Very Slow Browsing Sympatico High Speed

Canadian-ay · Sep 18th, 2005, 08:51 AM

I am experiencing slow Sympatico service for about 3-4 days which means slow browser operation. Until the slowness appeared I did no changing of equipment or playing with the routers. I have reset modem & router correctly several times with no change. I even did an update to the latest ROM with no change after 1 conversation with their techs and no change. The settings are on the router PPOE (thru the wizard) and DHCP on each computer. I tried the test at (http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/) and it kept giving downloads of 2406 bps and uploads of 633 bps. The site http://www.broadbandreports.com/ has site showing typical upload download rates for Sympatico users and they ranged from 3200 to 4900 on the download side to 578-670 on the upload side. I thought I had a download speed problem which caused the other obvious problem. It can take 20-30 seconds to load a web page with any of our computers which are on a Dlink DI624 router and a Speedstream 5260 modem. Of course it's faster on a page that is already in cache. WE have 3 MAcs 2 B&W G3 running tiger wired to the router and the final G4 accesses the router wirelessly. All experience poor browser load times. After 2 conversations with techs, we determined that the download rate is excellent as far as they are concerned because they used their website to test it (http://securityservices.sympatico.ca...es/download.do) and the speed of (High Speed (325kb/s): 1.5 minutes ) which was achieved by my computers. After that all they could say is can we duplicate the problem when linked directly to the modem and the answer was yes. So that eliminated the router as a villain and all they could suggest was to eliminate the Y connection at the Jack which I also use for a phome that requires a line filter. Very small improvement which the tech declared as a victory even though the phone has been connected that way for months and the speed was fine. All the techs could think of was the Mac operating systems which they know nothing and persistent tries to empty cache and remover temp internet files and cookies. we did tests with the 3 bowsers we have IE, Safari and Firefox and the results did not change on the 2 computers I used. He even had me try another OS on my 2nd partition (another Tiger) no change and OS9 (not classic) but I could not get the internet connection to browse when I connected the computer directly to the modem. Only their old connecter software showed I had a connection. I needed to use their old internet connection. The tech kept saying that when they tested the modem it works fine even when I mentioned higher download speeds from other Sympatico users. I keep thinking that they're wrong. I would like to try my neighbor's modem (if he does not have the same issue)on my line if they have the same model. (would that cause an issue when we put back modems to original places besides ruling out or fingering my modem? Any thoughts from other people? As you know Bell rents these out at $10 per month and are their other DSL options around? I live in Belleville.

Ted

Lawrence · Sep 18th, 2005, 08:58 AM

I have a Hi-Speed Symbadico connection in Toronto and using the speed test to
and from the New City Server this is the result that I got:

Download Speed: 2476 kbps (309.5 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 638 kbps (79.8 KB/sec transfer rate)

Rob · Sep 18th, 2005, 09:27 AM

There are lots of DSL resellers out there. You should be able to find somebody with better rates and better service than Sympatico.

I get my high speed DSL from a reseller for $30 a month. That doesn't include a modem, but I have a used Alcatel modem that I got for $40. Modem rental costs are way too high now when you can buy new ones for under $100. $10 a month modem rental charges are typical.

The numbers you provided are confusing. Are you sure you didn't slip some K's and/or B's in your post? I'm getting numbers similar to Dolawren on the speed test. It looks like you're getting the same if you add the K in front of your numbers.

I've had the odd slowdown that can be resolved by disconnecting and reconnecting the modem via the router software. I don't have the same hardware as you so I can't say how it would be done on yours.

If you keep your computers running for long periods between reboots I would suggest shutting them all down and then starting up again. It might help to clear up any network issues. Power off the router too so everything gets a fresh start.

Canadian-ay · Sep 18th, 2005, 10:48 AM

Thanks for your help. My computers do not stay on continuously. They get shut down when not is use and the router modem does get shut down from time to time. I had the sympatico tech assist in the d/l test in its site and the numbers quoted match what a high speed system should get. Were they KB's or kb's I can't remember but my tests on the speakeasy site were in kilobits per second (ie) kb vs kilo bytes per second. The key here is that downloading times though a bit slow based on what other users reported on broadband report website seem not to be a major issue because downloading was fast: why did browsing speed which is like dialup speed not match. How can the misbehaving OS Software in 3 computers cause the same issue all at the same time? It's got to be the modem and or issues on the Sympatico network that they are not acknowledging. Was there a ROM upgrade available for the 5260? Have to start shopping for other DSL's, I guess unless I have direct access to better trained outsourced reps.

Ted

Ted

The Doug · Sep 18th, 2005, 11:12 AM

Just a thought -- there was an article on MacFixit a while back about slow browser performance and Java caches -- have you cleared yours lately? These are the instructions on MacFixit:

Clear Java caches for slow page loading If you are experiencing issues with slow page loading with certain sites after upgrading to Safari 1.3.1 or Safari 2.0.1, you may need to clear your Java caches.

In order to do this:

Open the application "Java 1.4.2 Plugin Settings" located in Applications/Utilities/Java on a normal Mac OS X installation.
Click the "Cache" tab
Click "Clear"
Repeat this process for the "Java 1.3.1 Plugin Settings" application also located in Applications/Utilities/Java

In any case I'm on Sympatico High Speed and haven't had issues like the ones you describe. I run a speed test once a week out of curiosity, and it's always right around the results I obtained a moment ago:

2005-09-18 11:07:10 EST: 2426 / 665
Your download speed : 2485160 bps, or 2426 kbps.
A 303.3 KB/sec transfer rate.
Your upload speed : 681314 bps, or 665 kbps.

Even though I have issues with Sympatico the company, my connection is stable & consistent speed-wise, and I'm not unhappy with it. Good luck...

Canadian-ay · Sep 18th, 2005, 04:37 PM

Thanks for your help but resetting the java cache made no difference. We've already deleted the obvious in IE SAFARI & Foxfire with no change. It's got to be something else: 3 computers cannot have the same problem at the same time. Has to be the modem. Love to see what happens if I an test the system with another Speedstream 5260 modem. Would it work or do you have to use the same modem (same MAC ID??) on my internet connection?
Ted

Peter · Sep 18th, 2005, 05:25 PM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by Canadian-ay
	Thanks for your help but resetting the java cache made no difference. We've already deleted the obvious in IE SAFARI & Foxfire with no change. It's got to be something else: 3 computers cannot have the same problem at the same time. Has to be the modem. Love to see what happens if I an test the system with another Speedstream 5260 modem. Would it work or do you have to use the same modem (same MAC ID??) on my internet connection? Ted

Did you try resetting the modem??
That has solved problems for me in the past.
I use a Speedstream 5200 with 2 Imacs and a PC laptop through a riuter and all woks well and speeds are great. I live in Toronto.

Peter

kps · Sep 18th, 2005, 06:07 PM

I'm on Bell ADSL and am experiencing the same issues. Pages take very long to load initially, but once loaded the rest seems fine. That makes me think it's a Bell DNS issue.

I just got back from out of town, so I haven't had a chance to troubleshoot the issue. I'll also reset my router and modem, clear some stale caches and see...

Kevlar · Sep 18th, 2005, 08:55 PM

I have the same problem here to, it's been driving me crazy since Friday. Click on a bookmark or type in an address and it takes a while to get there, Mail seems lost somewhere in space. I was thinking this was a problem with my router but now I'm not so sure anymore.

stevieb · Sep 18th, 2005, 09:17 PM

Same problem here. I was about to re-set my router and modem, and saw this thread. Must be something on thier end...