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Internet Connect Speeds


thanatos
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When BC Millenium arrives on the scene, any idea as to the bandwidth requirement needed to be competitive. Is a DSL battlecruiser going to crush the fool flying around in space at an analog connect of 33.6k, or even 52k? Will this be like playing Unreal Tournament with a 225 ping against a DSL guy pinging out at 50?

I ask because here in "Mayberry" Indiana, I live at the end of the South Bend Ameritech telephone trunk and can connect at a blistering analog dial-up speed of 22.6k. This speed is good for maybe on-line tic-tac-toe, only (turn based, of course).

I have spent the past 6 weeks and many hundreds of dollars attempting to get a dual channel 128k ISDN, however, it is the same old story: it doesn't work as the telephone Co, said, so they blame the ISP (I've tried 3 different ones, all with 128k) or the modem maker. I can get a connect of about 64Kbps at best, after paying $300 for the ISDN modem, $280 for teleco. set-up, $40/mo. for ISDN ISP, and $60/mo. for two telephone lines. I am limited by a 115k com port, but I don't think this explains a dual connect 128k maxing out at 64k. Any ISDN geniuses out there to take pity on yet another computer fool?

Does anyone out there have an ISDN that works well? Do the names Ameritech, MSN, or Eicon Diva show up in any of these happy stories? I'll truly miss not being able to go on-line to play BCM, but the cash doesn't grow on corn here in Indiana, and the monetary amount is too steep, even with all of our medical over-billing and Medicare fraud (just joking IRS Internet Secret Police!).

Please share your modem types and connect speeds, and rate their quality if possible, especially any ISDN people. It will be interesting to surmise the competition and potential bandwidth speed handicaps. I'm still looking for a non-BACP can-connect-at-or-near-128k ISDN ISP that services Hayseed, er, I mean South Bend, Indiana. Any one have a good ISDN ISP provider? I'll say "hi" to Gomer for all you Commanders when he comes by to take away my money-pit ISDN modem. Please admire the Ameritech buildings for me as you pass them; I helped heavily to buy that "purty" reflective glass.

Thanks for allowing me to blow off, and any info that you can provide. On the grand scale of life, connect speeds count for very little, but I want my 128k! I'm still sore at all the LPB's out there, who can frag me before I even know an opponent is in the area. I really need low pinging because I'm too old to react in time and I'm just no good, but that is too painful to admit. This old "Ensign" turns 46 years old tomorrow, D.O.B. 7/23/54, and the brain and nerves are in advanced atrophy.

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Cmdr Doc Hoover

GCV JOHN PAUL JONES

"I will not fear death on the field of battle, for life is

but a dream from which we all must wake"

[This message has been edited by thanatos (edited 07-22-2000).]

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ISDN = 1 B Channel, 56kb(bits) for data and 8k for ISDN overhead; which = the 64kbs touted by the telcos. Search the web, you will find a plethora of info on ISDN.

Remember this is DATA connection rate; 8 = 1 byte. 56000 bits/second = 7000 bytes per second thruput.

2ch ISDN running Multilink PPP is 2 B ch ISDN lines, when combined will = 128kbs DATA connection; with a 15000 byte thruput.

Bottom line up front: 2ch ISDN (120k bit per sec connection) will NEVER result in 128000 byte per second thruput.

Short of a direct circuit with UUnet; xDSL and cable modems are the only way to get the 128k byte/second data thruput.

You should be connecting at either 128000 (more around 125000) or 64000 bits per second when you dial into the ISP. Data thru is effectig be various factors - how you have ISDN modem configured; how the ISP has your account/user profile configured; ISP congestion; Internet congestion.

As to BCM and multiplay - hopefully my ISDN lines will work. If they do not then I am up the creek without a paddle 'cause there be NO xDSL or 2-way cable coming in the future in BF MD where I am located frown.gif

My ISDN lines work well enough with Klingon Academy and other M/P games (not FPS).

Search the web and you will find many ISDN sites that may answer your questions.

Gotta scoot biggrin.gif

TTFN

[This message has been edited by Gallion (edited 07-22-2000).]

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Thanks for the reply Gallion,

I'm surprised we've never bumped into one another, as you live in BF MD and I live in BF IN.

What bandwidth do you see running a speed test, such as the one on MSN. I have tried 3 ISPs, including a local one at $60/mo. All of these ISPs showed with what I consider low bandwidth for a dual 128k ISDN line. I don't really expect 128k, or even close to this with my 115k com port. The best speed I see on the MSN Bandwidth Speed Test is 60-64Kbps with any of the 3 ISPs I have tried in the past 6 weeks. One "b" line connects at mid-50'sKbps; two "b" lines connects at mid-60'sKbps. Doesn't it seem something is wrong if a second 64k line can only add 10Kbps to your bandwidth? What am I missing here? I was expecting speeds of 80-100Kbps, and hopefully higher with a high speed com port. Even the ISDN ISP providers (you know, the guys marketing this stuff) indicate those expectations are not unrealistic.

Any other ISDN users who can share their ISDN experience? Anyone who can give a good ISP ISDN recommendation? MSN is extremely popular , busy, and probably over-sold, using BACP that will introduce additional problems into the speed mix.

How many DSL Commanders are out there smiling and licking their chops?

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Cmdr Doc Hoover

GCV JOHN PAUL JONES

"I will not fear death on the field of battle, for life is

but a dream from which we all must wake"

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thanatos, outside of what Gallion put forth above, all I can do is share my experience with ISDN, albeit from 3 years ago.

I too had a dual 128Kb account. But notice the spelling: Kb = Kilo bits; KB = Kilo Bytes. They are two VERY different beasts.

