Topic: Internet Connection Sharing

[SSCF-LeRoy]

I've been having issues with running SFC and TS at the same time, discouraging me from playing online for any sustained period. My TS reception is annoyingly choppy I know my dial-up connection leaves alot to be desired (  ), but I thought that maybe it would help to run the game on my desktop computer while I run TS on a laptop that is networked to the desktop via crossover cable. I need a few tips on sharing the desktop's dial-up connection, though. Any help would be greatly appreaciated

[Bonk]

I have found that dial-up simply cannot support TS and multiplayer gaming. Splitting it between two PCs will not help. Adding ICS will only complicate matters and add an unreliable layer of software NAT.

I have even found that TS can interfere with gaming on a broadband connection. TS is a horrific bandwidth hog. Channel admins have the tendency to use high quality codecs without considering the implications. (for both the server and clients)

Roger wilco is another matter however, the GSM codec it uses is extremely efficient and its network structure is also much more forgiving. It is a million times easier on server bandwidth. However, it seems no one uses it anymore.

Since I have been on dialup, I have skipped voice comms while playing. If I need to use TS I find I cannot do anything else online, nothing.

[SSCF-LeRoy]

The thing that kills me is once upon a time I was able to run SFC and TS at the same time without hickups on dial-up. I used SurfBest as my gaming ISP at the time in addition to CompuServe though. Nowadays all I have is CompuServe 'cuz our SurfBest account was cancelled while I was at school. I might have to see about signin' up with SurfBest again. SurfBest seemed to be less sluggish.

[Mazeppa]

The thing that kills me is once upon a time I was able to run SFC and TS at the same time without hickups on dial-up. I used SurfBest as my gaming ISP at the time in addition to CompuServe though. Nowadays all I have is CompuServe 'cuz our SurfBest account was cancelled while I was at school. I might have to see about signin' up with SurfBest again. SurfBest seemed to be less sluggish.

You might  limit the bandwidth Teamspeak uses.  Go to Settings/options/bandwidth and dial it down to somewhere between 6 and 15, and see if the voice quality is acceptable.  If you hear robut-like voices, who cares?  If you connect at around 45KB/s, and only use 1-2 KB/s for voice, you might be in a better situation.   Since most of us are on broadband these days, we open the pipe to the max, but I remember from the old days working to make every bit of bandwidth count.

You might test your avaliable bandwidth through your ISP. 

http://www.pcpitstop.com/internet/default.asp
http://us.mcafee.com/root/speedometer/default.asp

..and see what they report as your connect speed. 

Also, some references on faster dial-up:

http://www.bellevuelinux.org/faster_dial-up.html
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Network-Tweak/TCP-Optimizer.shtml
http://www.tweakmaster.com/kb/qa0021.php

You MTU is especially important.  Do some research to see what is best for your dial-up situation. 



Also, you might call your customer support and explain you need the best and fastest possible connection for gaming, and ask them if they have any ideas.    They might give you a series of numbers to call that may help, or other hints.  If you dont get a good answer on the first call, try again.  Eventually you will get a sympathetic gamer who will have ideas for you.  .

Dial-up ISP's have a bank of phone numbers that connect to a bank of modems.  The newer modems are at the front of the line, and the older ones are toward the end.  So if you are stuck with an older modem with a marginal connection, hang up and try again.  Somebody on a newer modem may disconect, and you may finally get a good modem.  Prime time is 6 PM to 11 PM, so if you know you will be gaming at those times, you might try and connect before 5 PM, get on the dynaverse, and get behind the lines until you are ready to play. 


Believe it or not, I had good experience running OP and a chat client on NetZero and Juno about three years ago.  I was away from home for a short time, and had to use dial-up to connect, and tried a few free services.  So you might try some free ISP's and see how it goes.  If you still have problems after dialing down the Teamspeak bandwidth, try a free ISP.

Good luck!

[Dfly]

Defiinitely get a hold of your ISP server, and ask for the latest Definition ISP strings(hope that is the right way of saying it, but Strings it the right word) available.  When I was on dial-up, I was at 33,000 baud rate till I asked for new strings, then i went up to 57.6 on my 56K IP. It made such a difference that I could host a room with 6 players, where up to 3 could be dial-up.  If all others were cable or other than dial-up, I could run TS as well with no problems hosting a 6 player room.

