Slow Connections

If your Internet connection is crawling at a snail’s pace, several things could be going on, including any of the following:

• If you are surfing during the day and find web pages loading at an excruciatingly slow pace, chances are, the Internet is bogged down with traffic. Given the time differences across the United States, along with the millions of leisure surfers who log on from home, the Internet may very well be clogged at all hours of the day. The only thing you can do is surf at odd hours, invest in a high-speed Internet connection for your home, or simply tolerate the sluggishness.

• For those of you who have the opportunity to take advantage of DSL or cable modem service, go for it. You get super speed, and you don’t even have to tie up a telephone line! If you plan to do much surfing and there is anything less than a 56K modem in your computer, then you should seriously consider upgrading.

• If things are crawling along into the wee hours of the night, there may be a cut cable somewhere along the line. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do about it, since it is more than likely halfway across the country. In such a situation, you will certainly feel the effects of masses of rerouted Internet traffic.

• Perhaps your connections are continually hit or miss. It could mean your Internet service provider (ISP) doesn’t have a high-speed link to the Internet. If they don’t plan on upgrading soon, you may want to shop around for better service.