In addition to calculating your bandwidth and
reporting the results, these services typically ask for your zip code and connection
type to compile statistics on typical connection speeds in your area.
The results should look something like Figure 7-22.
Now, according to the results in Figure 7-22, the download speed is a
respectable 1,267 Kbps, which means, in practical terms, that it should take
about 6.5 seconds to download a 1 MB file under ideal conditions.
Figure 7-22. Use Broadband Reports??™ speed test page to measure the speed of your
Internet connection
Internet Me | 397
Networking and
Internet
However, ideal conditions are rare; real-life transfers are often much slower,
due to overburdened servers and busy networks. Since your connection
speed (or lack thereof) is most noticeable during file downloads (compared
with web surfing or emailing), you can overcome some of these conditions
by using a download manager, as described later in this chapter.
So, what do you do if your connection seems too slow? First, close all open
windows, and turn off all background programs (such as the ones that show
up in the System Tray in the lower-right corner of the screen, near the
clock). Do the same for any other PCs using your Internet connection. Next,
examine the lights on your router or broadband modem; if they??™re flashing,
it means that some program is still running on your PC, possibly consuming
bandwidth. This is a possible sign that a virus, worm, Trojan horse, or some
sort of spyware (covered in Chapter 6) has made its way onto your PC.
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