Monday, December 24, 2001		Article

Combat slow Net access with browser accelerators
Sonal Chawla

WHILE surfing it is a common occurrence to contact a search engine in order to find the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of some place you want to visit on the Web. The connections between the computer sites are essentially 'pipes' of various sizes carrying the data streams from place to place. These pipes are made of glass. The pipe from the search engine computer connects to a much larger glass pipe, the backbone provider. These backbone providers, capable of moving packets around at speeds of millions of BPS (bits per second), do much of the heavy lifting on the Internet. Large Internet Service Providers (ISPs) may route the data directly to a backbone provider like MCI, Sprint, UUNet or others whereas small ISPs often have smaller pipes so the data may traverse several pipes before reaching the backbone. The last link, the smallest pipe, connects the PC to the access point where you get on the information highway. Typically, this is where your modem jumps onto the Internet.

So when after a click on a blue hyperlink, you read, "Host Connected: Waiting for reply..." on the status line at the bottom of the browser screen, the delay before the page appears on the screen, results from the overloading of a site being visited. Either the site has too many other surfers its link to the backbone sports a smallish pipe, overcrowded with other visitors.

The exact nature of the slowdown, not always clear, can result from several factors acting in concert. Sometimes there are just too many persons using the Internet all at once. When this happens, the big pipes on the backbone are full of data. Everything slows down. Other times, the computer at your ISP cannot keep up with the local traffic.

The speed with which you surf or download information from the Internet is based on several factors. Many are beyond your control, such as the ISPs connection to the Net, the ‘busyness’ of the Net or maybe the server you are trying to access is slow. Your modem speed, your phone line quality and the quality of your connection to your ISP, also determine how fast you can surf and download information. As with so many other performance issues, avoidance of bottlenecks is an important objective.

Let us take a look on how you can improve your Internet surfing experience. There are products available that can accelerate your Web browsing experience by up to 200 per cent. They are called Browser Accelerators. Browser accelerators download links on the Web page you view and store it in your computers cache. For example, Netsetter employs caching techniques typically available to large businesses, saving static content and images — that is content that doesn't change very often — on local storage media.

If you are like most persons surfing from home, you have a telephone dial-up connection through an ISP. And if you purchased your computer within the last year, you probably have a 56k modem. But are you connecting at 56k? Probably not. Check to see how fast you are connecting to the Internet. To do this, simply mouse over on the small computer on the bottom right of your task bar. If despite having 56k, your ISP makes you connect at 28.8 Kbps (kilobits per second) modem then the problem could be due to phone line noise. Verify that your modem is properly configured. In Windows 95/98, double click on "My Computer" and then open the "Control Panel." In "Modems," verify you have the proper modem driver selected. Also, verify you have the latest manufacturer's modem drivers. They are usually offered on the modem manufacturer's home page. You can also try MarketScore, a free download that can improve your Web speed.

If you connect to the Internet via modem, wouldn't it be nice if your modem dialed up and connected to your ISP every time you launched your browser, mail client, and so on? Going through IE, you can set up any Winsock application--Eudora, Netscape Navigator, or WS_FTP, among others--to dial automatically once you launch one of these applications. The easiest way is to run the Internet Connection Wizard. If you have IE3, go to the Start Menu and select Programs/Accessories/Internet Tools/Get on the Internet. If you have Windows ’98, go to Start/Programs/Accessories/Internet Tools/Connection Wizard. This tip gives you the added benefit of a prompt to disconnect when you close your browser or other Internet application. Theoretically, cable offers download speeds of up to 30 Mbps, more than 500 times faster than a 56k modem. However, there are some problems. Like you cannot shop around. Just like cable television, you are restricted to only one provider in your area. Actual download speeds fall far short of the theoretical 30 Mbps. Reports also show that performance degrades further when more persons in your neighborhood access the same cable system.

Phone companies rallied behind ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) as far back as 1994. At a rate of 128 Kbps, they were supposed to make analog modems obsolete. Well, it didn't happen. Difficult installation procedures, horrid customer support, and expensive infrastructure upgrades caused ISDN from ever becoming popular, or useful.

Internet servers allow many people to access a page at the same time. But not all servers are equal, and some may not be able to keep up with the demands of many people's browser requests. If it seems to be taking a long time to load a page, be patient.

For surfing the Web, you will want to use a modem that runs at a speed of at least 14.4 Kbps. The faster your modem, the less time it takes to load graphics and the more interactive the session can be. A 28.8 Kbps modem is more than twice as fast as a 14.4. If you look forward to doing a lot of web surfing, a faster modem will enhance your experience. Currently 33.6 are being sold, with 56k modems just being released.

The larger the file, the longer it will take to download to your browser. If you find yourself getting frustrated by slow connections, get a faster modem. It will improve the quality of your Web surfing experience.

To minimise the time it takes for a page to download, go to the View menu on the Internet Explorer and choose Options. Under the Page section, clear the check box that says Show Pictures, and then click OK. Now only the text part of the page will download.