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E-School 1/13/01

Ever want to know how fast your download speed really is? Well you can by following these steps.

1. Open your browser and type in www.msn.com (or you can just click on the link on this e-mail or on our website www.surfmore.net)2. Click on the link Computing and Web (towards the left).3. Scroll down and you'll find a link called Bandwidth Speed Test. Click on this link and the test will begin.4. Look at the chart below, it will compare you connection to other types of connection speeds.5. Have a 56k? Doesn't seem to meet the quota?                     There could be several reasons--and most of them aren't your ISP's
                     fault.                      First of all, static electricity caused by radio signals, power lines, and
                     other sources interfere with most 56K modem signals, forcing them to
                     fall back to 42-50Kbps.                      56K modems also require a clean, straight through telephone
                     connection to the telephone company's central office switching center.
                     Phone company line amplifiers that boost a telephone signal over a
                     long distance, PBX switchboard systems, and other phone equipment
                     alter the phone signal and force 56K modems to fall back to speeds of
                     33.6Kbps and lower.                      Finally, the FCC doesn't allow 56K modems to use the full range of
                     signals that phone company equipment can generate. They're
                     concerned that it'll cause static interference to other phone lines.                      So no 56K modem in the United States ever connects at 56K. Most
                     56K modem users seem to connect at speeds of 44-48Kbps.

If you have any questions or comments, e-mail us at jeanhill@surfmore.net