Modem Standards and Performance
Most new personal computers come with an internal modem though there are still some external modems in use. Usually modems that come with major brand computers can only be supported and upgraded through the specific vendor. If you built your own computer, you may have a choice of what brand of modem to buy. Whatever your situation is, be sure and purchase a modem that works with the standards used by the UW Technology modem pools.
Check For:
- Modulation Standards - v.92, v.90. v.34, v.32bis, v.32
- Error Control Standards - v.42, MNP2-4
- Data Compression Standards - v.44, v.42bis, MNP5
- Modem On-Hold - Modem on-hold is
currently supported in the v.92 pools with a 4 minute
timeout.
Note: You must have call-waiting or caller id/call waiting to be notified of incoming calls. It is not necessary to have call waiting to make outgoing calls provided your modem on-hold software supports this feature.
Compliant or Compatible With a Standard
It is better to buy a modem that is compliant with a standard rather than one that is simply compatible with the standard. If a modem is "compliant" with a standard, it is more likely (although not guaranteed) to implement the standard fully. If a modem is "compatible" with a standard, it will operate within the standard, but it may not entirely utilize the standard's full potential.
Purchasing a V.92 Modem
Two things important to consider when buying your V.92 modem are whether the brand you buy offers free software upgrades and what kind of support you can expect from the manufacturer. The quality of support you will receive from the manufacturer is seldom addressed in product reviews but is absolutely vital if you have a problem with your newly purchased modem. Ask your friends, check out newsgroups, and browse product reviews to get an idea of the best modem for your needs. As you begin to narrow the field of choices, check the manufacturers' Web pages and see how they compare.
Modem Performance and Access
Once you have the necessary computer, modem, and communications software, a few factors affect your use of the UW Technology dial-in modems:
- The efficiency of the connection is limited by your modem's speed. If you are used to working on campus with a direct Ethernet connection to the campus network, you will notice diminished speed when you transfer graphics, sound, or video files over a dial-in connection. To gain speed, you may need to change the way you work. For example, if you do not need to see the graphics in a document, you can set your graphical World Wide Web browser so it does not display them.
- The efficiency of the connection also is limited by the telephone lines. Even if you buy the fastest modem on the market, moving data through phone lines is relatively slow. V.92 modems are designed to provide a maximum 56,000 bps connection rate between the modems. However, this speed is impossible since telephone company transmit power rules will only allow for 53,000 bps. (And this only happens on the rare, perfect telephone system call.) Connection rates on typical calls will be in the 37,333 to 48,000 bps range as a result of telephone system (not modem) limitations.
- Modem pool use is limited by the finite number of modems available. You must be careful of your modem usage, particularly in the evenings. No matter when you use the modem pool, disconnect whenever you are not actively using the service, even for short periods of time. The modem pools do not support dual modems using multilink PPP.
- These modems are for individual use only, and they are not intended to support any kind of full-time connections.
The first time you use the modem pools, you will receive a welcome message (via email to the account you use to log in to the service) with guidelines on how to use the service responsibly.
You will receive an email warning any time your use during prime-time hours (6:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.) far exceeds the norm. To give everyone access, measures such as installing quotas or charging for modem pool use may be implemented unless everyone cooperates to share the resource fairly (i.e., stays connected only when actively doing work).
If you need help or have questions about the information on this page, contact UW Technology using Send a Question to UW Technology.
