New network card

ok no one has the answer to my networking problem.. iv been on 8 forums and no one knows why my internet is slow.. sooooo, im going to buy a new network card instead of using my onboard network.. can anyone pick me out a card for my cable internet? just one that works well, thats all.. also id like to know how to set it up.. do i just set the card into whatever slot and voila its done? or do i have to disable the connection i have right now? like goto deice manager and find my network adapter, right click it and click uninstall? .. i dont know, iv never install a card like that before.. iv always had onboard.. please give me a card that you know that works and WILL work perfectly.. this should fix my internet problem right? or..

 

what are your speed tests showing your line speed as? what does your ISP quote your line to be?

have you run a TCP optimizing program? I had my friend do this when he switched from DSL to Cable and was complaining that he wasnt getting the quotes speed, and it worked wonderfully. ( I optimize all the computers in my house as well)

do you only have 1 onboard network adapter?

 

speed tests? like at www.toast.net and http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/ ? .. well on toast.. i get 2000 - 4000 kbs on there... then i drop way to 200 - 700 kbs and it keeps saying that for whatever time... then out of nowhere when i test it like an hour later..again it goes to 3000kbs and im happy then i test it just it case again.. and it just goes right back down.. on speakeasy.. i get constant 2000 - 3000 kbs... iv tried toast on my old desktop and i get the correct speed ALL the time... on my new computer it changes like crazy, and in games it lags out of nowhere sometimes.. and sometimes but not offen msn or xfire signs out of nowhere b/c of internet lost.. iv tried everything, drivers, firmwire, uninstalling.. tons..

what do you mean by "what does your ISP quote your line to be" .. i dont know what that is, but ill check if you can tell me and i have not ran a TCP optimizing program.. because i do not know what that is..

yes just 1 onboard network adapter.. unless you count firewire which i dont use.. the motherboard i have is the asus A8N-SLI nForce4 SLI

 

ISP = Internet Service Provider. In other words, the company that provides you with your Internet connection.

What download speeds does your ISP claim you should get? And are you using cable or DSL for your broadband connection?

 

ohhh!, wow why didnt i know that... argh.. but yeah i use Atlantic Broadban

and i dont know on this computer because i dont know whats wrong with my internet and what i really get.. possibly i could get a little better on here then on my old computer? .. but yeah on my old computer i got 1500kbs+ everytime i ran the speed test, on this computer i get 300 - 700kbs.. then at other times i get 2000 - 4000kbs and it keeps there for a while.. so i dont know about this computer right now.. and im using cable.

 

well... i think you should buy a new network card.. or something kid..

 

umm alright.. well i guess ill do that then.. what card do you suggest

 

I wondered.

The reason I asked whether you're using cable or DSL is this: with DSL, download (and upload) speeds for a given service level are determined largely by your distance from the switch that provides the service. With cable, those speeds are significantly impacted by the number of subscribers on your local loop that are receiving or transmitting data at the same time.

Atlantic Broadband may have several hundred subscribers on your local loop.

You haven't said what bandwidth your ISP claims to provide -- but bear in mind that all subscribers on the local loop are sharing that bandwidth on a cable connection. Your ISP may claim 4Mbps, but if 10 subscribers are using that bandwidth at a given moment in time, your throughput drops to 400Kbps along with everybody else's.

In other words: on a cable connection, your mileage will vary. Will it vary as much as you've experienced? I've no idea. I use DSL, with a 1.5Mbps connection. I don't have to share that bandwidth with anyone but my wife when she's surfing at the same time as me.

 

I certainly agree that under heavy traffic on a cable channel each users bandwidth will be oversaturated... but is Atlantic Broadband that bad to oversaturate the channels to that magnitude?

In my experience with both Cox Communications in San Diego and Cablevision Optimum Online in NJ, the lowest I have seen the line drop during peak saturation is 20-35% off of the quoted speed, which is still 4-8x the speed of standard DSL

as for X_40's_X, I highly recommend you run a TCP optimizer (there are plenty and they all do the same thing) to optimize your computer for a cable internet connection. I'm not really sure what could cause the drop in your conneciton so suddenly, but its worth a shot before getting a new card.

I just scored this on the speakeasy LA server test: not too shabby
Download Speed: 4156 kbps (519.5 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 513 kbps (64.1 KB/sec transfer rate)

 

Have you got the correct drivers for your network card installed? I've seen some cases where the Microsoft ones cause significant bottlenecks due to bad interfacing - particularly with onboard network cards.

Also, contention ratio would come into it a lot. If you've got a 5 million : 1 contention, chances are you're going to have a really rubbish speed, but if its 30:1 or 20:1 you might get better speeds. Most cable connections I know are 30:1, or for business accounts as low as 5:1.

 

oh well, on my old computer the internet works perfectly fine with cable internet; my new computer is slower for some reason. only computer using my internet is my laptop which isnt ever on when im playing games or doing whatever on my desktop.

Rob. i also use 1.5Mbps connection, maybe even higher.. i dont understand why this is happening.

inyearstocome, i see i see.. well where can i get a TCP optimizer? and how do i use it? and god! im sure thats what i should get on the speedtest but theres something wrong with my computer

goldfish, yes i pretty sure i have the right drivers installed.. iv been on nividia to download the latest drivers and firmwire for my network adapter and its still slow.. sometimes i think it made it worse ...

maybe theres NOTHING wrong with my internet at all and theres something wrong with how i put my computer together when i built it? if so.. i have no idea how im going to figure this out

 

You could try TCP Optimiser, as seen in the MajorGeeks Internet Tools section

Personally I do it manually, but then thats just me

 

goldfish, alright i have it now.. how do i use it?

 

http://www.speedguide.net/faq_in_q.php?category=100&qid=33

 

ill try that right now.. thank you.. and also.. im on my internet server providers website right now and they dont offer 1.5 mbps ... so i think i have 3 mbps connection... i thought it was that to begin with but i wasnt sure for some unknown reason .. but umm yes ill try that TCP Optimizer right now

 

well i just ran it and i think it made my internet slower lol

 

well sorry but 3 posts in a row but.. i think that thingy made it worse.. i used it... and it didnt help so i used backup to restore it back to normal.. still worse then what it was.. so i used repair to fix it.. it did nothing.. then i used winsock to fix it.. and that did nothing.. so NOW my internet is worse then what it was.. now i lag ALL the time on servers for games.. sighs.. this is real nice

 

well i think you should try to uninstall your network adapter and install it again.. thats how i got mine to work.. maybe that will do it

 

yep that didnt work.. this sucks so bad..

 

um... i guess no one knows whats wrong lol.. figures, no one esle knew either.. well what network card should i buy? im sure there cheap.