Slow internet connection slows down Windows.

[JesperMP]

Hi,

sometimes I have to go on the net via a plain old modem
(for example to check on PLCs.net when traveling ).
It is really irritating that everything seems to slow down, not just Internet Explorer. Is that because Internet Explorer is intertwined with the regular (desktop) Explorer in Windows XP ?
If I changed from Internet Explorer to anoter webbrowser, would this fix the problem ?

Sorry for starting another off topic thread. It is just that this forum has the most knowledgable members (grovel grovel).

 

[Binaural]

It's unlikely. It's more likely your system may have some spyware, be seriously underpowered/overloaded, or else have a somewhat corrupted operating system install. You may also have a virus that activates whenever you connect to the internet (to relay spam and so on), and I would be investigating this first of all. If you don't have a virus scanner then a very good freebie is AVG. Slowdowns due to virus activity are a lot more noticeable on a dial-up connection.

But if you want to experiment then Firefox is a great browser. Download the "fasterfox" extension for extra zing

 

[rdrast]

What is the 'plain ol' modem' Jesper? If it is one of the (all to typical now) software based modems, they can noticably tax the system CPU maintaining the connection. Have you ever tried a real, external modem that handles Mo'ing and dem'ing in the modem itself?

 

[Ken Moore]

If you dial up ISP uses some type of "acceleration" software, this can bog down the CPU as well.

 

[JesperMP]

Thanks for the responses so far.

The modem is the internal one in my laptop, HP nc4010. I dont know if it is software based or a real hardware modem. I shall investigate that a bit more.

I will try to run several anti spyware packages to see if it helps.
And maybe I shall try Firefox too.Apart from that I sure dont hope I have to reinstall my laptop. Just buying a new one will be easier


Anyway, I shall come back to tell how it ends up.

edit:
When I check the Task Manager when the system is waiting for no appearant reason, the CPU is not heavily loaded at all. It looks like other programs are just waiting for no reason.

 

[rdrast]

Jesper, Task Manager isn't bad, BUT, it also doesn't really show what's going on, actual CPU loading-wise. I'd say the best indicator in TaskManager of system usage (or abusage) is on the performance tab, the little box at the bottom for Physical Memory. Make sure that some is available; by some, I mean over 256K on average. Below that, Windows will be doing a lot of swapping.

Software modems don't generally show up as high loading, as they tend to spend a lot of time in wait-states, which don't affect the actual 'CPU' usage column on the Processes tab; then too, they handle most of their work lumped into the 'System Idle Process'.

I don't notice it here, so much, as thankfully Phil doesn't load down this site with banner ads, but elsewhere (sorry webmasters) I've had a huge boost in general browsing by using AdSubtract Pro. There is a free, 30 day demo, and if set to fixed port mode, will work with every browser out there that supports proxies. I mention this, as normally, I find that waiting for a page to load isn't bad, but waiting for the blasted ad-servers to spam me takes a lot of time. ASPro completely eliminates them.

 

[keithkyll]

Do you have Automatic Update turned on? XP is polling Microsoft for updates. If not, then another program or Virus is doing it. Do a Ctrl-Alt-Del when offline to get a feel for what's normal. Do it again during dial-up to see what's extra.

 

[JesperMP]

Hmmm...

I installed and ran Ad Aware. It removed some "tracking cookies" but reported nothing else.
I have a virus scanner, installed and managed by our IT department.
And Windows Update is turned on.

There is no noticable difference after the cookies were removed.

How to know if a modem is software or hardware based ?
All I get to see is that it is an "Agere System AC'97".

 

[bernie_carlton]

The free 'AdBlock' extension for Firefox does a great job on unwanted ads also.

 

[JesperMP]

There are only 100MB - 150MB free physical memory, maybe that is the real problem. It is not too big a laptop, only 512MB RAM.
What I do not understand is that if I try to add together all the memory usages as reported by Task Manager, then it does not come anywhere near the 350MB used. It is more like 150 - 200 MB.

 

[keithkyll]

Memory is not the problem. You have plenty. Automatic update is. It spends a lot of time (with dial-up) comparing your software with Microsoft's list to see if all is current. Turn off Auto Update, at least when travelling.
Some memory is used by Windows (not reported in Task Manager). If you run low on RAM, your will see/hear your hard drive 'kerchunking' as Windows swaps Virtual Memory. No swapping means you have enough memory.

Use Firefox. Search Google for Tips and Tricks to optimize it. It's default config is too slow for dial-up. There are suggestions out there specific to Dial-up.

 

[JesperMP]

I have Automatic Updates turned on, but at the moment my Windows XP is up-to-date. I can follow the data transfer on the modem, how many bytes send and received, and when an update is being downloaded I can see it in the taskbar.
It does not matter if there is traffic or not. If I open another program, or open a file in a program, then there is a delay of approx 30 seconds where nothing happens. It feels more like the PC is waiting for something on the network, and finally it continues because of a timeout.

If I go offline, there is no delay, or rather it is just a few seconds.

I thought I had nailed it, file and folder syncronisation was turned on, but it didnt do much difference when I turned it off.

 

[mailman166]

ok

also you can try using msconfig......Start>run> *type in "msconfig"*.... in the start up tab, try to see if u can figure out what programs are running at start up that u didnt put there ureself... IF you're new to this just read carefully... and if u dont know what each process is related to... google it with the exact case cause some viruses use diff case's to hide in plain site per say...Peace man

 

[keithkyll]

Turn off Automatic Update!

I have Automatic Updates turned on, but at the moment my Windows XP is up-to-date.

It still checks for updates every time you go online. That takes time.

If I open another program, or open a file in a program, then there is a delay of approx 30 seconds where nothing happens. It feels more like the PC is waiting for something on the network, and finally it continues because of a timeout. If I go offline, there is no delay...

Turn off AntiVirus and try again.

You need to turn things off one at a time until you get it. You could also try creating another user, one specific for dial-up use. That's where you should experiment, so you don't clober your original if you uninstall something and then need to reconfigure it to get it back.

 

[Terry Woods]

"On the Road"?

Obviously you see a difference between "at home" and "on the road". If you see the same issue with the same PC then...

At that point, doesn't your connection speed depend on the particular service to which you connect?

Your connection-speed to the internet is limited by the speed of the particular physical connection. If you are in the back-water somewhere... connected to the internet through semophores... then you can't expect to do any better than the speed of the semophores.

If your particular Laptop-PC works fine at home, but not so fine on the road... then it might only be a matter of connection speed through the particular connection at the locale.

Then again... it might depend on your particular setting for dial-up speed.

Check the limits imposed on your modem (by your PC) versus the limits of the particular local connections.

If you have a DSL connection at home, and you do not have a DSL Modem for general connection (DSL for dial-in connection? Not likely!) then you shouldn't expect too much.