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Or something damn more dangerous. Yahoo!'s DSL package showed up today, and inside there's an actual chip array. I think they want me to open up my computer!
I'm rather terrified of what I might do to my computer -- I've seen Terminator, and if anyone's prone to setting off WWIII with a screwdriver and a harddrive, it's me. So someone -- calling the Love Muscle especially -- tell me which wires to cut before the timer runs down?
And if a robot's sent back in time to assassinate you to prevent you from giving me the correct way to install a DSL and thus prevent the birth of AI, don't say I didn't warn you.
Posts: 3293 | Registered: Jul 2002
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Eddie, I am a robot sent back in time to prevent you from installing your DSL correctly. I should be there soon. Don't bother locking your door--it won't make any difference.
Posts: 1041 | Registered: Feb 2002
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I assume it's an Ethernet card, since the caption says "If the bracket on the Ethernet card does not fit in your computer, replace it with the enclosed smaller bracket." Otherwise, it's an unmarked, intimidating rectangular green thing.
I have yet to look at the instructions, and I'm sure they'll be helpful -- I'm starting this thread more to whine about my helplessness and to ask if there's anything in particular I should watch out for. For example, can I keep my computer on while I install this? Common sense tells me no, but it's just a card/chip array, right?
Posts: 3293 | Registered: Jul 2002
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Lalo, I know how you feel. In fact, you have nothing to worry about. I unleashed armaggedon a few months ago when I installed my network. It's disconnected now, but the damage is done.
Somewhere, a future universe has winked out.
Posts: 22497 | Registered: Sep 2000
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Eep. Dear god, make sure you power down your computer and unplug it before you start taking it apart. Oh, and make sure you're grounded, don't want to discharge static electricity into that thing and fry something important. Ever see "Short Circuit"? You really could create AI.
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Eddie, why the heck did you get the "self-install" kit if you don't know what an Ethernet card looks like, what it does, or how to put it in? They DO have an installation option, you know, which is considerably cheaper than buying a new computer.
Seriously, from what I can remember about my Yahoo DSL kit, there are pretty basic step-by-step instructions for the whole thing. Start at #1, and drop by here if you have any questions.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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I dread ever having to do any hardware changes on my computer. It always takes hours to days when it ought to take 5 minutes, and all sorts of internal conflicts arise (in the OS and my psyche) and nothing ever works quite right again. I understand completely, Eduardo. I've bought a DVD player months ago in order to watch my Arabic language courses and I am still procrastinating about installing it.
Posts: 2843 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!
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Another thing to consider, Eddie, is that your computer -- if it's at all new -- probably already HAS an Ethernet connection, and therefore doesn't need this card.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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I'd look for the network port on the back before you do anything else. It's like an obese phone jack. When/If you find it, cram a network cable in there and never, ever take it out. My stepmom had an empty network port on her laptop and decided to stick a phone cable in there. We lost telephone access for 8 hours because of that.
My other basic suggestion is install the software first. Your computer may piss and moan about not having that piece of hardware, but it's better than having to go through Windows' flaky hardware setup "Wizard" which has been broken since it was introduced into Windows 95.
Posts: 903 | Registered: May 2003
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Stick the CD in your computer and run it. Then do what it says. If you lack an ethernet card with proper drivers (which is unlikely) it will prompt you to install this one, with written and graphical instructions.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
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Eddie: with the beasty that you've got there, I'm almost 100% sure that you already have an ethernet port on your computer, it looks like a wide telephone plug (if you don't have one, I'd say it's high time to lay some good ol' fashioned smackdownage). If you don't have one then unplug your computer, open the baby up, stick that puppy nice and easily into one of the PCI slots, you should know how to be careful with that, screw it in, turn your computer on and follow what Windows says in doing the rest (that wizard actually has worked very well with all of my hardware). Your yahoo stuff should have really good instructions, just remember to be nice and careful my good man, tis easy, just remember, you're smarter than the computer...and you're much much better. Satyagraha
Posts: 1986 | Registered: Apr 2001
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quote: This thread explains why California must die.
HEY! I don't even HAVE broadband!
Anyway, ScottR, why should the Meese, the Doves, the saxons, Nick, lma, and all the other CA people I'm forgetting suffer?
Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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Listen! And understand! That terminator is out there. It can't be bargained with! It can't be reasoned with! It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead!
Posts: 4534 | Registered: Jan 2003
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Watch out Lalo. SBC/Yahoo DSL is the devil. I'm still fighting with them after 6 months of billing screw-ups. Right now they have overcharged me at least $120 and I'm not happy. They can't even get the effing connection to my house (the box is too far away) and said they cancelled it from their end but I'm still getting charged. In the meantime I'm now paying for a cable modem for the computer and doing Dish TV because the cable package that provides Steve's soccer games is twice as expensive as the dish one.
Can't win for losing! but SBC is definitely Satan.
AJ (oh wait, you have an affinity for Satan... well compare SBC to Microsoft and you get the idea!)
No. I'm downloading at a speed of 20 kb/s. That's four times as fast as my 56k connection -- not fifty as promised. What the hell?
Help?
(And you were right, by the way -- I didn't have to open up my computer. Thank god, the squirrels living inside might've gotten free and I'd be forced to buy a new computer.)
Posts: 3293 | Registered: Jul 2002
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There are a number of reasons for slower-than-expected performance, but one of the main ones I know of is that are too many subscribers online in your local area.
Try the throughput at different times of day and see what you get.
Also, there are some good test sites for getting speed ratings of your system. I don't know what you used to arrive at the number you posted, but you can't rely on what your system tells you is the speed of downloads, etc. You should use one of the benchmarking sites. I'd post an address if I were home, but I'm at work and don't have the URLs.
By the way, if your system has squirrels, you need to upgrade anyway. We're onto chipmunks now. They're smaller and can do the same things for less food.
quote: No. I'm downloading at a speed of 20 kb/s. That's four times as fast as my 56k connection -- not fifty as promised. What the hell?
The funny thing is, most people with DSL are guaranteed a certain speed, and they claim to better than broadband internet - also called cable - for the reason that their speed doesn't fluctuate.
I usually download anywhere from 50-150 kilobytes per second with my cable.
Now tell me Scott R, why should California die? Posts: 4229 | Registered: Dec 2002
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Unfortunately, DSL has nothing to do with how many subscribers are on in your area. That's because every phone line is hard wired to the CO, which has far more bandwidth than the total available between all the DSL lines that can be wired (there are a limited number of hookups for DSL in a given CO).
You might try calling into SBC tech support. Once. But much better would be to post on the appropriate forum at http://dslreports.com (the one for your region's SBC branch). Post the results of a speed test from the same site (its in the tools section), and the basics about your computer, and your email. One of the official SBC guys will send you a message asking for your phone number, give it to him and he'll check your line.
It could be an inside the house problem, though. For instance, make sure you have filters on everything plugged into that phone line. Make sure you used the phone cable that came with the kit.
While your line may be being optimized, thats a rather low speed for the optimization to start at.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
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If you live in an older neighborhood, it could be the neighborhood lines as well. At our old house we had trouble with both in-house lines and neighborhood lines being "fuzzy" and transmitting poorly just because they were older and of poorer quality.
Posts: 1777 | Registered: Jan 2003
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