Discover
how to optimize your Internet connection.
By
Greg Melton
Can you tell me if the
program Dr. Speed really works?
Dr.
Speed
is one of many different programs that claim to increase Internet
surfing speeds and download times. It does this by optimizing the size of data
packets flowing from your computer and by caching DNS records from sites you've
visited.
The term "bandwidth" applies to the amount of data that's able to
travel to and from your computer. Bandwidth is something you'll never be able to
increase unless you purchase new hardware or upgrade your Internet connection.
When you request a file over the Internet, that request is spliced into data
packets and then sent off through your Internet connection.
If a data packet coming from your modem is too large for the amount of
bandwidth you have available, the packet will be split in two. The first packet
will occupy the allotted bandwidth while the second packet occupies only a small
portion of it. The process of splitting the data packet in two -- and the fact
that the second packet isn't occupying as much bandwidth as possible -- is where
some Internet delays originate.
Dr. Speed optimizes the data packets traveling from your modem so they fit
perfectly to the size of your bandwidth. In our rough tests we couldn't really
determine that Dr. Speed worked all that well in adjusting our data packet sizes
coming from our dialup modem. Where we did notice an improvement after
installing Dr. Speed was in visiting sites that we had already visited.
When you view a webpage on the Internet, your Web browser caches all the
content (graphics, stylesheets, JavaScript code) associated with that page so
you don't have to wait for it to be downloaded again. However, your browser
doesn't cache the DNS information associated with the site you're visiting.
A DNS record resolves the name of a website with its physical location or IP
address. Just as your home may be referred to as the Smith residence with the
address of 123 Main St., a website such as TechTV.com has the physical address
of 64.95.116.134.
When you visit TechTV.com, your browser must query your ISP's DNS records to
resolve where TechTV.com is officially located on the Internet. Your browser
must do this for each and every site you visit.
Dr. Speed caches or keeps track of all the DNS information for sites you've
already visited so your browser doesn't have to. Since it removes a step from
the process, we noticed a big improvement when visiting TechTV over and over
again. DNS caching is where we found Dr. Speed really useful. The program is
$29.95 and comes with a 90-day guarantee should you decide you want your money
back.
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