Blatman Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Oh, and why should a 1 Meg connection need a new PC Mr. B? 'Cos my home unit is a 1999 Gateway PC, with a 650meg P3, and a max of 384megs of RAM. Fast it isn't....... no point in upgrading the line when the PC is flat out already...... Quote
adhawkins Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Presumably you're using a USB ADSL 'modem'? Might be worth investigating an ADSL router and a network card, might easy the burden on the processor. Andy Quote
Blatman Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 I'd rather spend the money on the sprint car...... Quote
Blatman Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Well, as I always say, if it works, don't fix it. The PC works, so I'm gonna try to make the sprint car work better... Quote
adhawkins Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Hmm...doesn't the sprint car work? Couldn't you make the PC work better? Andy Quote
Blatman Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Sprint car works, but it's waaaaaaay off being satisfactory for use by one of my more talented brethren who run up the front. I can't usefully turn my increasingly limited spare time in to seat time (which I desperately need), so improving the car so that it's spec more closely resembles cars that are winning is easier, if a tad more costly. As long as I don't render it undrivable, I'll bide my time until I can get busy with learning to drive it properly..... The PC is fast enough for the sort of surfing and off line work I do with it, so it can stay that way for now... Quote
adhawkins Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 That's almost the opposite philosophy I have to my car atm to be honest...I'm sure it could go a lot faster as it is, so I'm spending money on making it safer / more reliable rather than out and out performance mods. As you say, the driver is currently the component that needs the most work I think . So I'm trying to get as much track driving in it as I possibly can (subject to time, money and noise tests ) Andy Quote
v7slr Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 DO NOT go for any download-limiting service. You'll only regret it from the first month onwards. Remember that a Windows update can be reasonably significant, and if you have to ever rebuild the PC, then the combination of updates from XP, AV, etc... will as likely take you over the limit in one go. Go for a "standard" service. 1/2 meg line, no limits, and try to avoid USB modems. A router is cheap (circa £30 from Ebuyer) which adds NAT which, whilst isn't a firewall, is another defence from people pushing pop-ups onto your screen. The Origo routers now have a downloadable flash firewall too. Worth investigating. Read the user comments on the Ebuyer site. You will be better off with a network card for that even though it can be connected with USB. I prefer networking products for networking. Leave USB for peripherals (cameras, etc). Gimme a call if you need any recommendations Mike. I've implemented several ADSL systems now... wired, wireless, server-based... etc. I have a pretty good idea about what systems are available, although I confess I'm less up to date with service providers. They all do more or less the same thing so it comes down to price I guess. People at work are recommending Pipex or Tiscali at the mo. Same service as BT but with a useful helpdesk (not that you really need it as Broadband just works... except if you go for NTL). And remember this... Cam7 is for life, not just for Christmas. Quote
Blatman Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 A router is cheap (circa £30 from Ebuyer) which adds NAT which, whilst isn't a firewall, is another defence from people pushing pop-ups onto your screen. Didn't realise routers had got so cheap...... I'm sure I've got a 10/100 Network card lying around somewhere that I er........ liberated from a new Dell computer a few months ago. Got me thinking about adding wireless LAN to the house now, so Blatgirl can connection share with a lap top....... Perhaps the driving school will have to wait.....again. What's NAT? Quote
Blatman Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Thanks Al, but I was rather hoping for a shorter, laymans answer...... Quote
adhawkins Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 I'm assuming you know what an IP address? With NAT, your 'real' IP address is assigned to the router, with 'fake' addresses assigned to the PCs inside the router. When a PC inside makes a request from its fake address, the router changes it to look like it came from the router. Then, when the response comes back, the router changes it again and sends it on to the PC inside the router. The upshot of this is that anyone connecting to your 'real' IP address, connects to the router, and not to your PC. You can usually selectively 'forward' incoming packets from the router to an internal PC (so that you can run a web server for example). Was that a 'lay' enough explanation (serious question, not trying to be a smart-ass)? Andy Quote
adhawkins Posted June 17, 2004 Posted June 17, 2004 Glad to hear it, I'm not too good at explaining techy things sometimes Andy Quote
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