[FCM_SFHQ_XC]

Odd I have X3 in my Extra Initialization Commands field and I am not getting any better of a connection contradictory to what  my ISP said..
TS and a MP game work OK, though every now and then the sound on TS does break up its not a major problem

Some channels on TS work better then others. Try other channels in the TS address to see if any channels are better.

[SSCF-LeRoy]

Thanks fer all the feedback, guys. I've been tweakin' all day and keepin' PC Pitstop busy. After playin' around with MTU's, buffer sizes, and phone numbers, I may have adjusted things to an exceptible level finally. Before tweaking, my internet connection was routinely no better or worse than a 28.8 modem I've got it to where throughput is consistently faster now--hopefully fast enough to support some SFC and TS action. As fer gettin' in touch with CompuServe, their technical support ain't very--well--technical. There's outsourcin' fer ya With all the development and suburban sprall headin' our way from town, DSL may actually become a viable option soon. I've got my fingers crossed

[Dfly]

depending on where you live, you may want to contact Vianet.ca about thier services.  I was given all the info I needed back when I was dial-up with them.  They gave me what I needed then, and continue to do so now.   I have never had a better ISP than them.  If you happen to be american, then I am not sure they can help you, but try them anyways.  www.vianet.ca 

[SSCF-LeRoy]

GOOD NEWS!!!

No, I didn't just save a bunch o' money on my car insurance by switchin' to Geico DSL is finally available in my area, therefore I anticipate movin' into broadband land here soon! <intense jubilation insues>

[Dfly]

Pre-Congrats.

[SkyFlyer]

Bout time. What speed is it?

[SSCF-LeRoy]

Bout time. What speed is it?

Up to 3 MB/s. T'will be a marked improvement over the 17k I'm seein' my current dial-up connection achieve right now

[Mazeppa]

Bout time. What speed is it?

Up to 3 MB/s. T'will be a marked improvement over the 17k I'm seein' my current dial-up connection achieve right now

I remain amazed at the way the Federation deals with the mundane.  Take communication speed problems.  You would be amazed how throughput would improve if you simply threatened to execute your communications officer. 

[SSCF-LeRoy]

Bout time. What speed is it?

Up to 3 MB/s. T'will be a marked improvement over the 17k I'm seein' my current dial-up connection achieve right now

I remain amazed at the way the Federation deals with the mundane.  Take communication speed problems.  You would be amazed how throughput would improve if you simply threatened to execute your communications officer. 

Who sez I didn't?

[KBF MalaK]

Bout time. What speed is it?

Up to 3 MB/s. T'will be a marked improvement over the 17k I'm seein' my current dial-up connection achieve right now

17K ?? thats unbelievably slow even for a 33.6 modem. You might try to reflash the modem firmware and tweek your modem strings to 'auto-negotiate' it's connection speed. I reflashed my USR 'kflex' modem and the speed doubled, and even my current 33.6 'winmodem' rarely connects slower than 31,200 (but i've seen it d/l at speeds posted at 50k) and I used to run TS without any problems, but have since switched to VT (my buds all use VT, and it's bandwidth usage is more efficient).

[SkyFlyer]

when they say "up to 3mb" you're more in the area of 1.5-1.8

[SSCF-LeRoy]

when they say "up to 3mb" you're more in the area of 1.5-1.8

Wouldn't surprise me, but anythin' would be an improvement by this point!

[SkyFlyer]

when they say "up to 3mb" you're more in the area of 1.5-1.8

Wouldn't surprise me, but anythin' would be an improvement by this point!

Hehe basicalyl depends how close to their office you are. I get 2.0... I have a friend who lives much closes and has reported speeds of 4 and 5mb down.

[SSCF-LeRoy]

Heh, turns out we're gettin' 1.5 MB/s DSL instead of 3, which suits me just fine 'cuz it's bound to better than this gimped dail-up of ours. The modem arrived yesterday, but it won't do us any good until a technician from the telephone company comes to tinker with our telephone service tomorrow. <eagerly rubs hands together> I can hardly wait!

[SSCF-LeRoy]

I am happy to report that I am now under way on DSL power