating at below-desirable speeds
for any number of reasons like: lack of RAM,
slow network connection, hardware problems, software/operating system
problems, etc.
- Recommendations for all users
- When downloading files from the
internet, save them to an empty, temporary directory (folder). Many
files on the internet are compressed and can contain many files
within the one you downloaded. When the file is expanded (either
automatically, when the file is executed, or by "unzipping" it), it
will decompress into many other files. The last thing you want is to
have those "temporary" files get mixed in with other files (or icons
on your Windows or Macintosh "desktop." When you're done using
the files or installation programs in that temporary directory, you can
just delete them at your leasure to keep your
hard drive clean.
- Protect your computer with anti-virus software! Installing
anti-virus software on a computer that has already been infected with a
virus doesn't help much--that's why it's important to have the software
installed and running BEFORE your computer encounters a virus.
Viruses are created almost on a daily basis and "cures" are usually found
shortly afterwards, so it's important to keep your anti-virus software
up-to-date. Most anti-virus software companies offer free data-file
updates--these files include the latest information on the latest
viruses and cures for them.
Common anti-virus software:
McAfee
Norton AntiVirus.
- Keep your computer clean! If you have any disk-optimizing utilities,
such as Scandisk, Defrag (Disk Defragmenter),
Norton System Works, etc.,
use them to keep your computer/hard drive in good working order.
Windows 95/98 users, see
Recommendations for Windows 95/98 users
for more information on using Scandisk and Disk Defragmenter.
- Browsing the web and using your computer will
look MUCH better if you're seeing pictures/graphics in as many colors
as possible. Many computers are displaying only 256 colors at a time,
or even worse: 16! If your video/graphics controler can handle it
(most can nowadays), boost up the color-depth
to 65,536 colors (16-bit color, commonly called "high color") or better. If you're
not sure how to do this, the best thing to do is contact the manufacturer
of your computer and/or video controler.
If your computer is running in 640 x 480 resolution,
you're very limited on how much you can see on your screen at any given time.
You might consider raising it to at least 800 x 600. Depending on how much
video RAM you have, increasing the
display resolution, might reduce your color-depth.
Also, some older or lower-quality monitors may not be able to properly
handle higher resolutions due to mis-matched
refresh rates between your
video/graphics controler and your monitor. If you're not sure how (or if
your computer can handle it), the best thing to do is contact the manufacturer
of your computer and/or video controler.
Recommended resolutions for different monitor sizes (hardware permitting):
14" -- 800 x 600
15" -- 800 x 600 or 1024 x 768
17" -- 1024 x 768 or 1152 x 864
19/20/21" -- 1280 x 960 or 1600 x 1200
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