My Computer man has suggested lowering BB speed...

fiscalfreckles

Yes, guilty, I do have said antiquity! Just about to upgrade the whole kit though, but am unable to get out of the Orange deal until September, so trying to minimise problems with the connection before then.

So, if my new pc also has a new router, is life going to get better?

(Mr Tech seems to be on a day off today.)

penrhyn

Mr Tech is not doing you any favours. USB modems went out with the ark. They can also slow your machine.
I suppose you could try blagging a new router from Orange but that would mean another 12 month contract, how come you can't move before September, with an old Frog modem you must have been with them for a few years.

kwikbreaks

A router will be a lot more secure than a modem for starters. O2 would probably be faster too although if you have a problem line they are not likely to be any keener than Orange to get that fixed for you.

USB modems are most definitely the past. I hope you are running on the updated drivers for it too as the original ones didn't properly support the newer upto 8Mbps ADSL.

macman

OP, go on eBay and get yourself a basic wireless router, something like a Netgear DG834G. That should cost you no more than £20, which is not much compared to what your so-called tech guy is presumably costing you. Set that up connected direct to your BT master socket and I would be surprised if you do not see some immediate speed increase.
Then switch to O2 LLU once you are out of contract.
You will never be able to optimise your connection using a USB modem.

fiscalfreckles

Oh, fascinating. I'm sure the modem is the problem now. You see, we upgraded the BB and should have connected an Orange Livebox at that time but the pc wouldn't support it without modification. Which I didn't want to pay out for as I knew I would be upgrading the hardware shortly. So orange advised me to just continue with the old modem.

To be fair, Mr Tech is probably unaware of that as he has been working remotely and probably didn't consider anyone to be so old fashioned.
(Glad we have all stopped sniggering now! :embarasse )

We can't change before September as we took out a new BB contract as part of a mobile phone package. But are going to switch to Virgin then.

Tell me about the updated drivers for the modem...?

And can I just say a big THANKS to everyone for their patience & help here.

macman

Why won't your PC support a LiveBox? Does it not have an ethernet/network port? If so, you are not going to be able to use any modern router. The cost of a PCI ethernet card is about a fiver, and would take your tech guy 5 minutes to fit it, were he actually there.
Frankly, if he has only been checking things by remote access then you are wasting your time, as he will not have been able to see how your connection is set up, or check your filters etc. However, he should have been able to see your old modem and know that it was an issue.
02 would be a much better option than Virgin, unless you must have the extra speed that a cable connection offers (and assuming you are refrring to VM and not Virgin National?)

fiscalfreckles

Don't know, something about a card, but we were quoted considerably more than that to fix the problem - and , as I said, we knew we were upgrading the pc so didn't think it was worth it.

I feel happier now that when we get the new pc system, everything will be better. I was worried that we'd never get a better connection than this. But if the modem is really that old & useless...

perhaps Mr Tech is avoiding me? Wait til i see him!

kwikbreaks

fiscalfreckles wrote: »

We can't change before September as we took out a new BB contract as part of a mobile phone package. But are going to switch to Virgin then.

Would the guaranteed improved connection by getting cable installed now and just forgetting about the last few months of ADSL be worth the financial hit? You can have both installed at the same time but can't actually use both on a single PC (at least not easily). Whenever you get cable don't forget to checkout the cashbacks that are on offer from Quidco and TopCashback.

penrhyn

What PC and operating system do you have?
Most PCs have a network/Ethernet port thats suitable for a router.
Cards are cheap, less than a tenner from Amazon.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/D-Link-DFE-530TX-100Mbps-Ethernet-Adapter/dp/B00004SYNX/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1274107150&sr=8-1

kwikbreaks

fiscalfreckles wrote: »

Don't know, something about a card, but we were quoted considerably more than that to fix the problem - and , as I said, we knew we were upgrading the pc so didn't think it was worth it.

Certainly sounds like an ethernet card is needed. Not having built in ethernet means that your PC may be of interest to the Science Museum after you upgrade but won't be worth listing on eBay.

Although £5 is about right for the actual card if you can't open the case yourself and push one in the correct slot there will always be a cowboy willing to rob you blind doing that for you.