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PREFACE:
To have an understanding of what can happen on the Internet to foul
things, you need a basic understanding of how the Internet works. If you
haven't already done so, read the Web Workings
page. The main point to realize here is that the Internet is made up of
millions of computers, wires, fibers, hubs, routers, etc.
COMPLEXITY:
Now how often does your computer experience a glitch and have to be
rebooted? If your like most of us, it happens all too frequently.
Therefore, why should the equipment that makes up the Internet be any
different? Well, you got it, it's not. Nor is the Internet ever
fully operational. It is sheer statistics governed by probability
mathematics...Reliability. As Scotty put it "The more complex the
plumbing, the easier it is to stop up the drain!"
FAILURES & GLITCHES:
Lots of things can fail or can be just plain flakey. A popular myth
is that electronics is either good or bad, there is no in-between. That is
not true. Electronics can be good sometimes and bad the next. It may
be a component right on the edge of failing hard and permanent, or it can be a
component that will continue to fail intermittently.
And if you ever done any troubleshooting, you know how hard it is to find
an intermittent problem...I have really learned to hate that
word...intermittent. I love it when a piece of electronic gear simply
stops function, or even better when it 'smokes'. There is a theory that
says every piece of electronics contains smoke. And when it releases that
smoke, it has gone bad. There is a lot of truth to that, but reciprocity
doesn't apply.
If you are having trouble connecting to a particular site, but can go
elsewhere on the Internet, then the problem is most likely at the site you are
trying to access.
SPEED:
The Internet works on a protocol called Transmission Control Protocol /
Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). Among other things, this protocol specifies
that data is sent in packets. There are a couple of handy little tools
that you can use to judge the speed of your connection. These tools
determine how long it takes a packet of information to reach a destination and
what path it takes to get there. These tools are known as Ping and Trace
Route. Ping and Traceroute (tracert) can be run from a DOS prompt in
Windows. Take a look at the DIAGNOSTICS page
for more information.
BANDWIDTH, LAG AND PACKET LOSS:
These issues affect not only playing Internet games but also the
basic E-Mail, FTP, News and HTTP services. These issues are becoming
increasingly important as more and more people are becoming connected to the
WEB. These issues account for the speed and reliability of your access to
the WEB. These issues depend upon the hardware used starting from your
computer and all the hardware and software between you and the computer that is
sending you the data you requested. To isolate problems in these areas it
is important to realize what is involved. In other words, where you are
requesting the data from.
An example, if you connect to your ISP and access the web page on
THAT ISP server and it downloads relatively fast, but when you try to access a
web page on a server in a distant location but it is slow, the problem is not
your connection to your ISP. That example eliminates your computer, your
telephone line connection, and your ISP's server equipment. What remains
in question is your ISP's connection to the Internet, and all points in-between
all the way to the computer at the other end that is serving the web page.
To eliminate your ISP's connection to the Internet as the problem,
there are two things to look at. First, access a lot of different web pages in
other places. You may find that some respond quickly while others do not. That
would indicate that a few of the sites you are trying to access are just plain
busy and slow. Then it's a problem that only your ISP can resolve.
BANDWIDTH:
Although it has been oversimplified here, the ISP's connect to the
Internet backbone before connecting to each other directly. The Internet
backbone consists of many different data communication lines and bandwidth
capabilities. The major vendors of the backbones like MCI, SPRINT, and
AT&T are pressed to update their equipment to keep up with the bandwidth
demand. They are employing T2, T3, T4, and higher communications lines. In
essence, the market demand for getting connected to the web is the same as the
market demand for bandwidth and it has been increasing at a phenomenal rate, a
rate that has been an unexpected surprise. It is a happy surprise to the
Internet industry because it means more money. But it is frustrating
because the bandwidth requirements are pushing technology. So far, the
technology has kept up, but the cost of that new technology is high as all new
emerging technology usually is. So in essence, the market is outgrowing
itself. This is causing problems to the companies and the customers of the
Internet market. There is much debate on this subject. Some believe
that there will be an inevitable crash of the market, the demand far exceeding
the supply. Others feel the demand is transient and it will normalize out
either due to the demand or the supply. I see it as opportunity, only time
will tell who will seize it and prosper from it.
LAG:
LAG is the amount of time it takes a network packet of information to
travel across the Internet. LAG is a function of the electronic pathway
from your computer to the other computers on the Internet. Ping shows your
ping time (a measure of LAG) from you to
however you ping. LAG is measured in milliseconds (ms) which are
thousandths of a second. A typical LAG or ping time
to your ISP through a dial-up connection that achieves 33,600bps is about 250ms,
about ¼ second. Faster connections such as 56K achieve less than
100ms. Cable and DSL modems have ping times that are less than 10ms to the
ISP. Every line and wire in the Internet from you to the destination of
where you are trying to ping adds a little LAG.
PACKET LOSS:
Packet Loss is the real killer on the Internet, especially for multiplayer
network games. However, it can also be the culprit of web pages taking
excessively long times to load. When a packet is lost on the Internet,
your computer has to resend or re-request the data. There are many reasons
for packet loss. In the case of ISPs and the Internet backbone, packet
loss is typically caused by faulty equipment or web servers that are
overloaded. Most usually, the cause of packet loss is the dialup modem
connection. For dialup modem users, you are guaranteed packet loss.
No phone line is perfect. Some are worse than others. It is a
function of your modem, your phone line, and the modem at your ISP. If you
have doubts, check with other users in your area and ask how their Internet
connection is doing. |