With my dual, i typically saw 11 or 12 KB throughput and on good days 15KB. It was extremely expensive. At the time, I was paying 15 times more than regular 56Kb modem for only 3 times real world bandwidth increase.

That's only the top layer. There was the cost of equipment to the phone company; the cost of new line install; And the cost of the ISP's service. In all, like yourself, when something went wrong I had at least two different companies to contact and sometimes 3 (if it was the ISDN hardware).

All that money and all that confusion was bunk. Although, when the service was working, it was the fastest I could afford (T1 line was $2000/month). Then Microsoft did something wonderful: MultilinkPPP. I slapped two cheap 56Kb modems into a Cyrix box running NT 4.x; found and ISP that allowed me dual logins; and I added a third phone line (then got rid of the second line to make for two real phone lines, not just one with a digital splitter).

I dropped ISDN like a stupid step-child and found that the dual modem not only cost me ONLY $40/month (ISP and extra phone line) but gave me the SAME performance. On average, I was seeing 11 or 12KB throughput smile.gif

The moral of the story is: ISDN is still too expensive. Find yourself a good local ISP that will allow multiple logins per account and get thyself TWO modems!

Now that I'm on cable, though, I don't have to deal with any of that. MS bandwidth speed tests are off the charts and usually register 500.1 K Bytes/sec or higher. Very few servers push that kind of bandwidth, so I usually see anywhere from 30KB - 300KB download. I think the upload max is 80KB but i might be wrong on that one. Anyway, it means pings in the 20-100 range depending and NO perceivable lag in FPS's smile.gif

And the icing on the cake is that i'm still spending that same $40/month. Check with your telco or local ISP for DSL avail. if not cable. Even my cousins in BF Oklahoma will have Cable connections within the month smile.gif

I still want my own T-3 line though. Would make hosting BCM servers that much better smile.gif

------------------

Flt. Cmdr. Akira

Spectre

ICV-Nevermore

Official Tester

Battlecruiser Series

[This message has been edited by Akira (edited 07-23-2000).]

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Guest aramike01

My wife swears by a cable modem. More than once she has logged onto my PC, went online, and screams of naughty words resonated through the house 'cause it ain't fast enough.

I think Rattler does cable modem too.

------------------

Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

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Don't forget me Mike, I've got a black box-o-super-fast-pr0n-downloading sitting on my comp as well smile.gif

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Cmdr. Parias

Spectre Fleet

Chief Engineer, Starstation Destiny

ICV-Galatae

ICQ:1293359

Staff member at HardNews

"Next time you're passing by and feel like dropping in, keep passing by untill you get to a river, and THEN drop in." -Jake Logan

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Once you've gone Cable you'll never want to go back biggrin.gif

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Cmdr. Canuck

UCV Iron Fist

I can't go to work today,the voices keep saying

"Stay home and clean the guns!"

Never forget your Battlecruiser was made by the lowest bidder.

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Guest aramike01

How on Earth could I forget you Parias? Anyone who's ever been to Hardnews knows about your cable modem. biggrin.gif

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Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

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mike: you forgot the Raidocative Garden Gnomes biggrin.gif

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Cmdr. Antilles

Spectre Fleet

Spectre Starstation

ICV- Eclipse

Chief Security Officer

Learning is not compulsory... Neither is survival.

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You think that is bad. I be sitting at work and ran the MSN Speedtest. Not good IMO for a network w/ a T-1 connection to the 'net - thruput was 14.4k Byte/s. Not much better than my 1ch or 2ch ISDN at home frown.gif

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I'm only too dejected to say that DSL isn't even rumored to be coming to BF Indiana until early 2001, and Ameritech and Bell are supposedly in a battle of the telephone giants for who gets to bleed the consumer, er, I mean provide the service.

Remember, Indiana is that state that you pass through driving the Interstate on your way to somewhere else, and us "hillfolk" don't impress the telephone company enough for them to hurry up and lay cable. I'm so far away from a telephone link station I'll probably see DSL about the time everyone else is using quantum-burst-packet Internet transmission.

It's amazing how many DSL guys/gals are already connected.

How will BCM be as a stand-alone single player game, because I beginning to see that conglomeration of markings on the wall turning into handwritings?

When BCM arrives and you see a cruiser stuck in space, unable to move, fire, or defend itself, think of me.

Cmdr. Doc Hoover

GCV JOHN PAUL JONES

"Do you know what happens to a battlecruiser when it gets hit by an IOD?"

"The same thing that happens to everything else."

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Guest Cmdr Josh Dilvorn

Well all you guys should think yourself lucky. Even though you may have to wait for DSL or can't get a cable modem connection. At least you don't live in Australia where you get charged exorberant amounts of money for anything faster than a 56k modem connection. True, DSL has been rumoured here, but it's going to be so out of reach to most people due to greedy telcos.

------------------

Commander Josh Dilvorn

GCV Conquest ISS06

Defense Wing Commander - ISS Fleet

ISS Homepage GCV Conquest Home

"Honour is what no man can give you, and no man can take away"

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thanatos, like i said before: look into running a dual 56k modem setup.

If you're ISDN is getting about 10-15KB throughput, you should be OK.

Granted, I know nothing of what DS's code will do as far as ping/lag are concerned, but I doubt he'd forget about the majority of players still using 56k modems smile.gif

------------------

Flt. Cmdr. Akira

Spectre

ICV-Nevermore

Official Tester

Battlecruiser Series

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I live in happy Indiana as well. I'm also out in the country where the best we can hope for is a 33.6 connection. I hate it. I really hope that DSL deal comes through. But it'll be a wait.

We were considering getting a satellite ISP. That might work. Fast download, phone-speed upload. I hope we have it available here.

------------------

Robert Thomas Maxwell

GCV Desideratus

http://powerpub.net

"Leave the repairs to the techs. Leave the mass destruction to ME."

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