V.92 Information
"In 1998, 56K
modems finally hit critical mass, after the V.90 modem standard was declared by the
ITU (the international standards organization) in February. Soon
thereafter, modem makers began shipping V.90 compliant products. V90 roll-outs have now
been completed by most major ISPs (and AOL), and widespread use of V.90 modems is now the
status quo.
The petty X2 versus K56flex battle of 1997 is now
completely irrelevant and has subsided, but the V.90 saga is just beginning. "
(Text borrowed from V90.com)
Ameritel Offers V.90 Connections
Starting in August, 1998, Ameritel Internet Services upgraded
all the existing dial-up modems to accept V.90 connections. Those customers using
V.90 modems noticed enhanced connect rates, download speeds, and connection reliability.
This page is in place to offer a resource for those who
aren't sure wether to upgrade to V.90, or purchase a V.90 modem, and what resources are
available for troubleshooting connection problems.
Great sources of information on V.90.....
"I have a V.90 modem, and still connect between
28.8Kbps and 33.6Kbps"
There are several factors that dictate how well you connect to the Internet.
Phone line quality
Yes, it may sound like an excuse for things we
have no explanation for, but 90% of connection problems can be attributed to phone line
quality. There have been several customers calling or e-mailing that complain of poor
connectivity to us, and have found that by having them bring his/her computer in to our
shop and dial-up using our phone lines, they connect over 48Kbps each time.
Why is that? When dialing from home, there are
several "nodes" that your phone line has to cross to get to the number that you
are dialing. If there is any "noise" at any one of these nodes, your connect
quality decreases. We've found that in certain areas of the county there are problems with
users dialing in and connecting at higher speeds due to noise at certain nodes or phone
company switching stations.
Modem
There are several manufacturers that offer V.90
modems. These modems come with microprocessors that make your modem communicate with one
of our modems. The type of "code" that your modems microprocessor uses will
dictate how good / bad your connection is to us. The very first modems that were released
with the original V.90 code generally don't connect very well. Most modems that are
released with V.90 code have capabilities of being upgraded by a process known as a
"Firmware upgrade." This process basically takes a piece of hardware that is
controlled by software (programmed into it), and replaces the software. K56Flex.com
Upgrade Central is a great resource for finding out how to upgrade your specific model
of modem.
The "Modem Line Test"
There are programs that some modem manufacturers
offer that test the phone line for "high speed" capabilities. They give a number
that you can dial that will monitor the phone line and tell wether your phone line is 56K
capable. This procedure is useful in some ways, but useless in others. When you are
dialing into this company, you are most likely connecting to them using different nodes
and switching stations that you would use when connecting to us. You may have a fantastic
connection to them, however this test won't show results when dialing in directly to one
of our modems.
Software configuration
All versions of Windows and Macintosh have software that
your computer uses to communicate over a network, in this case the Internet. The
particular software that your computer uses will also dictate the quality of your
connection. It seems Microsoft and other popular software manufacturers are coming up with
better software all the time. They do this to fix minor problems in older software, and
try new features. If you're using old "Trumpet Winsock" software, or have older
versions of Internet Explorer, or Netscape, I would suggest finding out if there are any
upgrades that are available. The Internet browser that you are using won't dictate how
well you connect, but the dialing software that it uses to connect does. In most all
cases, upgrading your Internet software doesn't cost anything but the time to download it
from the Internet and install it.
In summary
Our ultimate goal is to provide the best connection we
can. All of our dial-up modems are connected digitally to the Internet, and all are V.90
capable. There may be circumstances beyond our control that will keep some users from
connecting at high rates. We do our best to accommodate these customers by troubleshooting
and monitoring their connections, and offering technical support and suggestions. If you
have any specific problems or questions, or can offer more information on this subject,
please e-mail billing@ameritel.net.
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